Yet as the three approaches increasingly interact with the world of public school education, dialogue is leading to greater focus on authentic and valid ways of conducting assessment and evaluation. The American Montessori Association issued a position paper on "Learning and Assessment" that recommends that assessment procedures in American classrooms move toward formats (such as portfolios, presentations, multimedia projects) that more authentically gauge children's ability to interrelate ideas, think critically, and use information meaningfully (http://www.amshq.org). Montessori education has been the most friendly of the three approaches to empirical research on child learning outcomes. Many studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of Montessori methods and provided insight into children's gains with respect to reading and literacy, mathematics, and motivation (e.g., Chattin-McNichols, 1992a; Loeffler, 1992; Miller & Bizzell, 1983; Takacs, 1993; Haines, 2000; see summary at http://www.montessori-namta.org/geninfo/rschsum.html. The American Montessori Association sponsors a Teachers' Research Network to promote teacher reflection on classroom practice (http://www.amshq.org). Their activities include training teachers in working with research mentors, interpreting research, framing questions, using qualitative and quantitative methods, and conducting joint comparative studies between types of schools. The organization also sponsors an annual dissertation award to promote research on Montessori education.