The OECD and its U.S. administrator, McGraw-Hill Education CTB, have recently concluded the first cycle of the OECD-Test for Schools in the U.S. This test is being marketed to local schools and is designed to compare 15-year-olds from individual participating schools against peers nationally and internationally using the OECD's PISA test as its…

This study examines the practical implications of using state tests to measure student achievement in impact evaluations that span multiple states and grades. In particular, the study examines the sensitivity of impact findings to (1) the type of assessment used to measured achievement (state tests or an external assessment administered by the…

This dissertation examined perceptions of superintendents, principals and teachers about South Carolina's Palmetto Achievement Challenge Test or the Palmetto Assessment of State Standards testing program. A systemic sample of 729 superintendents, principals, and teachers were selected to participate in the study. A survey was emailed to the…

High-stakes testing is one of the most controversial issues in American education. Advocates contend that these tests encourage students to work harder, provide teachers with a stronger understanding of students' strengths and weaknesses, and allow educators to target failing schools for extra help. Critics claim that they narrow and distort the…

What is the best use for tests? Testing should provide insight and information to educators and students. The primary purpose of testing is to inform teaching and learning. Yet, for too many schools, testing has been perverted to accommodate only measurement. Lesson plans are built around helping students pass the tests. In many instances, schools…

The 2006-2007 school year was the eighth annual reporting period since disaggregating the performance of students with disabilities on state and district-wide assessments was required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). It is the fifth reporting period since the enactment of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), and the…

This article reports that the new class of governors and state legislators to be elected November 4 will inherit financial problems that pose both immediate and long-term threats to existing education programs, while constraining their ability to mount new initiatives. The prospect of a deepening economic slowdown--with state-level budget deficits…

The U.S. public has consistently favored standardized testing in the schools, preferably with consequences (or "stakes") riding on the results, ever since the first polls taken on the topic several decades ago. Results from different polls approaching the topic in different ways suggest that nearly all Americans would like to see…

The absence of a uniform system of education in the United States is accompanied by freedom in testing. Two types of testing procedures are described: the multi-level standardized tests produced by the Educational Testing Service and experimental use of the cloze procedure. (Text is in French.) (AMH)

This paper describes conventions in the scoring of classroom tests and of the achievement batteries used in school districts', testing programs in the U.S. The scales used for the Scholastic Aptitude Test and the American College Testing Program are described. Some new, criterion-referenced scales developed for state and national assessments are…

This report is aimed at helping Congress: (1) better understand the functions, history, capabilities, limitations, uses, and misuses of educational tests; (2) learn more about the promises and pitfalls of new assessment methods and technologies; and (3) identify and weigh policy options affecting educational policy. To prepare this report, the…

In their constant groping toward achievement standards, the high schools of this country have developed what is known as "cooperative testing." This development is not recent. Cooperative testing dates back further than the standardized testing movement itself. For instance, it has been customary for about 50 years in New York and in…

Whatever the cause of present-day problems in American education, there is little doubt that proposals for national curricula and examinations are a response to widely-held perceptions of serious problems in the schools. Although national examinations have been proposed, there has been little consideration of their purposes and structures. The…

Several leaders in education have concluded that the United States should have some form of national achievement testing. Such tests are proposed as part of the "America 2000" education strategy. Believing that the experience of other countries will be useful to educators, policymakers, and concerned citizens, the National Endowment for…

Two reports on the current status and future trends of state assessment programs are presented. Among the results summarized for 1977-1978 and also presented in chart form for the 41 states which administer testing programs are: 19 programs are mandated by state legislatures; 22 programs test all students in the grades or ages assessed;…