This document is a supplement to the Test Content Description for the Georgia High School Test in Mathematics. The sample items are representative of items on the actual Georgia High School Tests. The strands (major areas) being tested are: (1) Number and Composition (17% to 19% of the test); (2) Data Analysis (19-21% of the test); (3) Measurement…

This document is a supplement to the Test Content Description for the Georgia High School Test in Science. The sample items are representative of items on the actual Georgia High School Tests. The strands (major areas) being tested are: (1) Process/Research Skills (30% to 32% of the test); (2) Physical Science (33% to 35% of the test); and…

This serial offers a collection of articles on academic standards, while focusing on whether it is possible to ensure both equity and high standards in education. It looks at ways to close the achievement gap between students in high-poverty schools and their middle-class peers, and offers a chart that outlines what various stakeholders can do to…

This document consists of articles 1 through 14 of volume 6 of "Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation": (1) "Seven Myths about Literacy in the United States" (Jeff McQuillan); (2) "Implementing Performance Assessment in the Classroom" (Amy Brualdi); (3) "Some Evaluation Questions" (William Shadish); (4) "Item Banking" (Lawrence Rudner); (5)…

This paper makes the case that the standards-based reform movement is too limited an approach to rely on in educational reform, and that there is a set of hard facts that must be faced if there is to be any significant improvement in student achievement. These facts are the attitudes, practices, and conditions that are so embedded in culture and…

The new Elementary and Secondary Education Act amendments require states to begin annual testing in grades 3 through 8 in reading and mathematics by the 2005-2006 school year. Only 16 states currently have grade-by-grade tests in reading and mathematics, and only 9 of those have tests aligned with their standards, as the law requires. The rest of…

This report reviews the experience of the last couple of decades in education reform and the use of standardized testing during that time. It tells of success and achievement and of missteps and problems in the implementation of all the elements of standards-based reform. The report suggests that getting education reform on course involves the…

This document summarizes the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 1999 Video Study that is the follow-up and expansion of the TIMSS 1995 Video Study of mathematics teaching. The 1999 study investigated 8th grade mathematics as well as science. This report focuses on the mathematics lessons major findings and comparison of…

Ninety teachers in grades three through six were asked to judge the likelihood of their students' passing Ohio's Fourth or Sixth Grade Proficiency Tests. Judgment ratings consisted of "likely to pass,""uncertain to pass," or "unlikely to pass." These ratings were collected in January 1998, 3 months prior to the…

This paper describes a study to determine whether Chamoru students at the University of Guam, evaluating a standardized self-esteem instrument, agree that the test does measure self-esteem. The instrument used is the Index of Self-Esteem (ISE) and was developed and normed in the United States. There can be a problem using instruments with…

This study attempted to show that students that are classified as visual learners will score higher on standardized tests than those students that are classified as non-visual learners because visual learners possess the traits needed to do well on standardized tests. The study used (33) visual and (33) non-visual adult learners in the adult basic…

Stakeholders and practitioners are concerned about the extent to which standardized achievement tests are meeting the general and specific purposes they were designed to achieve. Several empirical studies have been conducted to this end. This study reviews this research to determine current trends in teachers' and school administrators'…

This paper considers the size of the marketplace for education testing. The discussion is focused on commercial standardized achievement tests produced for the elementary and secondary market, the "Elhi" market. A few testing companies now account for the bulk of the test sales in the Elhi market, but it is difficult to obtain exact…

Calls for school reform and performance have crested and receded many times this century. Establishing rigorous academic standards will revolutionize education and improve equity, and standards enjoy popular support. Standards require: (1) proficiency by students of all grades in a variety of subjects; (2) assessment testing; and (3) cooperation…

The use of portfolios is a rather recent innovation in teaching the language arts. A characteristic of the portfolio process is that students are led to notice their own progress through the work included in the portfolio. Many educators welcome the portfolio process because they recognize that standardized tests do not tell enough about what…