Reviews data from 10 opinion surveys that show that public dissatisfaction with standardized testing is neither profound nor pervasive. Analyzes the discrepancy between the public's views and the claims and legislative demands of self-appointed spokespersons for the public on this issue. (Author/GC)

Costs and benefits of New York's Truth-in-Testing law are reviewed and related to constitutional issues and fairness to test-makers as well as test-takers. Besides matters of cost and test question availability, challenges to the legislation also involve issues of due process, equal protection, and infringement of existing copyright laws. (MSE)

Overrepresentation of minorities in special education classes and bias in IQ tests that allegedly underlies such placements are discussed in regard to the use of psychological tests for educational classification. Concludes that the use of tests, rather than the tests themselves, leads to discriminatory placement. Suggests solutions to this…

The Colombian version of the test met acceptable requirements of reliability and construct validity for use in cross-cultural research. Use of the back-translation method ensured equivalency of the Colombian and the English versions, and items in the Colombian version carried the same meaning as those in the original English version. (Author/CM)

The basic rationale for using objective tests is that they are relevant and reliable measures of the most important kind of learning that schools and colleges seek to foster. Measurement of student achievement in learning is necessary, if educational excellence is to be achieved. (Author/SJL)

Interviewed faculty members responsible for the preparation of counselors. Information was obtained on the experiential background of counselor educators, the theoretical orientations employed, the programs, career development courses, standardized tests used in career development, and the important components of counselor education in career…

Many states have limitations on the number of times a student may retake the bar exams, but a variety of preparatory techniques can increase chances of success: hypnosis, reduction of test anxiety, better studying techniques. (Journal availability: 1155 E. 60th St., Chicago, IL 60637, $1.00.) (MSE)

Since 1970 the CPA Law Exam has been heavily weighted in a few of the 14 content areas, raising the question of whether or not there are too many legal areas for which the student is held responsible. (Journal availability: Fred B. Rothman & Co., 10368 W. Centennial Road, Littleton, CO 80123, $4.00.) (MSE)

A school and community must state their goals for students and then, avoiding the use of commerical tests, design a means of evaluation to determine if those goals have been met. (Author/JM)

Describes the test, The Degrees of Reading Power, developed by the New York State Education Department for use as a formalized "informal reading inventory." (MKM)

The inclusion of a position on standardized testing in the 1980 Democratic Party platform established testing as a political and legislative issue. Testing regulations have been introduced in 20 states and in Congess, involving critics and supporters such as: the National Education Association, Nader's Public Interest Research Groups, and the…

This study investigated some relationships between age, socioeconomic status (SES), and cognitive task performance among 120 Canadian children from Grades 1 and 4. Subjects were administered a battery of tasks, including Raven's Colored Progressive Matrices and Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, which differed in transformational requirements and…

Presents an alternative between open access to test results as recommended by consumer groups and test security as practiced by test producers. The alternative suggested places counselors directly in the center as interpreters who can satisfy client needs for increased feedback while maintaining test integrity. (Author)

The author attacks not only the racism inherent in existing IQ tests, but the very concept of a standardized intelligence test, which, he asserts, lacks certain basic criteria of consistency and validity necessary to a scientific device. Part of a theme issue on intelligence. (SJL)

The proliferation of coaching schools for tests like the SAT and the LSAT is one sign that schools and colleges are changing their foci so that students will be prepared for standard tests, while other skills are being relatively ignored. (Author)