The results of this study indicate that students, not teachers, have the important role in determining achievement on standardized tests. Also, judging instructors by test results is cited as a highly questionable and unfair practice. (Author/MA)

Describes a school board's decision to employ a standardized reading proficiency test despite the fact that the test was proven to be passage independent and thus did not measure reading comprehension. (DD)

Discusses the advantages of and objections to testing children's reading ages and recommends that test results be given for both reading age and percentile levels (rather than standardized scores). (JM)

Both forms of the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test were administered to hearing impaired students (to 12 years old) at two schools for the Deaf in Southern Ontario; and a number of strict criteria were then used to select a more restricted standardization group of severe or profoundly deaf students for each of the first seven academic years in the…

Discusses the pros and cons of grading and standardized tests as well as intuitive evaluations. (MS)

Examines legislation and court cases operating from assumed criteria of reading competence according to standardized tests, and also examines present and possible future criteria for judging reading competency. (DD)

Asserts that the basic ethical question about any evaluation program is whether it is judgmental and destructive or is constructive and serves the needs of students. Suggests that curriculum evaluation studies seldom consider the equality of educational opportunity or the availability of noncognitive learning opportunities. (Author/JG)

Outlines the problems England and Wales are facing with primary- and secondary-level standardized testing, in particular, whether brighter students should be given a more difficult test, and whether current English curriculum prepares students adequately for it. (JC)

"Tomorrow's Teachers: A Report of the Holmes Group" is criticized for its unnecessarily confusing language, its overemphasis on knowledge acquisition, and its acceptance of only one model of teacher education. (MT)

Differences in test scores can be attributed to various causes, including genuine knowledge differences, test-taking abilities, and irrelevant and biased questions. The Golden Rule reform is a safeguard to ensure that standardized tests measure relevant knowledge differences between test takers and not irrelevant, culturally specific factors. (JAZ)

Briefly describes the rationale, history of development, and current status of the "proficiency-based" testing movement in the United States. and cites areas in which additional research and development work are recommended to enhance both the validity and the practical value of this approach. (Author/LMO)

Describes one school district's approach to improving student achievement on standardized tests. Increased scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test have not been the only positive result of this systemwide effort. Students and parents, for example, have become more conscientious about their course seletions. (CJH)

Some of the most pervasive educational innovations are occurring within teacher-education curricula at historically Black institutions. Although these institutions represent only 5 percent of U.S. univerities and colleges, they have produced 66 percent of the Black teachers. Data concerning historically Black and White state colleges in Maryland…

An instrument was developed and standardized to assess the extent to which mentally retarded people demonstrate knowledge of citizenship rights and responsibilities. Test development involved generating 83 test items, pilot testing with 236 members of self-advocacy groups for the developmentally disabled, and standardization with 391…