Problems in the testing of Chinese as a foreign language (CFL) are examined, focusing on proficiency testing needs and test standardization. Particular attention is paid to listening and reading assessment. The first part of the discussion looks at specific problems with five existing proficiency tests, including such aspects as inadequacy of the…

A general framework is provided for examining the validity of performance standards for high-stakes achievement tests. The emphasis is on conceptual issues and broadly defined methodological questions, the types of validity evidence that can be collected, and the advantages and limitations of different types of evidence. Validation consists of a…

This study investigated the use of the Draw-a-Person: Screening Procedure for Emotional Disturbance (DAP:SPED) with students enrolled in classes for children with emotional disturbances (ED), learning disabilities (LD), or cognitive disabilities (CD). The DAP:SPED was administered to 39 students in a large urban area in eastern Wisconsin and to 31…

Assessment testing in California's community colleges (CCC) helps to identify entering students' goals and skills level and to ensure that the students are properly advised of appropriate courses and programs. The California Education Code requires that all assessment instruments be approved by the Office of the Chancellor of the California…

This report puts forth the position of the Office of the Chancellor of the California State University (CSU) regarding data needs for constructing California Community College (CCC) transfer rates, indicating that the CSU's preferred transfer rate would indicate the annual incidence of new transfers, convey efficiency across time, and, in…

This paper describes the development and test of an early-warning instrument for identifying at-risk students aged 10-15. A statistically sound test to identify at-risk high school students existed in the Personal Skills Map--Adolescent version (PSMA-A). This study used a modified version of PSM-A , which was renamed Personal Skills for…

This evaluation summarizes progress made in implementing procedures to reduce racial bias in referral, assessment, and placement procedures for special education under a court-mandated desegregation plan in Chicago (Illinois). The Board of Education discontinued the use of intelligence tests in evaluating students for special education and formed…

Currently available measures of self-efficacy described in educational and psychological research literature were cataloged and reviewed after a literature search. To identify and locate these measures, searches of "Psychological Abstracts" and the ERIC system were conducted using self-efficacy and related keywords. Results of the…

The development and validation of two instruments which measure attitudes and self-efficacy of teacher education students and practicing teachers toward computer use are described. One instrument--Attitudes toward Computer Technologies (ACT)--assesses perceived usefulness of and comfort/anxiety with computer technologies. The second…

This document examines the orientations or "frames" that leaders use to guide their understanding of their work. Four distinct frames that characterize ways leaders think about and respond to everyday issues and problems are examined: (1) the structural frame; (2) the human resource frame; (3) the political frame; and (4) the symbolic…

This study sought to design and test a survey instrument which examined college faculty satisfaction with their roles of teaching, research, and service. A panel of experts reviewed the Spanish and English versions of the 39 item survey for quality of items and grammatical accuracy. Thirty randomly selected faculty members from a population of 234…

The study evaluated the invariance of the construct validity and thus the interpretation of Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) Aptitude Test scores. A systematic procedure for investigation of test bias from a construct validity frame of reference was developed and applied. Invariant construct validity was defined as similar patterns of loadings…

This document reviews 49 assessment measures that were designed for, or could be used with, pre-school children between the ages of three and five. The assessments have been classified into the following categories: (1) cognitive skills, (2) language, (3) social adjustment and behavior, (4) physical skills, (5) developmental and clinical measures,…

Detroit's Peer Teachers as Mirrors and Monitors Project is intended to validate cost effective methods for increasing Academic Learning Time (ALT) for students in grades one through four. A major problem in this research effort has been the design of valid and reliable measures of the components of ALT. One very important component of ALT is…

The question of how standardized tests can be better developed to improve educational program evaluation is probed in this paper. After the first section's brief introduction, section 2 explores the thesis that tests developed in terms of selection and inference may not serve current social functions of educational testing. To clarify this thesis,…