The authors' reply to Thompson and Brassards's comments (TM 508 778) about their review of the Woodcock Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery (WJPEB) is presented. Issues addressed include different standardization procedures for the WJPEB and WISC-R; the ability versus achievement nature of the WJTCA; and the mean score discrepancy between the…

Fourth-grade students were administered the Estes Attitude Scale to measure attitudes towards core academic subjects. When results were compared with test results of actual school performance, it was found that both extreme overachievers and underachievers had poorer attitudes toward core subjects than had other more accurately predicted…

Argues that customized criterion-referenced tests produced for use by particular school systems are preferable to "off-the-shelf" criterion-referenced tests or standardized norm-referenced tests, and briefly discusses some of the problems related to developing effective customized criterion-referenced tests. (JG)

Presents some specific questions that educators ought to raise about standardized tests and some alternatives to standardized tests. (Author/IRT)

Whether it is standardized test data, student journals, or informal classroom question and answer, assessments provide invaluable, ongoing diagnostic information for making key instructional decisions. In this engaging and comprehensive resource, the authors demonstrate practical ways for embedding test preparation into teaching by integrating…

The last four years have proven to be particularly difficult for educators. The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation is forcing teachers and school systems to reduce curriculum, teach "drill and kill" methods of testing, and reducing passion within the teaching profession. This essay addresses the negative impacts of the legislation…

The California Postsecondary Education Commission periodically conducts studies of university eligibility of public high school graduates. The eligibility rates from these studies are the proportion of high school graduates who qualify for freshman admission to California public universities. Eligibility is based on completion of specific high…

Because of the great promise of distance learning for delivering cost-effective instruction, there is great interest in determining whether or not it actually is effective, and--more interesting--determining what variables of design and implementation make it more or less effective. Unfortunately, much of the research has been based on simple…

This report asserts that rapid changes in many areas, such as technology and communications, marked the 20th century, the first century of ability testing. Predictions about the second century of testing seem difficult in such a context. Yet, looking back to the turn of the last century, E. Kirkpatrick (1900) in his American Psychological…

This paper was presented as expert testimony in the Williams vs. State of California class action lawsuit. That case, filed on behalf of California public schoolchildren, charged the State with denying thousands of students the basic tools for a sound education. This paper addresses whether California's current output-based accountability system…

This CD ROM is designed for use by teachers singly or in groups. It may also be used by technical assistance providers preparing to work with teachers. The CD ROM provides an interactive tool to help teachers analyze and interpret standardized test data, use data to plan for effective instruction, develop classroom assessments that align with…

Colleges and universities commonly require multiple tests for their various admissions and placement decisions. The point of this analysis was to determine the degree to which three standardized tests involving eight subtests all administered to the same applicants provided nonredundant information. The instruments were the California Basic…

In the past there were no substantial challenges to the idea that standardized, mass produced assessment would be universally beneficial. Culture was ignored or minimized as a factor in creating testing routines or in interpreting testing and assessment data. In recent years, challenges to this idea have arisen, but the primary pressure for the…