None of the several objective indices of cultural bias shows any significant indication of bias in any of the standardized tests of intelligence examined when they are used with blacks and whites. (Author/IRT)

Detroit's minimum competency testing program focuses on improving basic skills instruction. Using test results as indicators of areas of weakness and strength in 12 subjects, teachers have a better understanding of the learning tasks and subskills needed for mastery. (WD)

Because the skills tested on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) are higher order skills than those of basic literacy, teaching basic literacy will not necessarily improve SAT scores. The National Assessment of Educational Progress, which does test literacy, indicates that students do possess basic literacy skills. (IRT) Aspect of National…

Richard Rothstein's booklet "What Do We Know About Declining (Or Rising) Student Achievement?" claims that anecdotes about past educational practices are unreliable and difficult to relate to today's schools. Curricula and tests change; so do student populations. There are no solid historical measures, including three well-known…

Examines differences between old state-designed norm-referenced tests and new tests aligned with the curriculum. Concludes that new state tests are very similar to old ones. Discusses impact of new high-stakes standardized tests on students and teachers. Argues the new wave of standardized testing is not the answer to improving student…

For 50 years, large-scale educational achievement testing in the United States was dominated by a (low-cost) multiple-choice assessment strategy. The problem is finding adequate financial resources to support constructed-response methods used in authentic or performance testing. Matrix sampling, featuring low-proportion sampling of both students…

Counterbalancing the simplification of education caused by testing means relying on classroom teachers' conceptual powers. Classroom teaching is labor intensive and varies from room to room because diversity is the norm. Specifying standard academic skills and curriculum has not upgraded education. Children need opportunities to confront…

In the absence of national standards, we have evolved a haphazard, accidental, disconnected national curriculum based on mass-market textbooks and standardized, multiple-choice tests. This article explains former Education Secretary Lamar Alexander's efforts to ameliorate this situation by promoting America 2000, establishing the National Council…

Neither standards/high-stakes testing nor privatization/charter-school improvement approaches will live up to proponents' ambitious claims. Standardized tests cannot uphold new performance goals. Charter schools serve limited numbers of students, siphoning off pedagogical reform energies that would benefit kids left behind. Rigor and innovation…

A former U.S. Commissioner of Education during Lyndon Johnson's administration discusses his 50-year educator career and his views about leadership responsibility, school desegregation, funding for black colleges, the limitations of poverty and standardized tests, and putting excellent teachers in charge of teacher preparation programs. (MLH)

Under North Carolina's ABC's accountability program, public schools are labeled "exemplary,""meets expectations,""adequate performance," or "low performance." Teachers are given $1,500 bonuses if their schools exceed expectations. A survey found that mandated tests increased student anxiety and negatively…

Teachers face at least two dilemmas in our work to meet the academic needs of our students. The first dilemma is how to prepare our students to pass state-mandated tests without driving them away, given that many already see school as a place where they fail. The traditional "drill and practice" approach to remediation for low-performing…

The idea of leaving no child behind may sound like a noble dream. But the federal law intended to fulfill that dream is in Houston's opinion so flawed that it has become a nightmare for educators. Sadly, the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act is a nightmare in which everyone is naked while being pushed off a cliff because of poor test performance.…

The federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 (the latest revision of ESEA) has exerted strong pressure on the states to encourage local public schools to improve their standardized test scores. This emphasis reflects a desire on the part of politicians and policy makers for strict accountability in the form of current test scores that can…

Examines the research methods used in creating the National Association of Secondary School Principals volume "Guidelines for Improving SAT Scores." (IRT)