This paper reports the findings of a study of student attitudes and student improvement in conceptual understanding using conceptests with an electronic response system in lecture courses. Students and instructors valued the feedback and interaction that the response system afforded. For a majority of the chemistry topics studied, student…

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of the use of group works and demonstration experiments based on conceptual change approach in the elimination of misconception about the subject of photosynthesis and respiration in plants in pre-service science teachers. This study was conducted with 78 pre-service science teachers including…

The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) is a system of international assessments administered by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) that measures 15-year-olds' performance in reading literacy, mathematics literacy, and science literacy every 3 years. This report focuses on the performance of U.S.…

This article reports on reactions to the U.S. Department of Education's first time decision to sit out an international study designed to show how advanced high school students around the world measure up in math and science. Mark S. Schneider, the commissioner of the department's National Center for Education Statistics, which normally takes the…

In 1992, RAND received a grant from the National Science Foundation to study the technical quality of performance assessments in science and to evaluate their feasibility for use in large-scale testing programs. The specific goals of the project were to assess the reliability and validity of hands-on science testing and to investigate the cost and…

This document contains the Framework and rationale for assessing science achievement of students throughout the United States in 1996. It provides a general overview of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), describes the 1996 NAEP Science Framework adopted by the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB), and reviews the process…

The achievement of the 44 Crockett high school students, in Austin, Texas, who participated in the Principles of Technology Program during the 1987-1988 school year was assessed, with the following findings; (1) 14 second-year students answered 30 percent more items correctly on the posttest than on the pretest; (2) the second-year students…

The performance of college students in introductory physics courses has been studied using conventional examination procedures as a measure of content mastery. Retesting over the same physics content using repeatable equivalent examinations results in a significant increase in the students mastery of physics. (Author/GS)

Physics 30 is a twelfth-grade physics course for students in Alberta, Canada. This document is the major examination for the course. Both English and French versions of the test are provided. Intended for administration during January, 1987, it contains 56 multiple-choice questions and three written-response questions. Two-and-one-half hours are…

Chemistry 30 is a twelfth-grade chemistry course for students in Alberta, Canada. This document is the final test for the course. Intended for administration during January, 1987, it contains 56 multiple-choice questions and three written-response questions. Two-and-one-half hours are allowed for completing the test. No answer key is included…

Biology 30 is a twelfth-grade physics course for students in Alberta, Canada. This document is a final test for the course. Intended for administration during January, 1987, it contains 80 multiple-choice questions and seven written-response questions. Two-and-one-half hours are allowed for completing the test. No answer key is included since…

Chemistry 30 is a twelfth-grade chemistry course for students in Alberta, Canada. This document is a final test for the course. Both English and French versions of the test are provided. Intended for administration during June 1986, it contains 56 multiple-choice questions and three written-response problems. Two-and-one-half hours are allowed for…

Biology 30 is a twelfth-grade biology course for students in Alberta, Canada. This document is a final test for the course. Both English and French versions of the test are provided. Intended for administration during June 1986, it contains 80 multiple-choice questions and six written-response problems. Two-and-one-half hours are allowed for…

Physics 30 is a twelfth-grade physics course for students in Alberta, Canada. This document is a final test for the course. Both English and French versions of the test are provided. Intended for administration during June 1986, it contains 56 multiple-choice questions and four written-response problems. Two-and-one-half hours are allowed for…

This document consists of test items which are applicable to biology courses throughout Australia (irrespective of course materials used); assess key concepts within course statement (for both core and optional studies); assess a wide range of cognitive processes; and are relevant to current biological concepts. These items are arranged under…