About the Authors

Robert Calfee is a cognitive psychologist with research interests in the effect of schooling on the intellectual potential of individuals and groups. He earned his degrees at UCLA, did post-graduate work at Stanford, and spent five years in Psychology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. In 1969 he returned to Stanford University to join the School of Education, where he served as a professor in the Committee on Language, Literacy, and Culture, and the Committee on Psychological Studies until 1998. He is presently a professor in the Graduate School of Education at the University of California, Riverside. His interests have evolved over the past three decades from a focus on assessment of beginning literacy skills to a concern with the broader reach of the school as a literate environment. His theoretical efforts are directed toward the nature of human thought processes, and the influence of language and literacy in the development of problem-solving and communication. His research activities include Project READ, The Inquiring School, the Text Analysis Project, and Methods for Alternative Assessment. These projects all combine theoretical and practical facets directed toward understanding and facilitating school change. He has also written critical papers in recent years on the effects of testing and educational indicators, ability grouping, teacher assessment, and the psychology of reading. He has served as editor of Journal of Educational Psychology and Educational Assessment, and has been a member of several boards and committees, including the California Commission for the Establishment of Academic Standards, the National Research Council Committee on Test Equivalency, and the Board of Trustees for the Palo Alto Unified School District.