Describes and analyzes the social organization of testing as an interactional phenomenon. Provides examples of exchanges between clinician and child in a diagnostic testing situation. States these coorientational activities demonstrate that testing has an interactional basis. Explores the implications for research on bias in mental testing. (NL)

A conventional verbal ability test and a Bayesian adaptive verbal ability test were compared using a variety of psychometric criteria. Tests were administered to 550 Marine recruits, half of whom received two 30-item alternate forms of a conventional test and half of whom received two 30-item alternate forms of a Bayesian adaptive test. Both types…

Examines the validity of estimates of instructional reading level produced by the Reading Comprehension Test of the 1986 Metropolitan Achievement Tests (MAT). Compares reading level estimates provided by the MAT, basal reader placement tests, an informal reading inventory, and classroom teachers' judgments. Suggests that each method, because of…

An updated and improved listing of test and measurement items useful in Adult Basic Education Classrooms is provided. Diagnostic, placement, achievement, and group and individual intelligence tests are reviewed. Information on test type and purpose, appropriate grade level, test time, number of forms, the manual, scoring, and format is included.…

This document includes the Early Screening Inventory: Revised (ESI-R), a developmental screening instrument for 3- to 6-year-olds, and an examiner's manual. The inventory comprises two sample scoring sheets, one for preschool (ages 3-4) and one for kindergarten (ages 4-6), and a parent questionnaire. The inventory is intended to be individually…

This bulletin attempts to explain the use and limitations of regularly the process of selecting educational areas which should receive additional interpret adequately their meaning to parents and students. A companion publication "Understanding Testing Purposes and Interpretations for Pupil Development," also prepared by HEW, was issued in 1960. A…

When selecting standardized reading tests for purposes of decision making, the school psychologist must answer several questions, such as "What reading skills do I wish to assess?" or "How do I judge if the test is technically adequate?" Recommendations for test selection are made within the context of these questions.…

This booklet presents a list of testing materials in English as a second language and Spanish. Among the information included are the name and description of each test, the test level, the address of the publisher, and the known uses. Forty-three tests are discussed. (SK)

Tests are inevitably designed to measure students and therefore will affect both teaching techniques and the student's concept of what is important in learning. Standardized, objective high school English tests, which neglect the individual's needs or accomplishments, limit classroom freedom and the natural course of the curriculum. An integral…

The National Commission on Testing and Public Policy is conducting a 3-year policy-oriented investigation of the role of tests, especially standardized, norm-referenced tests, in the allocation of educational, training, and employment opportunities in the United States today. This document reports on the first hearing, which focused on the…