While some states are adopting uniform, statewide testing of college students to assess learning, most are relying on a wide variety of testing programs designed and administered by individual institutions. (MSE)

Presents information about the kind of competency testing being done, how educators view the testing movement, and how it is affecting teacher preparation programs. (SRT)

The research and development of mental (standardized) testing and its relationship to educational practice is traced historically from its pre-World War I roots to its controversial national prominence in the 1970s. How standardized tests have been used in research and in schools is analyzed. (BS)

Forty-two fourth- and fifth-grade teachers rated their 1,032 students in the five curricular subjects: reading, mathematics, language arts, science, and social science. The teachers' ratings substantially agreed with students' scores on the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills, indicating the concurrent validity of standardized achievement tests.…

Comparison of medical students' performance on the National Board of Medical Examiners test, Part I, indicates that the replacement of scheduled instructional time (i.e., lecture-based instruction) with a guided problem-solving program was not detrimental to test scores. (MSE)

A study is reported of the value of nursing program admission criteria (high school rank and grade point average, and individual and composite entrance examination scores) as predictors of undergraduate program performance, as measured by National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses scores.

Provides information on the American Chemical Society's (ACS) 1986 testing program, listing currently available tests (includes five new tests). Also provides condensed norms for ACS examinations, including high school chemistry forms 1985 and 1985-S, general-organic-biological chemistry form 1985, general chemistry (brief version) form 1985-B,…

Multiple measures of social and cognitive functioning were obtained to investigate whether abused and neglected children demonstrate serious psychological disturbances following instances of child maltreatment. Participants were 42 preschool children who had a previous history of physical abuse, serious neglect, or no maltreatment. (Author/RH)

When assessing a teachers' potential, it is important to use a variety of criteria rather than focusing on results of a standardized competency test. Dangers of competency tests are that state and local differences or priorities and effective teacher skills may not be identified. (DF)

This article presents a model that can be used by local school districts for reanalyzing standardized test results to obtain a more valid assessment of local learning objectives can be used to identify strengths/weaknesses of existing programs as well as individual students. (EGS)

The increasing use of test results as a mechanism of educational reform is diminishing local control of schools and changing the curriculum to train students to pass tests rather than to educate students. (MLF)

The purpose of this study was to compare the relative robustness of the one-, two-, and modified two-parameter latent trait logistic models for the Iowa Tests of Educational Development. Results suggest that the modified two-parameter model may provide the best representation of the data. (Author/BW)

A mathematical model for predicting the size of the dental school applicant pool using the number of Dental Admission Test participants is presented. (MSE)

Explains how Dr. Ronald R. Edmonds discovered five characteristics common to 55 United States schools exhibiting academic effectiveness. Explains the characteristics: large portion of principal's time spent in classrooms, global understanding of school's major purpose, orderly school climate, teacher behavior, and close monitoring of students…

A prospective study using two standardized psychological tests, the Profile of Mood States (POMS) and the Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS), was conducted to quantify the emotional changes experienced by internal medicine house staff during the internship. (Author/MLW)