In the development of assessment for elementary students, little attention has been paid to the information exchange between student and tester. Analysis of the learning exchange requires developmental, diagnostic, and process information. Cybernetic assessment, a departure from standard testing techniques, involves the examiner in the information exchange. To establish the importance of feedback between the learner and teacher, it is necessary to establish a diagnostic framework in which a two-way flow of information can be measured. The following are required for the development of such a cybernetic model: a clear feedback language, which is the function of the signal system; a methodology for developing a model of the learner's behaviors as they respond to the examiner's requirements - the function of the modeling system; a contingency structure which takes into account the changes which will occur in both instruction and solution as the learner/examiner interactions are modified - the function of the cuing system; and a way of comparing the data produced from an examination process with those derived from the learner's specific school behavior - the function of the standard test instruments and procedures. (DF)