Mathematics and science achievements have been assessed in the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and its repetition (TIMSS-R). The released TIMSS and TIMSS-R reports are largely divided into subject domains. To merge the research outcomes, this study focused on an examination of the relationship between mathematics and…

Articulation of mathematics and science education is advocated in the official documents of several professional organizations. To assess the benefit of curriculum integration, a national indicator needs to be developed from a correlation study of performance scores between the two subjects. In this study, a correlation analysis was conducted at…

Two 50-item multiple-choice forms of a grammar test were developed differing only in humor being included in 20 items of one form. One hundred twenty-six (126) eighth graders received the test plus alternate forms of a questionnaire. Humor inclusion did not affect grammar scores on matched humorous/nonhumorous items nor on common post-treatment…

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the interaction of item content and group membership on achievement test items. Estimates of the parameters of the three parameter logistic model were obtained on the 46 item math test for the sample of eighth grade students (N = 2055) participating in the Illinois Inventory of Educational Progress,…

Describes a study of eighth graders that compared the effects of two-dimensional and three-dimensional illustrated texts on eye movement strategies and on retention of information. Results are reported that support earlier research findings that realism in illustrations is not necessarily facilitating and may even be distracting. (Contains 19…

Comments on the apparent disparity between mathematics achievement as measured by the National Assessment of Educational Progress and various international studies, focusing on the comparability among studies, the magnitude of change in average test scores, and the role of family-related factors in achievement trends in other countries. (SM)

Data from the 1990 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS) are analyzed for eighth graders to distinguish the characteristics of low-achieving groups and the independent predictors of low test scores. Results provide a basis for evaluating the adequacy of the NAEP for these…

This study investigated three factors that may contribute to the large variation in student performance across open-ended measures. These factors are content domain, format (whether the task required only pencil and paper or involved a hands-on manipulation of equipment), and level of inquiry (whether the task guided the student toward the…

Factor analysis of scores on the 30-item Test Anxiety Scale for Children (TASC) of 455 seventh and eighth graders supports previous findings of a 4-factor structure. Item response theory analysis suggests that the TASC is a continuum defining an academic anxiety construct of clusters of commonly related items. (SLD)

Reports initial findings from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study--Repeat (TIMSS-R). Includes the performance of U.S. eighth-grade students relative to students in other nations in 1999, as well as changes in achievement in participating nations between 1995 and 1999. (Author)

Reviewing the results of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study-Repeat (TIMSS-R) shows that U.S. eighth graders are about average in mathematics and science when compared to students in other countries. The primary lesson from the TIMSS-R is that children learn what they are taught. (SLD)

The effect of collaborative testing on junior high school students' scores was investigated. Twenty-two students in grades 7, 8, and 9 were given curriculum-based tests in their pre-algebra classes. Some tests were taken individually in the traditional manner, and others were taken collaboratively by students in pairs over a 10-week period.…

In 1990 the scope of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) was broadened by adding the Trial State Assessment (TSA), in which approximately 2,500 eighth graders in 100 schools in 40 states and U.S. territories participated in the mathematics assessment. A major step was training local test administrators to administer the TSA…

In the spring of 1985, the Oregon Department of Education conducted an assessment of eighth graders' writing skills. It was the first statewide assessment to be scored analytically according to six traits: ideas and content, organization and development, style, word choice, syntax/sentence structure, and conventions (grammar, punctuation,…

The effects of an incentive (money) on the motivation of students taking the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) mathematics test were studied. Results with 749 8th graders and 719 12th graders indicate that, at least for 8th graders, student effort can be increased by financial rewards and that this effort results in higher scores.…