The Maryland Accountability Testing Program Annual Report is a reference document on basic skills test data for grade levels three, five, and eight. The average grade equivalent scores on the California Achievement Tests (CAT) for all three grade levels in reading comprehension, language, and mathematics for the school year 1983-1984 are included.…

In the quest to improve public schools, an education in basic technological concepts and systems, or "technological literacy," has been viewed as an important part of a school curriculum (Dugger & Yung, 1995, pp. 7-8). Proponents of technology education have claimed that technological knowledge may be critical to the future needs of…

Results of the fifth year of testing by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction are presented. In 1980, objective-referenced tests in mathematics and reading were given to a sample of Wisconsin's public school students in grades 4, 8, and 12. Students were also given the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills (CTBS) in mathematics, reading,…

The program design and psychometric characteristics of the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program (MSPAP) are described, focusing on scaling, equating, standard setting, score accuracy, and validity. The MSPAP is an innovative performance-based testing program administered annually to students in grades three, five, and eight. (SLD)

Sometimes, state requirements really are helpful, resulting in projects that positively affect teachers and students. The requirement for school districts and area education agencies (AEAs) to submit annual progress reports (APRs) to the state, based on student data, resulted in a technology project with wide-reaching implications. Using the…

Sixteen seventh and eighth graders previously identified as having behavioral problems earned significantly higher post-test scores on a test of REBT concepts immediately after participation in a Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy (REBT) training program, and this knowledge was retained after an 8-week follow-up period (p less than 0.01).…

Sixty tables are presented, which examine the test achievement of a national probability sample of eighth graders in public and private schools. Statistics were obtained from the base-year student survey of the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88). The NELS:88 monitors the transition of a national sample of young adults as they…

The Kansas Minimum Competency Tests (KMCT) were designed to provide information about student performance on selected minimum competencies in reading and mathematics. The KMCT were criterion referenced tests in which each item was keyed to a minimum competency objective; student performance was measured against a predetermined standard. The tests…

This study demonstrates that the validity and usefulness of mathematics achievement tests can be improved by defining psychologically meaningful subscores that yield differential relations with student, teacher, and school variables. The National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88) 8th- and 10th-grade math tests were subjected to full…

The understanding of children and adults regarding four component properties of the arithmetic mean was studied. The component properties were: (1) the mean is a data point between extreme values of a score distribution; (2) the sum of deviations about the mean equals zero; (3) when the mean is calculated, any value of zero must be taken into…

Results of the seventh year of testing by the Pupil Assessment Program of the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction are presented. In 1982, objective-referenced tests in science, mathematics, and geometry were given to a sample of Wisconsin's public school students in grades 4, 8, 11, and 12. Students were also given the Comprehensive Tests…

The purposes of this study were to examine the relationship between academic achievement and demographic and school background variables for school districts and school buildings and to develop from these relationships a basis for comparing achievement at similar schools. The sample consisted of Iowa public school districts that participated in…

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) gives states wide discretion to define what students must learn, how that knowledge should be tested, what test scores constitute proficiency, set standards for high school graduation rates, teacher qualifications, school safety and many other aspects of school performance. As a result, states are largely free to define…

The "No Child Left Behind" Act mandated the need for research-based interventions to increase and to improve learning and achievement for all youngsters. Research in computer-based instruction and intervention for learning basic skills and related achievements in content area subjects has documented the need for controlled investigations…

Potential gender-related differences in the process of mathematical word problem solving were investigated. Sixth and eighth graders (n=302) solved 2-step mathematical word problems using a 9-step problem solving plan. The nine steps were: (1) identify the facts; (2) identify the question; (3) draw a diagram; (4) choose the operations; (5) write…