This document expands upon the discussion of standardized tests in federal legislation and Department of Education rules and regulations, in order to guide practitioners in using these tests and alternative assessment methods more wisely. Amendments of 1988 that address the uses of standardized tests, the federal regulations that implement the amendments, public comments on the regulations, and the U.S. Department of Education's responses to the comments are presented. Chapter 2 deals with the nature and uses of standardized tests, including definitions of standardized tests, norm-referencing, criterion-referencing, competency-based education, and curriculum-based tests. Chapter 3 provides information about eight standardized tests in wide use in adult basic education (ABE) and English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) programs: Adult Basic Learning Examination (ABLE); Basic English Skills Test (BEST); Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment System (CASAS) ABE and ESL tests; English-as-a-Second-Language Oral Assessment (ESLOA); General Educational Development Official Practice Tests; Reading Evaluation Adult Diagnosis (READ); and Tests of Adult Basic Education (TABE). Chapter 4 discusses "negative gain" scores, general and specific literacy, item response theory, predictive validity, special problems in testing in ESL programs, alternative assessment methods, and assessment systems to meet instructional purposes and state and federal requirements for accountability. Thirty-three reference footnotes are given. Appendix A provides a table for comparing scores among several standardized tests. Appendix B provides 13 sources of additional information and a set of 5 transparency masters for use in presentations on standardized testing in ABE and ESL programs. (CML)