Examined essay-writing tactics ("rules of the game"), cheating behaviors, and approaches to studying in British psychology students. Found widespread occurrence of essay tactics and cheating, with a positive correlation between them. Essay tactics correlated positively with a deep approach to studying and fear of failure, while cheating…

Considers how the topic of accountability and high-stakes testing has become more critical given the heightened visibility and importance of tests and test results. Notes that trends indicate that scrutiny of public schools and assessment will increase and that students need and deserve to have the best information available regarding effective…

Examined the effects of providing students with background information about the structure and scoring of mathematics performance assessments (PA). Results for 187 elementary school students who had PA orientation and 182 who did not show the effects of test wiseness training for average and above-average students, but not for below-average…

Multiple-choice tests are commonly used in educational settings but with unknown effects on students' knowledge. The authors examined the consequences of taking a multiple-choice test on a later general knowledge test in which students were warned not to guess. A large positive testing effect was obtained: Prior testing of facts aided final…

Interest in the effectiveness of test coaching has prompted many studies, almost all of which have been directed toward coaching's effect on results of the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT). The focus of this research was to investigate whether preparation for the American College Test (ACT) provided by professional coaches would raise the scores…

This paper reviews Lev Vygotsky's theories concerning optimizing of potential through assistance, support, or instruction. The paper notes that there is a "zone of proximal development" or a band around intelligence quotient (IQ) scores reflecting one's true potential. IQ tests are generally well-standardized and "static,"…

Improving the verbal scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) of a group of 20 high school juniors was addressed by the implementation of an SAT coaching program. A computer program, "SAT Success," and a video, "SAT Prep Video," along with practice tests from the Educational Testing Service were employed. Students were…

The purpose of this study was to obtain information on both the number of individuals who retest and their patterns of score gain (or decrement) by sex and ability. Individuals who retested only once were found to gain about 26-27 points on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) verbal test and about 23 points on the GRE quantitative test. This…

This guide, written for parents, teachers, and students, presents advice on academic study habits derived from research data. Part 1 of the text presents the research evidence in five chapters: chapter 1 reviews common study skills problems; chapter 2 focuses specifically on research data from eight studies which successfully used precollege study…

The guide was developed by the Health Careers Opportunity Program, the principal Federal program focused on increasing the numbers of disadvantaged individuals who train for and enter the health professions. The guide is intended to help institutional grantees working with such students in the areas of: (1) diagnostic testing in cognitive and…

This paper outlines recommended test-taking strategies for the self-sufficient learner based on research in cognitive psychology. The theoretical model used is the information-processing approach involving the three essential steps of paying attention, encoding, and framing associative linkages for the new material. Preparing for examinations is…

Several experiments were carried out to determine: (1) whether learning disabled (LD) and behaviorally disordered (BD) students exhibit deficiencies with respect to appropriate test-taking strategies and (2) if so, whether these strategies could be successfully trained. In the test-training evaluation, 92 LD or BD elementary-age students…

This book of supplemental exercises is one of a series of books designed to provide educational materials in addition to the instructional texts in the Adult Learning Skills Program. Exercises in this intermediate level book are for the reading subject area. Course numbers and exercise topics are: 501 (simple context clues, vocabulary related to…

The hypothesis that a major cause of college students' low scores on standardized tests is underpreparedness was supported by data collected at Alabama State University where a freshman survey revealed that approximately 89% of the sample had not taken the college preparation program in high school. Four sessions of test-taking skills were…

A study examined the effect of headings and adjunct questions embedded in an expository test on the delayed multiple-choice test performance of 88 undergraduate students enrolled in psychology courses. The subject of the passage read by the students was the settling of Anglo America; the subheadings in the passage listed names of major subtopics…