Memphis State University conducted a study for the Tennessee Department of Education to determine the validity of 11 previously unvalidated, extensively revised, or new Educational Testing Service (ETS) tests as measures of the skills and knowledge required for specific initial certification endorsements of public school personnel in Tennessee.…

This book brings together the combined wisdom of a diverse group of experts involved with early childhood mathematics. The book originates from the landmark 2000 Conference on Standards for Pre-kindergarten and Kindergarten Mathematics Education, attended by representatives from almost every state developing standards for young children's…

Through offering insight into different approaches to quality assurance, with input from those who provide leadership in post-secondary education in British Columbia and Canada, this project's goal is to recommend whether Canadian jurisdictions should consider a new quality assurance regime, and to provide potential new models to consider in that…

The program design and psychometric characteristics of the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program (MSPAP) are described, focusing on scaling, equating, standard setting, score accuracy, and validity. The MSPAP is an innovative performance-based testing program administered annually to students in grades three, five, and eight. (SLD)

Against a general backdrop of an international discourse on educational reform that has focused on accountability, this article provides a detailed and critical analysis of the evolution of accountability policy and practice in Irish primary and post-primary education during the past 20 years. The analysis indicates clearly that national policy…

The assessment instruments of the Maine Educational Assessment emphasize extended constructed-response questions. The results from these assessments are reported in terms of percentages of students at four performance levels. The Student-Based Constructed-Response Method was used to establish performance standards for these levels on the…

The appropriateness of the Angoff method (W. H. Angoff, 1971) for setting standards on tests was studied. Evaluators (judges) from California school districts and teacher training institutions reviewed 15 NTE (National Teacher Examinations) Program Specialty Area Tests published by the Educational Testing Service for their appropriateness in…

Lessons derived from the Job Performance Measurement (JPM) Project, which is overseen by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Management and Personnel, for educational assessment are explored. The JPM Project was initiated to develop high fidelity measures of performance on the job that can be used to evaluate personnel…

The effect on passing scores of providing judges with pass/fail data for the various possible cut-off score levels was studied. Passing scores produced by individual judges using a modified version of the procedure of W. H. Angoff (1971) were compared with the same judges' passing scores as revised after considering information on the number of…

A basic technical framework is provided for the design and use of mastery tests. The Mastery Testing Project (MTP) prepared this framework using advanced mathematics supplemented with computer simulation based on real test data collected by the South Carolina Statewide Testing Program. The MTP focused on basic technical issues encountered in using…

This is the third publication in the European Training Foundation's (ETF's) series of manuals designed to support development of vocational education and training (VET) standards. This volume looks at ways in which VET standards are linked to labor market demands and how relevant VET standards are to the needs of employment in a market economy.…

Policy recommendations to create school and community partnerships were formulated by educators participating in the School-Community Connection project of the Institute for Responsive Education. Recommendations center on collaboration, partnership and leadership development, standard setting, assessment and accountability, and school-work…

Examines the approach of the College Board's Advanced Placement (AP) Program to curricular development and assessment using the framework of D. Massell for agenda setting for content standards. Opportunities and constraints applicable to the current national standards movement are discussed. The AP program clearly meets capacity building and…

The purpose of postcollegiate professional education is to train scientific and science education cadres of higher qualification. To a large extent, systematic and well-planned training accomplishes the tasks of maintaining and developing the country's constructive scientific, cultural, and intellectual potential; it ensures the continuity of the…

A study conducted for the Tennessee State Department of Education by Memphis State University addressed two objectives with respect to the Professional School Service Personnel endorsements for initial licensure for non-teaching professional personnel: to determine the validity of the National Teacher Examination (NTE) Core Battery tests for…