Available sources of information on academic achievement levels of American elementary and secondary school students as compared to their counterparts in major foreign countries are analyzed. Focus is on testing conducted by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) in Stockholm (Sweden). The IEA tests…

The Child Abuse Potential Inventory was completed by 56 Head Start staff. Because the Head Start program creates an environment where staff work almost exclusively with parents or with children, it was possible to examine the perceived differences among workers attracted to child or parent work. Scores for classroom and non-classroom staff were…

A study investigated the effects of specific guidelines in the taking and rating of tests of summarizing ability. The subjects were 63 native-Hebrew-speaking students enrolled in English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) courses at the Seminar Hakibbutzim Teacher Training College in Tel Aviv (Israel). The subjects were given two sets of instructions…

To examine the role of elaborations in learning a procedural skill (i.e., using a personal computer) from an instructional text, 88 members of the Carnegie-Mellon University community (students, faculty, and staff members) participated in two experiments. Experimental sessions consisted of a reading period followed by a task performance period in…

This study examined the relationship and relative importance of selected variables to successful performance of urban community college students on the American College Testing Program (ACT) College Outcome Measures Program (COMP). The importance of age, race, gender, type of degree, program or major category, admissions criteria and ACT…

This paper discusses the use of assessment instruments at the preschool level and systematically reviews several measurement instruments used with young children. The first section briefly discusses the selection of educational objectives, consideration of alternative methods of collecting information about children, the selection of a specific…

A study was conducted to compare tailored testing procedures based on a Bayesian ability estimation technique and on a maximum likelihood ability estimation technique. The Bayesian tailored testing procedure selected items so as to minimize the posterior variance of the ability estimate distribution, while the maximum likelihood tailored testing…

AUDIOMETRIC AND VISUAL PROCEDURES WERE COMPARED ANALYTICALLY AND/OR DESIGNED TO ESTABLISH TEST METHODS FOR TRAINABLE MENTAL RETARDATES IN THE IQ RANGE OF 23-47 AND BELOW THE MENTAL AGE OF 4 YEARS. THE NUMBER OF SUBJECTS WAS 26 FOR THE AUDITORY PROGRAM AND 25 FOR THE VISUAL. EACH OF THE SUBJECTS WAS STUDIED ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS. DATA WERE…

THE QUESTION OF PRIMARY CONCERN IN FOUR STUDIES WAS IMMEDIATE FEEDBACK IN ADJUNCT AUTOINSTRUCTIONAL EXERCISES (LEARNING EXERCISES DEFINED AS THOSE DESIGNED TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE STRUCTURE INHERENT IN SUBJECT MATTER). IN A CONTROLLED SITUATION, DIFFERENT FEEDBACK DELAYS (IMMEDIATE, 1-HOUR DELAY, 2-DAY DELAY, AND 1-WEEK DELAY) WERE TESTED. OTHER…

Alternative mathematical models for scoring and decision making with criterion referenced tests are described, especially as they concern appropriate test length and methods of establishing statistically valid cutting scores. Several of these approaches are reviewed and compared on formal-analytic and empirical grounds: (1) Block's approach to…

This report focused upon mathematical skills needed by the American consumer to function effectively in the marketplace. The nationwide assessment was conducted during the 1972-73 school year by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Respondents at four age levels were included: 9-year-olds, 13-year-olds, 17-year-olds, and young…

After reviewsing the literature relative to culture and cognition, an hypothetical model was developed to explain some aspects of concept learning and cognitive development. To test aspects of the model, 3 tests which had had prior use in cross-cultural studies and 5 original tests were administered individually to 34 Stoney Indian and 34…

This report provides comparisons among the social indicator reports of seven countries including Canada, France, Great Britain, Japan, Norway, the United States, and West Germany. The purpose of social indicator research in each country is to provide a means for developing more adequate answers to the questions over present and emerging social…

The study examines the reliability of the Community College Occupational Programs Evaluation System (COPES). The COPES process is a system for evaluating program strengths and needs. A two-way test, college self-appraisal with third party validation of the self-appraisal, is utilized to assist community colleges in future institutional planning…

The purpose of this study was: (1) to examine the scores achieved by psychiatrically ill adults who successfully passed the Test of General Educational Development while patients at the Arizona State Hospital; (2) to examine the scores achieved by non-psychiatrically ill adults who successfully passed the Test of General Educational Development;…