This study investigated relationships between scores on the verbal, mathematics, and writing sections of the PSAT/NMSQT and the following indicators of academic achievement in high school: years of study, participation in specific math and English language arts courses, high school grade point average, academic intensity, and participation and…

The Des Moines (Iowa) Public Schools continually evaluate the process of teaching for learning in order to provide quality programming for its diverse student body. Different methods of student outcome assessment are used to identify areas for study and analysis. This report provides information about the achievement of district students on: (1)…

This study investigates the relationship between the academic background of teachers of advanced placement (AP) classes and the scores of their students on the nationally administered advance placement examinations. The effect of teacher characteristics on the exam scores was found to be significant. Classes which did poorly on the exams were more…

Reviews the findings from two international studies of mathematics achievement that have been conducted over the past 20 years. The majority of twelth-grade, college-bound American students scored among the lowest quarter of countries in the latest study. Includes tables and graphs. (MD)

Discusses statistics that indicate an increase in minority participation in Advanced Placement Program classes. Minority students' scores have also improved, allowing them to qualify for course slots at colleges. The implications of minority students' newfound fascination with technological studies is discussed. (JS)

This case study reflects block scheduling's effects on advanced-placement mathematics courses of one veteran teacher tracking personal progress since 1989. Block scheduling began in 1994, creating problems for the teacher, whose resistance to the reform was based on declining advanced-placement scores. Teacher attitude and insufficient…

This study was conducted to obtain empirical data to inform policy decisions about exempting incoming students from a first-year composition (FYC) course on the basis of Advanced Placement (AP) English exam scores. It examined the effect of avoiding first-year writing on the writing abilities of sophomore undergraduates. Two three-page writing…

The State of Florida Department of Education provides pre-and-post-graduation data for public high school graduates throughout Florida. These data were used for the present report to produce data sets for all M-DCPS regular high schools and charter high schools graduating students in 2007 and 2008. Summary data for the district are also provided.…

A case is presented for adjusting the scores for free response items in the Advanced Placement (AP) tests. Using information about the rating process from the reliability studies, administrations of the AP test for three subject areas, psychology, computer science, and English language and composition, are analyzed. In the reliability studies, 299…

The Admissions Testing Program (ATP) is a service of the College Board. The 1979 ATP summary reports on college-bound seniors were produced for each region of the United States, including New England, the Middle, Southern, Midwestern, Southwestern, Rocky Mountain, and Western States. The national and each regional report are in separate booklets.…

This study sought to investigate the educational outcomes of the College-Level Examination Program® (CLEP®) for students who earned credit through CLEP compared to those students who earned comparable credit through the Advanced Placement Program® (AP®) and through traditional course enrollment. In order to evaluate the short- and long-term…

This study reports that student performance on the PSAT/NMSQT can be useful in identifying additional students who may be successful in Advanced Placement Program (AP) courses. PSAT/NMSQT scores can identify students who may not have been initially considered for an AP course through teacher nomination, self-nomination, or other local procedures.…

More than ever before, educators across the United States are enabling a wider and more ethnically diverse proportion of students to achieve success in AP[R]. Significant inequities, however, which jeopardize traditionally underserved students' chances at college success, remain. This "Report" uses a combination of state, national, and…

Presented at the Annual National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME) in New York in March 2008. This presentation explores how different item weighting can affect the effective weights, validity coefficents and test reliability of composite scores among test takers.

This study assessed the ability of high school advanced placement history students to choose the essay topic on which they can get the highest score. A second, equally important, question was whether the score on the chosen topic was more highly related to other indicators of proficiency in history than the score on the unchosen topic. Overall,…