Intended for use by school administrators, guidance counselors, teachers, and proctors, this manual contains general information on Regents examinations and competency tests. Specifically, the regulations and procedures for ordering, administering, and rating these examinations are described. Information is also included about the competency…

The author reviews the key problems associated with generally accepted practices for identifying the gifted from the perspective of minority gifted students, particularly the gifted bilingual child; and presents some alternative approaches for testing. Noted among the shortcomings of testing minority students are that standardized tests are not…

The pure Rasch model was compared with four modifications of the model in a number of different simulations in order to ascertain the comparative efficiencies of the parameter estimations of these modifications. Because there is always noise in test score data, some individuals may have response patterns that do not fit the model and their…

Results of three separate studies were analyzed to ascertain the technical adequacy of tests used by professionals to make screening, placement/classification, instructional planning, and evaluation decisions for handicapped students. In each investigation, the frequency of usage of technically adequate instruments was addressed. The finding that…

Attention is drawn to the ways in which current conceptions of intelligence and its measurement differ from those which were generally accepted in 1928. The following principles underlying intelligence testing were generally agreed upon in 1928: (1) the assumption of intelligence as a recognizable attribute, responsible for differences among…

A well developed multiple choice test is a reliable instrument for grading students and evaluating teacher presentation. There are three steps in the development of a valid multiple choice examination: 1) design or "blueprinting," 2) item construction, and 3) item analysis and evaluation. "Blueprinting" is the identification of the types of…

The implications of standardized testing for minority students are explored. Test terminology is described in terms of objectivity, standardization, reliability, and validity. Primarily, however, the paper reviews the objectivity of standardized testing, that is, of those tests which are either norm-referenced or criterion-referenced. The use of…

A faculty member in a predominately black institution in the University System of Georgia critiqued the basic skills examination used as a placement and exit examination for the remedial program. He found that the local committee that developed the test had not defined what "basic skills" are, set priorities, nor specified degrees of…

A brief discussion of theories of general intelligence precedes a report of relevant empirical data. Results from the factor analysis of more than 20 sets of Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) data indicate that the WAIS clearly is not a one-factor scale. It does not measure a single, general intelligence. Roughly 17 percent of the reliable…

The term, standardized achievement test, has evolved to imply a broad package of materials which includes a wide array of norms, lists of scoring services and educational objectives tested, and aids to interpretation. Test authors are convinced that that individual differences in achievement do exist; that recognition of these differences will…

Five elementary school groups, or cohorts, were given the Test Anxiety Scale for Children and the Lie Scale for Children on three occasions over a year's time. This paper examines the results cross-sectionally and reveals between-group, or cohort effects. The youngest and oldest cohorts displayed low anxiety. Within-group longitudinal changes did…

To assess the effect of contextual stimuli on learning, a study was conducted to see if providing instruction to students in one setting and testing them in yet another setting had an effect on their recall. Twenty-eight college students were randomly divided into two groups, and both were exposed to a multimedia instructional presentation. Then,…

Symposium papers presented are: (1) The Perspective of a Testing Psychologist Who Conducts Orientation Programs for New Test Constructors by Walter Birdsall; (2) The Perspective of a Military Supervisor of Test Constructors Who Are Temporarily Brought in from the Field to Write Tests by David Vaughn; (3) The Perspective of a Civilian Test…

The educational implications of criterion-referenced tests are demonstrated. It is the hypothesis of the author that criterion-referenced tests have little educational impact unless carefully constructed around rigorous domain specifications. The paper details the process and problems of construction of a series of history tests presently being…

These four characteristics inherent in criterion-referenced tests form the central theme of this paper: (1) The classes of behaviors that define different achievement levels are specified as clearly as possible before the test is constructed; (2) Each behavior class is defined by a set of test situations (that is, test tasks) in which the…