While most educators assume that not all students try their best on achievement tests, no current research examines if behaviors associated with low test effort, like rapidly guessing on test items, affect teacher value-added estimates. In this article, we examined the prevalence of rapid guessing to determine if this behavior varied by grade,…

Why has large-scale standardised testing attracted such a bad press? Why has pedagogic benefit to be derived from test results been downplayed? The paper investigates this question by first surveying the pros and cons of testing in the literature, and goes on to examine educators' responses to standardised, large-scale tests in a sample of low…

The importance of standardized test results is becoming more prevalent in the structure of classroom instruction and the operation of schools throughout the nation due to pressure on educators and students from various levels of authority. This study looks at the relationship between classroom instruction and standardized test content and the…

Describes fourth graders' performance on 30 questions from the National Assessment of Educational Progress 1998 Civics Assessment, showing questions answered correctly by at least 75%, more than 50%, more than 25%, and fewer than 25%. Includes samples of students' written responses. (Author/SLD)

This technical report describes a study that was undertaken to compare the content of two recent fourth-and eighth-grade assessments in science: the NAEP 2000 assessment and the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2003 assessment. Its aim is to provide information that will be useful for interpreting and comparing the…

In 1982 the Michigan Educational Assessment Program's Test of music learning was administered by local school staffs to fourth, seventh, and tenth graders from 36 randomly selected schools in 33 districts. Group tests were administered to 5700 students, and 500 students took individual tests. Test items were developed from objectives in the…

As part of the Michigan Educational Assessment Program, a sample of approximately 2,000 fourth and seventh grade students were tested in music and metric measurement. Teachers and curriculum specialists helped to develop individualized tests which could measure the attainment of objectives that could not be tested with group-administered items,…

Designed as an overview of the 1979 and 1980 Illinois Inventory of Educational Progress (IIEP) in fourth, eighth, and eleventh grade reading, this report presents the results for each grade level along with performance comparisons between years and topic areas (using sources of information and reading in the social sciences, literature, and the…

The Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) is a statewide testing program in reading and mathematics, with other subject areas tested on a sampling basis. The MEAP tests are administered every fall to all fourth, seventh and tenth graders. This handbook was developed to assist educators in analyzing, using, and reporting MEAP test results.…

This report presents a summary of information about the use in Massachusetts of open-ended questions in the Massachusetts Educational Assessment Program's biennial assessment of mathematics at grades 4, 8, and 12. These questions appeared in one form of the tests in each grade. One-twelfth of the fourth-graders, one-sixteenth of the…

In the spring of 1988, the Massachusetts Department of Education administered its second biennial assessment (the Massachusetts Educational Assessment Program), testing students in grades 4, 8, and 12 in reading, mathematics, science, and social studies. This report discusses the use of open-ended questions in one form of the science tests.…

In the spring of 1988, the Massachusetts Department of Education administered its second biennial assessment (the Massachusetts Educational Assessment Program) of students in grades 4, 8, and 12 in reading, mathematics, science, and social studies. This report discusses the use of open-ended questions in the tests of social studies. One-twelfth of…

In response to a prevailing demand for better quality education in public schools in Pennsylvania, procedures were developed to measure the adequacy and the efficiency of the educational programs in public schools. The objectives currently assessed are in the following areas: communication skills (reading and writing), mathematics, self-esteem,…