A plan was developed to improve test scores in a Georgia high school. A committee of teachers, students, citizens, and a curriculum consultant was formed to analyze the school's problems and the reason for low test scores and low achievement. Data on the school climate indicated that it was poor, except that the instructional leadership of the…

In the 1992 mathematics assessment of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), approximately one-third of the questions and about half of the student response time were devoted to questions asking students to construct their own responses. Regular constructed response items required a short answer with a problem solution, while…

April 1986 marked the sixth year of the statewide testing program in reading, language, and mathematics mandated by the Arizona legislature. For 1986, the Arizona State Board of Education adopted three tests to fulfill the legislative mandate: the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (grades 1 through 8); the Stanford Achievement Test (grade 9); and the…

Colorado conducts an assessment program to provide a statewide profile of student achievement. Results for fall 1988 and fall 1991 are presented in a series of tables. A standardized, nationally norm-referenced achievement test, the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills, was administered in 1988 to students in grades 4, 7, and 10, and again to the same…

The Connecticut Mastery Test is a critical element of the state's efforts to attain educational equity and excellence. The testing program assesses essential skills in mathematics and language arts, including listening, reading, and writing for grades 4, 6, and 8. Student achievement is measured and reported in relation to specific learning…

In spite of widespread concerns about low academic achievement nationally, parents generally have expressed satisfaction with their own children's achievement and schools, largely because their children's grades suggest that they are doing well. This report examines what student grades tell about achievement through the use of data from the…

This report examines absenteeism and its relationship to performance on the California Achievement Tests (CAT) and the Graduation Exit Examinations (GEE) administered in the New Orleans (Louisiana) public schools in the spring of 1993. It also focuses on the need to report test data in a manner that more accurately reflects a district's…

The purpose and results of the state testing programs in Utah are described. At present there are seven major assessment programs conducted under the leadership of the Utah State Office of Education. These include the three components of the Core Assessment Program: Criterion-Referenced Tests and item pools, Writing Assessment, and the new…

Fulfilling a legislative mandate in 1984, Connecticut established mastery tests in mathematics and language arts (listening, reading, and writing skills) for grades 4, 6, and 8. Criterion-referenced tests were considered most appropriate for assessing achievement and determining individual remediation needs. The Grade 8 Mastery Test results for…

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 Twins and Siblings study is available in a machine-readable data file that is part of the High School and Beyond (HSB) Class of 1980 Survey, administered in 1980 to a national sample of over 30,000 sophomores and 28,000 seniors from 1,015 high schools throughout the United States. This file contains data from 616 sampled twins and triplets…

The sixth annual report of the State University System (SUS) of Florida to the State Board of Education presents information on Florida's progress toward excellence in education. It follows the Indicators of Excellence Program implemented in 1983. Indicators of Florida's progress for 1986-87 include: pass rates on the College Level Academic Skills…

American school officials almost invariably compare local and national achievement through one of the following norm-referenced tests: (1) the California Achievement Test; (2) the Stanford Achievement Test; (3) the Metropolitan Achievement Test; (4) the Science Research Associates Test; (5) the Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills; and (6) the Iowa…

Recent trends in achievement test scores among elementary and secondary school students in Iowa are examined. Form 7 of the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) was used to measure the achievement of students in grades 3 and 7; and Form X-7 of the Iowa Tests of Educational Development (ITED) was used for 11th graders. These grade levels were chosen…

Statewide results of South Carolina's Basic Skills Assessment Program (BSAP) are provided in terms of the percentages of students meeting statewide performance standards in reading, mathematics, writing, and science. BSAP tests were administered statewide on April 23-27, 1990, in grades 1, 2, 3, 6, and 8. The BSAP Exit Examination was administered…