The purpose of the study reported here was to explore the relationship between the type of high school attended (magnet versus comprehensive) and the likelihood of graduates having completed an advanced course, after accounting for students' prior achievement. In addition, the study examined the relationship between students' prior achievement and…

The well-being and accomplishment of all Montana students is vital to the future success of the state. More specifically, increasing academic achievement and providing all students with a quality education will result in the opportunity for students to have more choices beyond their K-12 experience. This is what the business of education is all…

Fingertip Facts is a compendium of some of the most frequently requested data sets from the Utah State Office of Education. Data sets in this year's Fingertip Facts include: Core CRT Language Arts Testing, 2013; Core CRT Mathematics Testing, 2013; 2013 Public Education General Fund; 2012-13 Enrollment Demographics; Public Schools by Grade Level,…

Operational testing programs employing item response theory (IRT) applications benefit from of the property of item parameter invariance whereby item parameter estimates obtained from one sample can be applied to other samples (when the underlying assumptions are satisfied). In theory, this feature allows for applications such as computer-adaptive…

Fingertip Facts is a compendium of some of the most frequently requested data sets from the Utah State Office of Education. Data sets in this year's Fingertip Facts include: Core CRT Language Arts Testing, 2012; Core CRT Mathematics Testing, 2012; 2012 Public Education General Fund; 2011-2012 Enrollment Demographics; Public Schools by Grade Level,…

Schools and communities across Montana are working hard to ensure that students receive the best education and graduate ready for college and careers. One of the most important components in this effort involves understanding where students are and how schools and communities can best help them achieve at the highest levels. Data is an invaluable…

The gold standard in making causal inference on program effects is a randomized trial. Most randomization designs in education randomize classrooms or schools rather than individual students. Such "clustered randomization" designs have one principal drawback: They tend to have limited statistical power or precision. This study aims to…

This report has a simple aim: to present results from international assessments so readers can judge for themselves how American students stack up globally. It's intended to be a stand-alone supplement to the "Education Olympics" web event held between August 8th and August 22nd, 2008 (see edolympics.net). It shows how the U.S. has…

This paper presents results of English Language Arts Criterion-Referenced Test (CRT) of third grade students for the year 2008-2009. In 2005, 77% of third-grade students who took the 3rd grade Language Arts CRT were proficient; in 2009, 80% of third-grade students were proficient. Third grade proficiency on the Language Arts Test has gradually…

With the passage of 2005 Wisconsin Act 125, private schools participating in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP) are now required to administer a nationally normed standardized test annually in reading, mathematics, and science to their MPCP (a.k.a. "Choice") students enrolled in the 4th, 8th, and 10th grades. The law further…

In this technical report, data are presented on the predictive and concurrent relation between various student demographic variables (gender, race/ethnicity, special education status, Title 1 status, English language learning status, and economic disadvantage) and three reading easyCBMs (passage reading fluency, vocabulary, and multiple-choice…

The purpose of this report is to provide descriptive data regarding the test scores of Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP) students in grades 4, 8 and 10 in reading, math, and science, as reported to the School Choice Demonstration Project 2008-2009. The tables, graphs, and histograms presented in this paper provide a snapshot of these…

The New Mexico High School Proficiency Examination covers five general content areas: (1) Community Resources; (2) Occupational Knowledge; (3) Consumer Economics; (4) Mental and Physical Health; and (5) Government and Law. Skills measured by the test are: Identification of Facts and Terms; Reading; Writing; Computation and Problem Solving. These…

This paper discusses the validity of test preparation practices in the context of large-scale norm-referenced and criterion-referenced tests. It presents a framework for conceptualizing the various aspects of test preparation that includes the basic premises underlying the validity of the practices. Five areas of test preparation are outlined: (1)…

The Georgia Criterion-referenced Tests are designed to measure a core group of essential basic skills at key points throughout the educational development of students. This monograph reports test results for grades one, four, eight, and ten. Results are presented by graphs and figures, with brief narrative summaries. Information is provided on:…