Increasing students' academic success in postsecondary endeavors is an important goal for both high school and college institutions today. However, the standards for high school graduation and college readiness are not well aligned, and successful transition from high school to college is problematic for many students, particularly in math. This…

Over the past 10 years, since No Child Left Behind started pressuring school districts to focus on student test scores, many states have begun to consider student performance when evaluating teachers. This article will provide preventive measures of fairness and substantive due process to avoid potential teacher objections and gain teacher…

Secondary schools have been made the scapegoat for the decline in students' Scholastic Achievement Test (SAT) scores. The responsibility rests on colleges and universities to upgrade their admission standards. (MLF)

Since intensive preparation for the Scholastic Aptitude Test can positively effect scores, coaching and tutoring centers are springing up to serve mainly middle class clients. This article describes a Northeastern University (Boston) model to counter this inequity by preparing Boston innercity students for the test. (MLH)

Reviews 12 studies to determine whether coaching improves student performance on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). While results are mixed, evidence suggests that coaching does not appreciably improve students' verbal or math scores. Factors such as test reliability and weighting SAT scores with high school records should be considered. Includes…

Explains achievement test scores, focusing on types, uses, meanings, and relative importance. Describes currently used scales, normal distribution curves, percentile ranks, grade equivalents, and other rating systems. Advises inclusion of more than one kind of standardized test score, since each provides different information. Includes three…

Reviews a dozen basic questions about passing scores on state-mandated competency testing programs for students, teachers, administrators, and other education personnel. Condemns the "cardiac" approach (or traditonal 80 percent standard) in favor of procedures that systematically incorporate judgment with a variety of performance data.…

Describes one school district's approach to improving student achievement on standardized tests. Increased scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test have not been the only positive result of this systemwide effort. Students and parents, for example, have become more conscientious about their course seletions. (CJH)

Presuming that test scores can accurately reflect educational quality is naive and potentially dangerous. Sophisticated statistical procedures cannot fully separate the effects of confounding background variables (ethnicity, language proficiency, or poverty) from test scores. A broad-based assessment model relying on multiple indices and…

Regardless of how many times people are told by the Educational Testing Service not to use the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) as a gross measure of school productivity, the test continues to be used for that purpose. This article shows how misleading SAT scores and per-student-expenditure correlations are used to justify spending less money on…

Principals should urge teachers to teach students the five basic principles of test taking. This can improve student scores on standardized tests. (MD)

Describes the plan used in Consolidated High School District 230, in Palos Hills (Illinois), for fostering an informed and interested school community by providing standardized test results to the school board, central and building administrators, parents, teachers, counselors, elementary educators, and the local press. (PGD)

Summarizes the data on math and science preparation and the results of the ACT Mathematics and Science Reasoning test for the nation's public high school graduating class of 1994. Highlights how the probability of student success in university science and math courses is affected. A rigorous high school program remains a significant precondition…

Students who are prepared for tests (possessing content knowledge, test-taking strategies, and effective study plans) perform better in test situations than unprepared or unskilled students. This article presents strategies teachers can use to help students develop test-taking skills and discusses differences between the Scholastic Aptitude Test…

A study of 358 students at a western middle school examined academic, general, home, and social variables. Regarding self-esteem, girls viewed themselves more positively than boys in social experiences. Low achievers were not as satisfied with school facilities as high- and middle-achievers. (MLH)