This bulletin describes a trial examination for the geography curriculum as specified by the Certificate of Secondary Education. The total examination is composed of a 2 hour objective examination to test factual knowledge learned in the geography courses. A second part of the total examination consisted of: 1) a paper by the student on some…

This report focuses on the structure of instructional assistance available through the Accelerated Learning Program (ALP) to students who show low achievement in the Wake County Public School System (WCPSS), North Carolina. Context information is also provided on other programs available to these students. Reports on ALP student participation,…

This analysis of the findings of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in 1996 for North Carolina documents the state's substantial and sustained gains in educational achievement since 1990. The education reforms of the 1980s are beginning to pay off in North Carolina. It has moved from its historic position at the bottom of all…

These discussions of performance-based student assessment provide a record of a decade-long exploration of unsettled issues in assessment. The first section provides the elements of a basic rationale for performance-based assessment, while the second section contains accounts of efforts to develop new performance-based systems in one city and four…

One of the first tasks in developing the academic achievement indicator for the Plan-Canadian Education Indicators Program was to survey each province and territory about existing student assessment and examination practices. Survey results are reported. There is considerable diversity in Canadian assessment and evaluation practices because…

The Delaware Student Testing Program ties student achievement to the state's content standards that define the knowledge and skills Delaware students need to succeed beyond high school. This report presents information to help parents interpret their children's scores on the tests, which are given in grades 3, 5, 8, and 10. Section 1 introduces…

Key findings based on data from the Second International Science Study for 19,036 third, fourth, seventh, eighth, ninth, eleventh, and twelfth graders in Sweden are discussed. Findings concerning achievement, attitudes, gender differences, future education, and career choices indicate that science achievement is increasing, and gender differences…

Data from 9,727 college students (sophomore through senior years) generally support the interpretation of the Professional Knowledge Test of the NTE battery as a measure of knowledge of teaching gained through teacher education courses. The other two core battery tests are less reflective of knowledge acquired in teacher education. (SLD)

Key pieces of information that are currently available and relevant to setting targets for achievement are organized to help inform goal setting. These include levels of academic proficiency during elementary school, middle school, and high school; rates of high school completion; and levels of literacy of young adults. Much of the information is…

This report displays summary results from the Wisconsin Student Assessment System 1994-95 Eighth Grade Knowledge and Concepts Examinations for all Wisconsin school districts and schools with an eighth grade. Statewide data for 57,388 of Wisconsin's 58,821 eighth graders are reported; certain categories, such as limited English speaking students,…

This study examined critical issues related to including students with disabilities in the Texas assessment and accountability system and recommended a plan of action to address these issues. The statewide stakeholder group examining the issues focused particularly on local implementation barriers. The report begins with a discussion of assessment…

Beginning in February 1994, twelfth-grade students who have passed the Ohio Ninth-grade Proficiency Tests in all areas will take the Twelfth-grade Proficiency Tests in writing, reading, mathematics, and citizenship. This fact sheet describes the Twelfth-grade Proficiency Test in writing, which is designed to measure a twelfth-grade level of…

This manual contains directions for the teacher and oral directions to be read to students taking the practice tests of the Ohio Proficiency Tests for grade 6. Directions are ordered in the sequence of the sections in the Practice Test booklet (writing, reading, mathematics, citizenship, and science), and they are similar, but not identical, to…

Effects of assessment on curriculum and instruction were studied in an investigation that considered local educators' reactions to statewide minimum competency testing, the instructional effects of implementing these tests, and variations within each state. The two states examined were Pennsylvania, a low-stakes situation with relatively minor…

As the latest in a series of studies analyzing the data reported on Tennessee's school district report cards, this paper focuses on finding a common statistical treatment to examine the impact of predictor variables on dependent variables. Investigations of the 1988-89 report card data explored the relationships among eight school district…