Differential item functioning (DIF) occurs when items on a test or questionnaire have different measurement properties for one group of people versus another, irrespective of group-mean differences on the construct. Methods for testing DIF require matching members of different groups on an estimate of the construct. Preferably, the estimate is…

The Southern Regional Education Board's (SREB) "Challenge to Lead" Goals for Education call for more students to take college admission tests, to score higher on those tests and for SREB states to reduce gaps in test scores among all groups of students. For states, achieving higher statewide scores is one sign that more students can go…

In recent years, governments worldwide have increased their use of standardized tests and other forms of external tests to measure and report on student achievement in selected academic subjects. That trend, responding to public pressure on decision-makers to make school systems more transparent and accountable, is often colored by criticisms of…

The clinical inference process in test interpretation is described so that people can more easily communicate about it, teach it, and learn it. Chapter 1 compares different levels (concrete, mechanical, and individualized) of interpretation of the same test. Chapter 2 offers examples of an often-neglected kind of data necessary for individualized…

To help teachers, administrators, and parents understand student performance in writing, a state-level report is prepared each year to analyze students writing scores and provide guidelines for the interpretation of the results. This report compares students scores on the 2001 Delaware Student Testing Program (DSTP) with scores on the 2000 DSTP…

This report presents the 1983-84 summary achievement profiles of the 82 Portland, Oregon, elementary schools for use by school staffs, administrators, and the community for planning, goal setting, and evaluation. The profiles contain Portland Achievement Level Tests results plus data on the physical facility, school personnel, student enrollment,…

The 1983 annual report of Washington's statewide test of fourth grade basic skills achievement is presented in this document. Both state level and district-by-district results are reviewed. The first section of this report presents the overall results for the 48,000 fourth grade students who were administered the basic battery of the California…

Everything that educators have learned aabout individual differences and learning styles as they relate to pacing is negated by tests that disregard such evidence. Unless they are improved, competency tests are likely to seriously damage the educational process. (CJH)

This book examines educational improvement in Great Britain in recent years. It addresses three concerns: (1) develop better estimates of the extent to which schools have changed in their effectiveness over time; (2) understand the factors and strategies associated with changes in performance across schools; and (3) explore the school-improvement…

The Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills (CTBS), Form U were administered to all students in Grades 5, 7, and 9 in the San Diego City Schools during the last two weeks of April, 1983. This report is intended to respond to two primary questions: (1) how are San Diego elementary and junior high students doing relative to the national norm group, and…

Project CAPABLE (Classroom Action Program: Aim: Basic Learning Effectiveness) is a classroom approach which integrates the basic learning skills with content. The goal of the project is to use basic learning skills to enhance the learning of content and at the same time use the content to teach basic learning skills. The report evaluates the…

In 1989, a study was conducted of the mathematics assessment portion of the matriculation process at California's Saddleback College (SC). The two main purposes of the study were to examine student enrollment behavior in recommended mathematics courses as well as to compare the success rates of students who enrolled in the recommended courses with…

Yearly administrations of a standardized achievement test are a part of the educational process in many school districts in the United States. The Systemwide Testing Program in the Austin Independent School District Office of Research and Evaluation has gradually developed a process and support materials whereby the test administrations are a tool…

This report provides Albuquerque Public School Administrative personnel with 1982-83 test result summaries for gifted students in grades 1 through 12 on the Scott Foresman Achievement Series tests and the Developing Cognitive Abilities (D-CAT) test. These results are the first complete set of pre- and posttest data obtained on gifted students over…

Graduates of the Mesa Public Schools Advanced Placement (A/P) program were surveyed to determine: (1) their attitudes toward their experience in the program; (2) college credits received for their A/P classes; and (3) their suggestions for A/P program improvement. A/P courses, offered within the regular curriculum, have grown significantly since…