In 1990, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) included a Trial State Assessment (TSA); for the first time in the NAEP's history, voluntary state-by-state assessments (37 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and the Virgin Islands) were made. The sample was designed to represent the 8th grade public school population in a state…

In Arizona, beginning teachers applying for certification must take the Arizona Teacher Proficiency Examination which tests professional knowledge, reading, mathematics, and grammar. The high failure rate on the grammar test has caused a great deal of concern; 40 percent of the examinees, and a higher percentage of minority groups, failed it in…