Information provided by typical and improved conventional classroom achievement tests was compared with information provided by an adaptive test covering the same subject matter. Both tests were administered to over 700 college students in a general biology course. Using the same scoring method, adaptive testing was found to yield substantially…

This study investigated the comparability of scores for paper and computer versions of a writing test administered to eighth grade students. Two essay prompts were given on paper to a nationally representative sample as part of the 2002 main NAEP writing assessment. The same two essay prompts were subsequently administered on computer to a second…

The Edmonton Grade III Achievement: 1956-1977 study is a comparison of achievement in reading, arithmetic, and language involving all of the third grade students in a large school system. Six basic skills tests which were administered to all of the Edmonton third grade students in 1956 were reprinted and administered to all of the third grade…

The state of the art of language testing in England is examined through the conference proceedings presented in this text. The nine chapters, written by individual authors, include discussion of the General Certificate of Education examinations, nonschool examinations, oral tests, research by examining boards, continuous assessment, and…

The two basic objectives of this five-year study were to investigate a number of variables related to the preparation of effective instructional materials for disadvantaged preschool children, and to determine whether special language instruction would produce improvement in language abilities and thus promote academic progress in the beginning…

The Early Childhood Inventories Project (ECIP) was initiated to originate aptitude/achievement type inventories which could assess very specific behaviors of young children, particularly disadvantaged children. In practice these inventories are "non-specific" type criterion-referenced measures. This first aspect of the project involved…

This study addressed the need for empirical tests of the global instructional design (ID) model as a toolkit for classroom teachers in authentic settings; and the performance improvement challenge of finding effective, efficient methods of professional development for preparing graduate assistants to teach. Participants were eighteen teaching…

Pupils at three elementary schools and one junior high school among Area 1 inner-city schools of St. Louis Missouri, were identified as scoring well below norms on standardized tests. An effort to change the educational programs at these schools netted financial support and the creation of Project SHAL (named for the schools involved). Inservice…

The political education of young people in West Germany, Finland, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, and United States is examined. Purposes of the study are to (1) define civic education cross-nationally, (2) deal with methodological problems in assessing student achievement and attitudes, (3) convey a detailed…

It is often proposed that high schools are partly to blame for the decline in achievement test scores. Critics of current practices in education cite the decline in Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) score averages that has occurred each year since 1963 as evidence. The College Entrance Examination Board Advisory Panel on SAT Score Decline has…

Data from the Canadian Test of English for Scholars and Trainees (CanTEST) are compared to data from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) to establish CanTEST as a valid admissions tool for English-as-a-Second Language college applicants. Data are taken from four groups of examinees who took both tests. (eight references) (LR)

A group of highly regarded schools in affluent suburban areas was divided into two groups: those judged to have a traditional orientation and those judged to have a more experimental orientation, in terms of course and program structure. A review of the mean Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) from the 1966, 1969, 1973, and 1976 graduating classes from…

Standards-based reform efforts are highly dependent on accurate assessment of all students, including those with disabilities. The accuracy of current large-scale assessments is undermined by construct-irrelevant factors including access barriers, a particular problem for students with disabilities. Testing accommodations such as the read-aloud…

What would you expect the differences to be between Japan and England in how pupils learn history in the post-14 phase? Perhaps your guess would be: Japanese school students learn a lot of historical facts and focus upon their own identity and English school students talk a lot more in lessons and are more concerned with justifying opinions using…

The Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores of the 1960 to 1974 valedictorians and salutatorians from a sample of public, experimental, and private schools were studied. The experimental schools were specifically chosen for demographic stability. The comparison schools were also selected for stability, but by less stringent criteria. For the…