Coventional true score approaches to criterion-referenced tests are not applicable when tests are used for classification. Criterion-referenced testing is now used frequently for educational decision making. The assumption is made that these instruments are to be considered as tests designed to classify into "mastery" and "non-mastery" groups,…

Examined how well three measures, representing points on a traditional-alternative mathematics assessment continuum, discriminated fourth graders achieving above, at, and below grade level, and how cooperative testing affected performance assessment. Found strong discriminative validity for the more traditional measures but not for performance…

Reasons why there are few incentives for test publishers to make significant innovations in what is tested or how it is tested are given. A brief discussion of research on growth spurts in the brain, hemispheric differences, and other neurological phenomena is followed by a discussion of some conclusions drawn from this work. While skepticism is…

This paper describes an assessment of community college student knowledge in the liberal arts at two-year colleges in Southern California. A survey instrument with multiple choice questions covering five liberal arts subject areas was distributed to 4,200 students in randomly selected classes at ten colleges. More than 2,500 questionnaires were…

To help give elementary school physical education students a greater appreciation of their own progress and to increase their motivation to achieve, a club-oriented incentive program was established. Students were tested in skills taught at each grade level and those meeting the requirements were awarded club membership certificates. (PP)

A physical education teacher has created a recordkeeping system which maintains a continuous record of each student's progress in fitness tests, basic motor skills, specific play skills, and interpersonal behavior. The system helps with student motivation, administration, decision making, and building parental support. (PP)

Simulated Occupational Choice (SOC) was developed to measure competencies in career decision-making. SOC is a structured, individually-administered simulation exercise designed to elicit career decision-making behaviors and enable those behaviors to be observed, recorded, and scored in meaningful ways, particularly for diagnosis. It was…

This report describes the midterm and final tests administered to pupils in the Quality Assurance classes using the First Year Communication Skills Program. The tests included both selected and constructed response items and were designed to be individually administered to pupils. The results are reported for each eight outcome subscores (selected…

This publication reviews issues and processes in the quest for less-biased, least-biased, non-biased assessment. It is intended to aid the school psychologist in assisting all individuals in placement or program decisions for school-age children. The first section articulates the common sources of bias in assessment and identifies concepts…

The research project presented in this article was set in the Swedish school context and carried out on a set of compulsory national tests for English, Swedish, and mathematics used at the end of compulsory school. The aims were: (a) to gain a deeper knowledge of the internal structure of the tests and (b) to separate individual performance from…

The concept of progress by examination at Hampshire College is discussed in one of a series of progress reports on the college in its attempt to redefine the nature of liberal arts education. A student's academic progress is measured by examinations rather than by credit hours and grades. The system has been enthusiastically supported by the…

The conceptual basis for using individual expectancy scores as a means for determining the success of instruction is presented. An expected gain score is computed for each student, based on a pretest score. The assumption is made that without a change in the learning environment the student will continue to gain at his previous average rate. The…

This paper demonstrates that an electronic tutoring program can collect data that enables a far more reliable assessment of students' skills than a standard examination. Socratic electronic homework tutor, CyberTutor can integrate effectively instruction and assessment. CyberTutor assessment has about 62 times less variance due to random test…

This guide provides a framework for planning the triennial evaluation of students in the state of New York who receive special education services to determine whether there is a continuing need for those services. Following an introductory section which explains the rationale and basic requirements for such an evaluation, recommendations are made…

The purpose of this digest is to summarize major portions of the literature on assessment in counseling and therapy. In this collection of 32 digests, assessment is used to refer to assessment of clients as well as evaluations of program and counselor effectiveness. Recognized professionals have written about topics that are grouped into nine…