This chapter addresses assessment (testing) with an emphasis on the 100-year period since the American Education Research Association was formed. The authors start with definitions and explanations of contemporary tests. They then look backward into the 19th century to significant work by Horace Mann and Herbert Spencer, who engendered two…

Many education reporters are drawn to the beat because of its complexity and rich variety. Few topics provide such a wealth of political, business, human interest, breaking news, feature, and investigative stories. A reporter's day can start in a classroom with 4-year-olds struggling to learn to read, and end at a school board meeting with…

An essay drawn from a book on the unintended effects of high-stakes tests claims that public images of student assessment are influenced significantly by the cultural symbols of the one-room schoolhouse, sports competition, the factory model, and Disney. (Author/MLF)

Focuses upon three current issues in educational evaluation. Looks at the limitations of examinations and the interpretation of results in considering reliability and validity. Discusses grading and context of learning relative to formative and summative assessment. Deals with cultural background when exploring uniformity of testing versus…

Considers individual differences in cognitive and social functioning and how and why those differences are measured. Presents some issues that are believed to be historically important to the development of testing, particularly intelligence testing, and consequently to the practice of school psychology. Discusses some continuing problems with…

This book is a manual for the administration and interpretation of the Learning Styles Inventory, Version III (LSI-III). Part 1 is reproducible (so each teacher who administers the LSI can have a copy) and answers the following concerns: what the LSI-III is and what it measures; administering and scoring the LSI-III; interpreting students' scores…