Statewide testing can serve four important functions: can illustrate superior results of a group of schools where no one would expect it and raise questions about how they accomplished it; statewide testing deals with the generally lower scores of disadvantaged minorities, it can put the differences in perspective by showing comparable differences between boys and girls; testing statewide can deal with school effects other than knowledge and basic skills, as shown not only by an interest measure but also by data on attitudes toward school; and it can show that a particular program is producing substantial and socially important results. It is not necessary to give the same test to everybody in the whole state if the objective is to discover the strong and weak points in the state's educational system. (WR)