Preliminary findings indicate that positive relations between parents and teachers are associated with successful school outcomes for children. However, measures available to assess parent-teacher relations are scant. The current study examined validity evidence for the Parent-Teacher Relationship Scale-I (PTRS). Specifically, the internal…

This guide is intended to help parents understand the Delaware Student Testing Program (DSTP) and the reports it generates. The DSTP tests are administered to provide an accurate measure of how well students are doing relative to Delaware's rigorous content standards. DSTP tests are administered in reading, writing, mathematics, science, and…

Classroom assessment is how teachers find out how well students are learning. It is important because teachers need a lot of information for the decisions they have to make. It can take many forms, such as paper and pencil assessments, performance assessments, conversations, or observations. Classroom assessments are built on clear goals and…

The scale invariance of the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory was examined when 412 children were rated by parents on functioning at home and the same children were rated by rehabilitation personnel in an educational setting. Results indicated that parents and personnel can be trained to make similar judgments. (SLD)

The Elementary School Proficiency Assessment (ESPA) is New Jersey's test for fourth graders. It is designed to give the school information about how well students are achieving in the areas required by New Jersey's Core Curriculum Content Standards. This guide offers parents and students information about the ESPA. Parent information, which is…

The psychometric characteristics of the Henderson Environmental Learning Process Scale (HELPS) were studied with 385 parents of school-aged children. Factor analysis provided a conceptually meaningful six-factor solution, but internal consistency reliabilities of scores on three factors were unacceptably low. With some modifications, the HELPS…

This book is a practical guide to help parents understand educational assessment. It shows how good student assessment actually enhances learning, and it provides a foundation for building community support for effective practices. It offers advice about improving communication between home and school, and explains how to build strong…

The Elementary School Proficiency Assessment (ESPA) is New Jersey's test for fourth graders. It is designed to give the school information about how well students are achieving in the areas required by New Jersey's Core Curriculum Content Standards. This guide offers parents, students, and teachers information about the ESPA. The parent…

Studied whether student scores on standardized tests represent reasonable measures of instructional quality using ratings by 10 parents and 11 educators (school principals) of the degree to which test items from a nationally marketed standardized achievement test represent the content actually taught. On average, raters felt that test items…

The new Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) was developed to provide a measurement of how well students and schools are meeting Colorado's academic content standards. The CSAP tests are not norm-referenced showing how much a student has learned in comparison with other students. Instead, they are based on the state's content standards.…

This booklet prepares a student to take New Jersey's Grade Eight Proficiency Assessment (GEPA), a test that measures the knowledge and skills that will be tested later in the state's High School Proficiency Assessment. The GEPA has three test sections (content areas): Language Arts Literacy, Mathematics, and Science. The booklet tells students…

Development of a parent report measure for assessing the quality of life of children with cancer is described. The Pediatric Oncology Quality of Life Scale assesses physical function and role restriction, emotional distress, and reaction to current medical treatment. Reliability and validity assessments provide preliminary support for the…

The Parent-Child Conflict Tactics Scales (CTSPC), a version of the well-established Conflict Tactics Scales, was developed to improve its ability to obtain data on physical and psychological child maltreatment. The conceptual and methodological approaches used to develop the CTSPC are described and psychometric data, including reliability,…

This book is intended to help parents understand more about the tests their children take in school. The pros and cons of different types of tests are explained, and the proper use of standardized tests is discussed. Each chapter contains a brief summary of the topic, with follow-up activities and a list of resources a parent could bring to the…

A study was conducted to provide empirical evidence to answer the question of whether student scores on standardized achievement tests represent reasonable measures of instructional quality. Using a research protocol designed by W. Popham and the local study directors, individual test items from a nationally marketed standardized achievement test…