Several issues should be considered in selecting assessment instruments and procedures for use in adult literacy programs. Teachers must consider the purpose of the assessment; the appropriateness of the assessment instrument for adults; the reliability, validity, and practicality of the instrument; whether the assessment is culturally sensitive;…

This report summarizes the results of two educational policy studies: (1) an analysis of current problems in teacher competency testing; and (2) an exploration of educational testing and evaluation research and development needs. In the first study, information on teacher competency testing was gathered from a literature review and meetings with…

A number of issues regarding educational evaluation and the problems associated with the practice of evaluation were discussed at a conference held in San Francisco, California, in 1976. Participants and persons submitting position papers included evaluators, administrators, teachers, educational researchers, parents, and students. Statements of…

A discussion of evaluating informal logic competence centers on the identification of currently available tests and on a description of test theory, to aid in test selection. The following concepts in test theory are discussed: norm-referenced and criterion-referenced tests, true scores, reliability, validity, test selection and evaluation, test…

The validity of the multiple-choice Sequential Tests of Educational Progress (STEP) Writing Test (1957) was tested by the University of Chicago Center for the Cooperative Study of Instruction. Seven criteria developed by the center to score essay assignments were used to determine the relationship between STEP and actual writing behavior. Of the…

In September 1977 a reading and language arts test, based upon 40 objectives slated for student accomplishment by the end of grade four, was administered to all Delaware fourth graders. This test, the Objective-Referenced Measure in Communications, was intended to provide entry level diagnostic information to classroom teachers and to inform…

The National Assessment is a plan for a systematic survey of knowledges, skills, understandings, and attitudes. The development of citizenship assessment described in this paper typifies the processes undergone for each subject--art, career and occupational development, citizenship, literature, mathematics, music, reading, science, social studies,…

This report summarizes 48 states' current policies on the participation of students with disabilities in large-scale assessments and the accommodations noted in state policies as available for those students. In developing the summary, changes in state assessment policies were also checked. Charts in the report provide information on presentation…

This report states that since July 1995, the State of Florida has required each public college and university to obtain scores on one of the following test batteries for degree-seeking students prior to registration: Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT), American College Testing (ACT), or the Florida College Entry-Level Placement Test (CPT). A…

Discusses which kinds of data educators should respect and which they should reject. Asserts that most state accountability tests fail to produce the kinds of data that will improve teaching and learning. Teachers can get the data they need from their own instructionally useful classroom assessments. (WFA)

Examines the function of schooling as constituted in the interactional sequences of routine testing events. Demonstrates that classroom testing represents a critical activity through which the grouping of students is accomplished. Suggests that the differentiation of both homogeneous and heterogeneous school populations is a necessary by-product…

Can caring and standardized testing coincide? Marcuse criticized the misuse of science because it also legitimizes social and economic hierarchy. By the same token, scholars develop standardized testing, claiming these tests are scientific and can measure objectively individuals' learning and intelligence capabilities. However, if inclusive caring…

Textbooks that have been and are being used by students in education and psychology to learn about statistical testing are reviewed. Twenty-eight textbooks published prior to 1950 were reviewed. These textbooks were found to focus on descriptive methods, to concentrate on educational testing, and to present limited formal statistical formulation.…

Recent reports by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM), the National Research Council, the Mathematical Sciences Education Board, and the Board on Mathematical Sciences emphasize that coordinated improvement in the content of mathematics curriculum, classroom instruction, and teacher education is the key to improving mathematics…

Arts education and its assessment are discussed, with particular emphasis on the visual arts. Suggestions are made concerning the role of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in the arts. The curriculum which is presented in art education varies a great deal among schools. The assessment of art should include production,…