A description of the difficulties encountered in constructing a criterion-referenced test to assess end-of-year skills as part of a program evaluation is presented. The problems encountered in preparing the customized test are described in humorous detail. The first problem involved the listening test obtained from a publisher without…

Author claimed and defended the position that none of the tests used in educational measurement is optimum for its role in program assessment. As well, he described the type of test he thought best for the task of assessment. (Author/RK)

The educational implications of criterion-referenced tests are demonstrated. It is the hypothesis of the author that criterion-referenced tests have little educational impact unless carefully constructed around rigorous domain specifications. The paper details the process and problems of construction of a series of history tests presently being…

Describes two types of criterion-referenced testing that districts can use to measure achievement outcomes of their instructional programs: a random sampling assessment plan and an item-response theory assessment plan. (Author/JM)

The purpose of this study was to examine the assembly and system models of reading with respect to the development of phoneme-grapheme association skills in normal and disabled readers. (Author)

Fourteen criteria used to evaluate criterion referenced tests were assigned two sets of weights reflecting the characteristics of tests designed as a classroom resource or for program evaluation. Twenty eight currently available criterion referenced tests were rated against the criteria using each set of weights. A comparison of the scores…

This report represents the results of an investigation of the appropriateness of criterion-referenced tests (CRTS) for large-scale evaluations. First, the development and validation of CRTS, including the formulation and generation of CRT objectives, items, and score-interpretation schemes and dimensions of item and test quality, were examined to…

This paper discusses and describes an industry-based process for the design and development of criterion-referenced tests in vocational-technical subject areas to support vocational program evaluations. The following topics are covered in the paper: (1) use of criterion-referenced tests; (2) test design; (3) preparation of test materials; and (4)…

The author defines criterion-referenced (CRT) and norm-referenced (NRT) tests, considers current objections to each, and distinguishes their appropriate uses: CRTs for pupil diagnosis and instruction and NRTs for surveying achievement in a long-term evaluation context. Part of a theme issue on student assessment. (SJL)

The criterion issues in the area of outcome research in psychotherapy were addressed and reviewed. Through this review of previous outcome research, it was determined that three basic criterion areas related best to traditional outcome variables such as therapist and community informant ratings, length of stay, and rehospitalization. These three…

Despite their advantages over other assessment techniques, current achievement and ability tests are not especially efficient sources of information for the range of educational decisions for which they are used and relied upon. Two major types of tests, criterion-referenced and norm-referenced, and two types of use, student evaluation and program…

A statewide sustained effort to improve student learning in Missouri by adopting and adapting promising research-based educational practices is described. The concept of an Instructional Management System (IMS) with desired learner outcomes determining both instruction and testing was suggested to local school districts beginning in 1980. In 1985,…

In 1984 an evaluation team examined the Maryland Functional Testing Program (MFTP), a statewide competency-based, criterion-referenced testing program that was instituted to limit awarding of high school diplomas to those students who had earned scores above cut scores on a series of achievement tests. This article examines the procedures the…

Technical considerations associated with item selection and reliability assessment are considered in relation to criterion-referenced tests constructed to provide group information. The purpose is to emphasize test building and the evaluation of test scores in program evaluation studies. It is stressed that an evaluator employ a performance or…

The feasibility of using criterion referenced tests (CRTs) in a large-scale evaluation conducted in an effectiveness evaluation context was investigated. The study began by examining the theory that structures the development and validation of CRTs to discover whether, on theoretical grounds alone, CRTs are suitable or not suitable for large-scale…