This report reviews issues and previous empirical studies surrounding prediction of educational attainment, preparation for college, college aptitude assessment, and prediction of achievement in college for Hispanic students residing in the United States. First, a demographic overview of Hispanics, concentrating on population size, ethnic subgroup…

A 3-part test measures the geography knowledge, skills, and understanding of secondary level students. Part 1, map skills and location, contains 20 questions involving the use of three maps: an imaginary sketch map, a contour map, and a political map of the world. Part 2 consists of 20 questions covering physical geography. Students analyze…

Random samples of classroom teachers from Wyoming (n=555) and Louisiana (n=253) were drawn to determine teachers' purposes for using standardized tests, attitudes toward standardized testing, differences, if any, with grade level taught, and whether test use differed in two very different geographic locations. In addition, differences in…

The desire for a national picture of educational quality remains a continuing but unresolved goal. A question has been raised among high level policymakers regarding the feasibility of using existing data collected by the states to construct education indicators for state-by-state comparisons of student performance at the national level. A…

This report presents both formative and summative data regarding the implementation and effectiveness of the Basic Skills Program carried out in the Montgomery County, Maryland, public schools in 1981. The program provides intensive remedial instruction in the basic skills areas of reading, writing, and mathematics to elementary (through grade 8)…

New Mexico school districts participated in the 1980-81 Statewide Testing Program at grades 5, 8, and 11, to measure achievement in basic skills using the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills. Longitudinal comparisons by years (1979, 1980, and 1981) and grade level, and item analyses assessing students' performance in meeting instructional…

Standardized tests of writing ability have individual and shared limitations and deficiencies that should be acknowledged by test designers and users. Most institutions use the portions of standardized tests that test ability to proofread and edit, but they do not use the optional essay sections that actually require students to write. To assure…

This final report presents an evaluation of the Designing and Implementing Programs for the Little School Component which is a program designed to develop, implement, and disseminate a program of individualized instruction at the Howard D. Woodson Senior High School. The purpose of the program is to improve academic achievement and student…

This article analyzes potential problems in using standardized achievement tests in early childhood education settings. The first problem discussed is whether the outcomes typically measured by standardized achievement tests are the outcomes about which early childhood educators are most concerned. Second, it is argued that a concern for test…

In spite of opportunities for academic excellence, the 7,550 public school students of "Paradise Island" have average test scores well below statewide norms which, in turn, are below national averages. Sub-standard achievement in rural areas is a state-wide phenomenon which educators often explain in terms of isolation or minimal…

Because existing standardized college examination tests did not accurately measure the potential for learning of bilingual/bicultural populations, the Border Community College Consortium began in 1971 to develop two standardized tests to address the strengths and weaknesses of Mexican American students in writing, reading, and listening to the…

To permit local districts to exercise their option to use standardized tests for state-mandated evaluations, a test rating form was developed. A key concern was the percentage of state approved reading and mathematics skills measured by a test, rather than the test's value for other uses. Other content concerns were readability and cultural and…

The Texas Environmental Adaptation Measure (TEAM), a four-part instrument, is designed to assess children's adaptive behavior as it relates to their sociocultural and emotional environments. TEAM is intended to determine the eligibility of these children for special education classes and to provide information for individualizing their…

This report describes a compensatory education program in six elementary schools and one junior high school in a racially mixed area of Philadelphia. Current and additional personnel were used, and existing class size and physical plant were maintained. The program provided a community coordinator in each school to work with parents, a bilingual…

The findings and implications of doctoral research on non-urban, low income school children are summarized. Studies were the language patterns of white first graders, and the attitudes, cognitive and affective variables, and academic achievement of Negro and white fifth and sixth graders. Poverty rather than race was found to be the significant…