The article "Thinking About Linking" by Newton (2010) presents a novel philosophical perspective on the way that educational assessments should be linked. Newton starts by describing the linking framework as it was characterized in various publications and identifies a cross-cultural dimension in the definitions and uses of test…

Many districts and schools across the U. S. have begun to develop and administer assessments to complement state testing systems and provide additional information to monitor curriculum, instruction and schools. In advance of this trend, the Jackson Public Schools (JPS) district has had a district benchmark testing system in place for many years.…

A new variant of the standard method for estimating the accuracy of educational tests is examined. It is found that the estimates produced by the new method are essentially unbiased and that the typical sizes of the errors of the estimates approach their theoretical lower limit as size increases, though they are still noticably above it for small…

This document is an English-language abstract (approximately 1,500 words) of a study of the prognostic value of handicraft training in Finnish school for subsequent success in school and on the job. The study raised several related questions--techniques of work appraisal, citizenship, school streaming, and trial periods at vocational schools. The…

The idea that validity should be considered a property of inferences, rather than of assessments, has developed slowly over the past century. In early writings about the validity of educational assessments, validity was defined as a property of an assessment. The most common definition was that an assessment was valid to the extent that it…

Summarizes some of the findings of recent study of tests designed to determine the English language proficiency of nonnative speakers. (CFM)

This report presents a thematic summary of the AERA papers dealing with test development, interpretation, and use, presented at the 1971 meeting in New York City. Papers were grouped into the following categories: test development and validation; inventory development and validation; measurement of creativity; factors in test performance; use of…

In fall 1986, a study was conducted at Florence-Darlington Technical College (South Carolina) to measure the reliability and validity of the TEC-MAT, a newly developed entrance test. The TEC-MAT instrument, a criterion-referenced test consisting of 100 items assessing numerical skills, was field tested among a group of entry-level freshmen already…

This book addresses the question of what tests are measures of. Intelligence, achievement, and personality tests not based on empirical investigation have questionable validity. Some researchers now suspect that almost all tests given to students in all subjects, as well as general tests of intelligence and personality, are essentially language…

This document expands upon the discussion of standardized tests in federal legislation and Department of Education rules and regulations, in order to guide practitioners in using these tests and alternative assessment methods more wisely. Amendments of 1988 that address the uses of standardized tests, the federal regulations that implement the…