The Nevada Criterion Referenced Tests (CRT) mandated by legislation are designed to provide a means of measuring student academic achievement and proficiency in the Nevada State Content and Performance Standards. This review guide is intended to be used by teachers and administrators as a tool to complement current efforts at preparing students…

Reports on the effort by the National Teacher Examination to set standards in the field of speech communication. Describes the way in which the examination is put together and discusses some of the strengths and weaknesses of such a method. (KEH)

A process called focused holistic scoring has been developed for use in the Texas Assessment of Basic Skills to assess student performance on writing samples. This process is "holistic" because it evaluates a total piece of writing, and it is "focused" because it evaluates the writing in terms of two specific objectives…

As part of a major effort to raise student achievement, Colorado schools have been putting into place rigorous academic content standards that spell out the skills and knowledge students should acquire in core subject areas. This guide contains information about part of this effort, the new Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP), to help…

The new Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) was developed to provide a measurement of how well students and schools are meeting Colorado's academic content standards. The CSAP tests are not norm-referenced showing how much a student has learned in comparison with other students. Instead, they are based on the state's content standards.…

Criticisms of norm referenced standardized tests are contrasted with the assumption and claims of proponents of Rasch model testing and item banking. The Rasch test theory model is based on the assumption of equal interval curriculum referenced scales for both students' abilities and test item difficulties. The Portland school district has…

Procedures for administering the Proficiency Testing Program, adopted by the Idaho State Department of Education, are explained in this test administration manual. The tests are described as given on a district optional basis to ninth grade students in the basic skills areas of reading, writing, spelling, and mathematics. Criterion-referenced…

Implementation of the Proficiency Testing Program, adopted by the Idaho State Board of Education, is explained in the districts coordinator's manual. The tests are described as administered on a district optional basis to ninth grade students in the basic skills areas of reading, writing, spelling, and mathematics. Criterion referenced tests are…

This handbook was designed as a referenced guide to the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) testing program. Many year-round schools have been created in the district. This has necessitated adjustments in the testing schedule so that all LAUSD students are tested in the same time frame in their educational programs. The handbook was…

An advisory committee representing counselors, curriculum specialists, students, teachers, and community members should participate in selecting standardized tests for school districts. These steps should be followed: (1) identify test purpose in relation to needs and objectives--diagnosis, placement, career guidance, program evaluation; (2)…

This handbook exists to assist the staff of a Springfield, Illinois school district in implementing the district assessment program and to assist other local school units in developing and assessing an implementation program. Chapter 1 presents information on the philosophical and pragmatic background of comprehensive assessment programs, with…

This resource guide was designed for teachers and administrators in Arizona school districts to assist them in preparing functional and meaningful programs of student achievement testing. The format of the guide is based on fundamental questions often posed by educators regarding norm-referenced and criterion-referenced testing. Particular…

This manual is designed to accompany Pennsylvania's Educational Quality Assessment (EQA) elementary school reports to assist in their interpretation and understanding. The normative sample is described as stratified on two dimensions: district enrollment and wealth. Administration procedures are summarized. The cognitive and non-cognitive areas…

This manual is designed to accompany Pennsylvania's Educational Quality Assessment (EQA) secondary school reports to assist in their interpretation and understanding. The normative sample is described as stratified on two dimensions: district enrollment and wealth. Administration procedures are summarized. The cognitive and non-cognitive areas…

This newsletter is part of an effort to improve mastery of the Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills (TEAMS). Responses of teachers to a survey in the Spring of 1987 concerning their beliefs and facts about the TEAMS are reported, along with clarifying facts about this criterion referenced test. Teaching to the TEAMS is advisable because…