This handbook is designed as a quick reference for first-year teachers who find themselves in an assessment driven environment with little experience to help make sense of the language, underlying philosophy, or organizational structure of the assessment system. The handbook begins with advice on developing and evaluating effective learning…

In response to Ebel's article (TM 508 146) the author points out that, in emphasizing what a test is intended to measure, the vital question of what should be measured is set aside. While explicit specifications for a test should be encouraged, questions of worth ought to be prominent in designing and selecting tests. (Author/LC)

In a discussion of accountability and performance contracting, the author believes that within a couple of years, performance contracting in its present form will be seen as a rather primitive, simplistic approach to the practice of accountability, but the notion of accountability will continue to be a powerful influence on the educational scene.…

Argues that even for purposes of applied decision making, reliance upon criterion validity -- the degree to which measures correlate with specific criteria -- or content coverage is not enough, that the meaning of the measure must also be analyzed in order to evaluate responsibly the possible consequences of the proposed use, it is stated.…

This report of a study conducted by the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) reviews, interprets, and disseminates findings of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) assessments in citizenship and social studies. The study represents an investigation funded by the Education Commission of the States and coordinated by a…

This report represents part of an investigation coordinated by a special Steering Committee working under the auspices of the National Council for the Social Studies. The purpose of Task 2 was to review independently the National Assessment of Educational Progress Social Studies and Citizenship exercises as to the extent to which confidence could…

Tasks 5 and 6 describe the dissemination activities and a rating of the National Assessment for Educational Progress social studies exercises by members of the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS). The dissemination activities, described in a one page report, include a special issue of the NCSS journal "Social Education," May…

Six essays on technical measurement problems in criterion referenced tests and four essays by psychometricians proposing solutions are presented: (1) "Criterion-Referenced Measurement" and Other Such Terms, by Marvin C. Alkin which is an overview of the first six papers; (2) Selecting Objectives and Generating Test Items for Objectives-Based…

Nine papers were presented at the 1986 Educational Testing Service Invitational Conference on outcomes assessment in higher education. The Award for Distinguished Service to Measurement was awarded to Frederic Kuder for development of the Kuder-Richardson 20 and KR-21 formulas for test reliability, the Kuder Preference Record, and the Kuder…