Benchmark Assessment

Benchmarking is the practice of identifying, understanding, and adopting the successful business practices and processes used by other companies to increase success. In terms of curriculum studies, benchmark assessment is the means of assessing student knowledge for the purpose of being accountable or competitive, resulting in curriculum decisions being based on what other schools and school districts do for their students in another place and time rather than on the needs of one's current students.

Linked to the concept of mastery, this practice has its roots in the Middle Ages where the guild required a masterpiece for admission into a trade. The later roots of this current educational practice came from the Xerox Corporation where it was developed to improve the company's performance in the face ...