Prominent Educator, Writer Ralph W. Tyler Dies at 91
Ralph W. Tyler, an influential theorist on curriculum and testing issues and one of the founders of the National Assessment of Educational Progress, died Feb. 18 of cancer at St. Paul’s Health Care Center in San Diego. He was 91.
Mr. Tyler, a former education professor at the University of Chicago, was recognized for his work in educational research in the fields of curriculum development and evaluation.
In 1949, he wrote Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction, which laid the groundwork for outcomes-based education.
Mr. Tyler made his mark on educational research in 1934 by publishing Constructing Achievement Tests. At that time, he became director of an eight-year study of secondary schools by the Progressive Education Association, a classic research project that is credited with showing the importance of evaluation of curricula.