The stability of a two-factor model recently proposed for the Gibb Experimental Test of Testwiseness was assessed, using confirmatory factor analysis. Designed to measure seven specific testwiseness skills with 10 items per skill, Gibb's test has been shown to discriminate between persons trained and untrained in selected testwiseness skills. Such…

This study used a seven-stage instructional methodology to successfully teach a comprehensive test-taking strategy to six secondary learning-disabled students. Evidence of maintenance and generalization is reported. In the second article, answers are presented to questions about strategy training in general and this study in particular. (Author/DB)

Academically sound methods for preparing students for standardized tests include establishing tests' importance, forming preparation teams, gathering information, aligning curricular and test objectives, teaching test-wiseness skills, informing stakeholders, involving students in preparation plans, infusing curriculum with test content, and…

Curriculum-teaching, requiring teachers to direct instruction toward a specific body of content knowledge or cognitive skills, is preferable to item-teaching organized around test items. Detecting inappropriate test-preparation practices among teachers is difficult. Curriculum-teaching, if effective, will elevate students' scores and mastery of…

The faculty at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine has developed an explanation of repeated medical student failures on Part I of the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) examination. They see the failures as the result of incomplete development of reasoning skills. Author/MLW)

The literature on the use of hypnosis in an educational setting is briefly reviewed, and a hypnotic approach involving the use of the clenched fist as a conditioned trigger to improve examination performance is described. A study of 60 high school students indicates that the approach can improve test outcomes. (TJH)

Instruction targeted at increasing student content mastery is the most ethical approach to test preparation and also addresses the overall goal of improving student achievement. Sound and varied classroom assessments can help address efficient time usage and reduce the gap between teaching and standardized testing. (Contains 21 references.) (MLH)

In the class session following feedback regarding their scores on multiple-choice exams, undergraduate students in a large human development course rated the strength of possible contributors to their exam performance. Students rated items related to their personal effort in preparing for the exam (identified as student effort in the paper), their…

This article advocates making the provision of opportunities for learning the main objective of language testing. It recognizes the need for tests to be fair, valid, and reliable, but asserts the priority of what it calls "learning validity", in order to prevent time being wasted on language courses on tests, and the preparation for them. The…

In this selective look at research on test-taking strategies over the last 25 years, brief mention is made of the beginnings of test-taker strategy research, and then important developments in its evolution to the present are discussed, focusing on conceptual frameworks for classifying strategies, first and second language-related strategies,…

Administrators should offer preparatory courses for the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and the American College Testing Program (ACT) because most students are not well prepared to take college entrance exams. Principals can improve a high school's test-prep program by ensuring teachers' familiarity with the tests and choosing a test…

A big problem with performance tests and standards is their specificity, or lack of generalizability. "Keeping no secrets" and "teaching to the test" for performance tasks and traditional tests are absolutely necessary if schools are to prepare students adequately to meet performance standards. This nontraditional approach…

Discusses appropriate ways to prepare students for performance assessments and proposes a list of six guidelines for teaching to performance assessments. The focus is on elementary and secondary education. It is believed that these guidelines will help balance the domain and sample problem. (SLD)

Recent studies have shown that restricting review and answer change opportunities on computerized adaptive tests (CATs) to items within successive blocks reduces time spent in review, satisfies most examinees' desires for review, and controls against distortion in proficiency estimates resulting from intentional incorrect answering of items prior…

Teachers are practically unanimous in their opinion that the benefits derived from a mandated testing program are less than the costs in teacher/pupil time and money, the same information might be obtained from fewer tests, and teacher evaluations are more accurate than mandated tests in assessing pupils' abilities. (Author/CM)