Because of a concern by the Alaska State Department of Education that results from the American College Test (ACT) and the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) are not being used to their fullest advantage to improve secondary instruction, the use of these assessment results by other states was studied. A two-page survey and request for copies of state…

The assumptions that high-stakes testing is useful in raising educational standards for all students and that higher standards lead to higher educational performance for all students have not been tested in schools along the Texas border with Mexico. This study analyzed the effects of the high-stakes testing policy on students in a small rural…

Since the authorization of the use of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) through the Trial State Assessment to provide state-based data, debate over the proposed expansion of the NAEP has strengthened. To assist states in analyzing and interpreting 1990 data on eighth-grade mathematics and to assist in planning subsequent NAEP…

Current science assessments in use in the states were studied, and the extent to which these assessments meet the goals of reform of science education specified by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) was investigated. These goals were identified by the AAAS in "Project 2061: Science for All Americans?" Data…

This article describes the placement testing program, the use of microcomputer software for scoring and analyzing test results, and the integration of the computerized test results into a comprehensive microcomputer-based student information system at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). UCI offers placement tests in five academic fields:…

This paper presents results of a study examining the relationship between the American Board of Surgery's In-Training Examination and its Qualifying Examination. 1982 Test scores on both examinations of 764 candidates in their fifth year of training as Chief Residents were analyzed. Descriptive statistics, correlations, and standard errors were…

The Connecticut Assessment of Educational Progress (CAEP) is modeled after the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and has been in operation since 1971. This report is the culmination of a multi-year effort by the Connecticut State Department of Education to make its CAEP program even more useful to classroom teachers and other…

This practicum report is a structured account of efforts to improve student test scores and maximize the use of available test data in two rural Florida schools. This practicum was designed to evaluate the meaningfulness and use of Florida's State Student Assessment Test (SSAT) to teachers of second and third grade students. The SSAT is required…

The Statewide Assessment Program, administered by the Alaska Department of Education, tests all fourth and eighth graders in math and reading biennially. In 1985, the Department's Office of Evaluation, Assessment and Research undertook an evaluation of the assessment program to identify procedures which needed improvement and to determine the…

The materials presented were developed for use in a series of conferences on testing and instruction sponsored by the National Institute of Education, with the United States Office of Education, the UCLA Center for the Study of Evaluation, and a network of research and development agencies. They are intended for use by school practitioners and…

Nearly every state has adopted or is in the process of adopting content and performance standards for education. This guide summarizes some of the lessons learned in developing standards. It also provides tips and strategies from early leaders in standards development to help educators and policymakers who are working on new forms of assessment.…

A new South African testing approach designed to assess potential university students' ability to cope with English-medium academic education is also designed to take into account the effects of educational disadvantagement and minimize reliance on students' content-based secondary school experiences. The approach incorporates principles from…

This study demonstrates that the validity and usefulness of mathematics achievement tests can be improved by defining psychologically meaningful subscores that yield differential relations with student, teacher, and school variables. The eighth- and tenth-grade mathematics tests from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88) were…

Findings are summarized from a comparative analysis of education-examination practices in selected European and Asian countries. The review of testing practices in other countries reveals that these practices are in transition in most countries. A central lesson is that changing teaching can lead to changes in testing. (SLD)

Argues that high-stakes primary grade testing increases pressure on low-achieving schools to improve test performance and increases chances that low achieving children will be retained in grade or classified as handicapped. It is suggested that current practices be modified to eliminate motives to engage in such placement practices. (SLD)