The current investigation aimed to explore how and to what extent technology tools and web-delivered language learning platforms impact the academic performance of English language learners (ELLs) at the tertiary level. The study used a quantitative experimental research method employing a single-group pre-test and post-test design. A total of…

This technical assistance paper provides policy and guidance to individuals with test administration responsibilities in adult education programs. The Florida assessment policies and guidelines presented herein are appropriate for state and federal reporting. Therefore, guidance and procedures regarding the selection and use of appropriate student…

In this article, the authors present the adaptation and validation processes conducted to render the American "Test of Financial Literacy" (TFL) suitable for use in Germany (TFL-G). First, they outline the translation procedure followed and the various cultural adjustments made in line with international standards. Next, they present…

This guide is designed to assist States, agencies, and/or facilities who work with youth who are neglected, delinquent, or at-risk (N or D). The information in the guide will benefit those who are (a) interested in implementing pre-posttests, (b) in the process of identifying an appropriate pre-posttest, or (c) ready to evaluate current testing…

The manual is presented in the form of a policy grid. The grid includes a consolidated list of General Educational Development (GED) Testing Service policies regarding the GED® test and overall GED® program. The grid combines all of the policies into one unified table and supersedes any prior policy manual.

Assessment has garnered increased interest in recent years. It is seen as critical to enhancing student learning and understanding. Formative assessment tools such as concept inventories could be valuable in moving toward such goals. Concept inventories, a recent addition to biology education, hold much promise for helping faculty to understand…

Addresses the four questions raised by Yelon about use of pretests with instruction--should I pretest; on what should I pretest; how should I pretest; how should I adjust to results--and answers them from the perspective of instructional designers conducting formative evaluations to improve quality of instruction under development. (MBR)

Using participants in a continuing education conference, an experiment was conducted to examine: (1) the consistency of self-ratings of ability across four different measurement conditions; and, (2) the relative leniency of retrospective pretest self-ratings compared to pretest self-ratings. Implications for evaluators are discussed. (Author/BS)

Offers a synthesis of the arguments for and against value-added testing (i.e., assessing how much students learn or improve or grow in school or college). Looks at alternative methods of measuring the value added in terms of the relationship between entry and exit skills. (DMM)

The Title I Evaluation and Reporting System (TIERS) was developed in order to examine the extent to which Title I (now Chapter 1) is remediating the disadvantages in basic skills of educationally deprived children. TIERS Model A contrasts the achievement of Chapter 1 students to publishers' norms for hypothetically comparable groups of students.…

Popular belief in alternative assessment procedures suggests that the use of student portfolios can help learners successfully organize and integrate newly acquired scientific knowledge. This two-group comparison study documents the use of student created portfolios in an algebra-based, college-level, introductory physics course. Sixteen students…

Data from the areas of job satisfaction and job stress are used to illustrate the following points: (1) that measurements can be arranged conceptually along a continuum from the specific to the global (or general); (2) that scales can be constructed which represent different levels of generality, within the same content area; (3) that such scales…

A method for translating the achievement gains in Normal Curve Equivalents (NCE) to a more conceptually understandable index of academic growth is described. This method calculates "Expected Growth (EG)" and expresses the relationship of observed achievement gains. The method is shown to be easily applied and well suited to local…

This paper studied whether or not elementary school classroom teachers in a large urban midwestern school district were able to distinguish appropriate from inappropriate testing practices in a large-scale mandated program. Fifty of 62 teachers and paraprofessionals in 2 elementary schools completed the Teacher Assessment Preparation Practices…

In Perth, Western Australia, summative assessment has not been a teaching tool in the teaching of religious education courses in the Catholic schools. This study investigated whether the use of formal assessment procedures in the teaching of religion had an effect on student learning outcomes. Subjects were 128 students (4 classes) in year 8 of an…