The South Carolina Trade Examinations for Trade and Industrial Education teachers are administered semi-annually by the South Carolina State Department of Education, Office of Vocational Education, Vocational Teacher Education Programs Unit. This handbook is designed to provide prospective trade and industrial education teachers, vocational…

College teachers often use norm-referenced classroom tests which are too easy for distinguishing adequately among levels of student achievement, yet they are reluctant to adopt more difficult tests. We explored the basis for current practices concerning test difficulty through informal interviews and questionnaires completed by faculty members and…

The Writing Skills Committee of the New Jersey Department of Education determined that the Eleventh-Grade High School Proficiency Test (HSPT) writing test should be based on contemporary discourse theory that is process oriented and is firmly rooted in real world application of students' skill and knowledge as writers. The committee identified two…

Item specifications developed by the Arkansas Department of Education as part of the Minimum Performance Testing Program (MPT) appear in this document. Specifically, the social studies materials given to eighth-grade students on the MPT are reviewed. The purpose of an item specification is to provide an overview of the general content and format…

A model for use in identifying assessment needs in association with teacher-made mathematics and science tests at the secondary level was developed. The model focuses on the identification and narrowing of discrepancies between teachers' perceptions of their testing practices and actual practice. All 19 math and 16 science teachers at a 4-year…

The effects of rule knowledge were investigated using Braille inkprint pairs. Both recognition and recall were studied in three groups of subjects: rule knowledge, rule discovery, and no rule. Two hypotheses were tested: (1) that the group exposed to the rule would score better than would a discovery group and a control group; and (2) that all…

This study investigated the effect of diagram formats on performance on geometry items in order to determine whether certain examinees are affected by different item formats and whether such differences arise from the different intellectual demands made by these formats. Thirty-two experimental, multiple-choice geometry items were administered in…

This guide presents ratings of assessment instruments for use by speech-language pathologists with preschool students. Tests are reviewed in alphabetical order on forms filled out by practicing speech-language pathologists, including data on speech components covered by each test, age range, factors of norms where norms are used, reliability,…

Four topics related to mathematics testing for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) are discussed: (1) mathematics achievement; (2) past NAEP approaches; (3) needed changes; and (4) a new conceptual basis for profiling mathematical performance, including recommendations for strengthening current practice. The basic strategy for…

The writing objectives and the measurement specifications presented in this document are congruent with the Texas State Board of Education Rules for Curriculum. The objectives are provided for teachers and for test developers involved with the preparation of the Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills (TEAMS) tests. As of 1985-86 academic…

The manual provides information on alternative testing techniques for students identified as handicapped. The first section discusses the legal basis for the use of alternative testing techniques, as well as student eligibility. Section 2 provides examples of test modifications in the following areas: (1) manner of presentation (flexible…

Appropriate evaluation can greatly enhance the teaching process, and this resource packet is designed to help make testing more efficient. Tests and test items are featured in these listings, and information on test construction is provided. The various sources which are highlighted include: (1) professional organizations; (2) journals and…

Sixty-three students in three undergraduate college classes were divided into three groups to investigate the effect of two delayed self-reporting techniques on attitudinal data toward a course and instructor. Nonparametric tests and intercorrelations of item treatment means, together with two-way analyses of variance on item clusters, indicated…

This journal issue addresses the issue of testing in the social studies classroom. The first article, "The Role of Testing" (Bragaw), focuses on the need for tests to reflect the objectives of the study completed. The varying functions of pop quizzes, weekly tests, and unit tests are explored. "Testing Thinking Processes" (Killoran, Zimmer, and…

The development of the emerging technology of item writing was motivated in part by the desire to reduce potential subjectivity and bias between different item writers who attempt to construct parallel achievement tests. The present study contrasts four test forms constructed by the combined efforts of six item writers using four methods of item…