The collection opens by listing the traditional methods of assessing student progress and achievement in public schools. Sandra Myers reviews grading systems and the different types that are commonly used to rate students and mark their performance. R.D. Merritt looks at grand point averages, which have proven to be a “statistically significant predictor of high school students’ future performance, academic achievement, and success in postsecondary education,” even though grade inflation can hinder their meaning. Myers then discusses formative and summative assessments and their role in providing teachers with valuable feedback regarding student progress. Alternative forms of assessment are examined, including authentic assessment, performance assessment, and student self-assessment. Myers describes authentic assessment at length by explaining how these assessments are often “credited with better preparing students for the working world [and] by encouraging the development of critical thinking and problem-solving skills.” Student portfolios represent another form of alternative assessments, as they include samples of a student’s best work and highlight the development of an individual piece of work over time. Performance-based assessments allow students to choose topics or tasks that are interesting and meaningful to them and thereby enable teachers to employ the most appropriate evaluation methods for each student.