Describes the selection and implementation of an authentic assessment model for evaluating students' science laboratory knowledge and skills. Provides sample problems and a scoring form for the performance-based science laboratory test. (MDH)

A validity study with 5,219 students examined the degree to which Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) scores and undergraduate grade point average (GPA) could predict first-year average and final GPA in doctoral programs in business. The usefulness of the predictions derived from the empirical Bayes regression models is discussed. (SLD)

Calls into question the data of grammaticality judgment tasks on which several GB-based studies on the second-language acquisition of accusative verbs by Japanese learners of English base their arguments and reports the results of a pilot study. (Author/VWL)

Investigates the dimensions underlying performance on the diagrams, tables, and maps subset of the Swedish Scholastic Aptitude Test. Analyzes data from two test versions by using a structural-equation modeling technique on 14,463 and 19,636 examinees respectively. Concludes that gender difference in performance is due, to a great extent, to the…

The New Standards Project, attempting to create an assessment system comprised of performance exams, portfolios and projects, may not have fulfilled its promise to create a national system of tests worth teaching to. However, NSP did deliver high- quality professional-development opportunities for hundreds of teachers across the nation. (Contains…

A study of 309 African American college students in summer academic enrichment programs at the Medical College of Georgia from 1980-89 found the most significant predictors of medical school admission were the Scholastic Assessment Test math score, summer program grade point average, college grade point average, career aspirations, college type,…

Discusses the discrepancies among physicians, psychologists, and schools regarding the diagnosis and treatment of attention deficit disorders. Stresses the need for all evaluations to include cross-disciplinary cooperation, and for the acceptance of standardized measures as part of the identification and treatment process. (CR)

Compared to students from affluent public and prep schools, few inner-city students receive extra time or other accommodations when taking high-stakes tests. The growth in "false positives" among affluent youth may partly stem from nonspecific definitions under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Fairness is being…

Examines issues affecting the teaching and learning of listening skills within the study of Japanese as a Foreign Language. Listening within foreign-language learning is a complex skill, and students encounter several difficulties in learning to listen for comprehension. Teachers face concerns ranging from resource availability to how to teach…

Explored whether there were differences in IQ and achievement (at grades two, five, and seven) between students who delayed school entry and those who were retained in later elementary grades, as well as any interactions with gender. Concluded that instructional reform may be more effective for improving student success. (JBJ)

A study of 192 medical students compared parental income, as declared on financial aid statements, and mean scores on the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) and United States Medical Licensing Examination, by gender and minority/majority status. Results showed significant positive correlations between test scores and parental income for all…

Describes a workshop designed to raise teachers' awareness of potential obstacles to student comprehension of test questions. The article presents the practical problems among the staff that created the workshop, describes the workshop, and presents its limitations and advantages as well as broader implications for issues such as curriculum…

Reports a study undertaken in Bahrain secondary schools to assess the contribution of tape recorders to learning outcomes in English as a Second Language (ESL). Findings revealed that students' proficiency correlated significantly with their perception of the frequency and skill with which their teacher use a tape recorder. (20 references)…

Summarizes a study on block scheduling for second-language programs among Canadian middle school students. Results show that students studying French on a block schedule (e.g., one-half day instruction over a 10-week period) performed better on standardized tests than did control students who received standard 40-minute per day French instruction.…

An analysis of the 1998 California educational standards confronts the assimilationist ideology embedded in the push for standards and accountability in American education. The standards explicitly define "America" and"Americans" as White and Anglo, ignore Indigenous history and contributions of non-European cultures and women,…