While the charge that standardized tests are biased is not new, critics (including feminists) recently have made accusations of gender bias. One argument for the superior performance of males on the Scholastic Aptitude Tests (SAT), the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), and the American…

Setting performance standards is an area that different constituencies see quite differently. The choices of elements for a particular standard depend to a large extent on the purposes the standard is intended to serve. Standards can be used in certification, as predictors, as descriptors, and as motivators. While performance standards indicate…

It is argued that tests of English as a Second Language based on specific instructional materials, reflecting both real-world and classroom language activities, can satisfy measurement needs and provide interesting psycholinguistic insights. It is also proposed that the potential for mismatch between test and materials can be overcome by several…

Following a discussion of the basic skills required for an adaptable work force and how employers and workplace literacy providers determine which employees require basic skills training, this paper reviews three literacy instruments that can be used in workplace basic skills programs. A basic skills profile is drawn based on a review of the…