Major studies of elementary school science programs have shown that they are extremely weak, leading to potentially serious consequences for the development of future scientists and technologists. Nine questions are provided for board members to ask and answer to help develop strong elementary science programs. (MD)

Empirical Bayes methods are shown to provide a practical alternative to standard least squares methods in fitting high dimensional models to sparse data. An example concerning prediction bias in educational testing is presented as an illustration. (Author)

This videotape contains a series of presentations by Benjamin D. Wright of the University of Chicago about the Rasch model and measurement in testing. The first presentation is excerpts from a workshop held in 1974 for educators from the Portland (Oregon) Public Schools and the Oregon Department of Education. Dr. Wright's lectures were part of a…

The conceptualization of equity as student learning and accountability as testing performance provided the theoretical framework for this study. The purpose of this analysis was to explore the relevance of school and social variables on student performance across 4 years in a school district in Kentucky. Multiple regression analyses were used to…

This document presents standards for educational accountability systems that represent models of practice derived from three perspectives: research knowledge, practical experience, and ethical considerations. These standards should be conceived of as targets for state and local systems and as criteria to judge proposed models of accountability…

This evaluation examines the impact of the first 6 to 7 months of the Washington Scholarship Fund (WSF) programs on students in grades 2-8 who had previously been attending public school, but had changed to private ones. More than 6,000 students had applied by lottery to a WSF school voucher program. The evaluation estimates the program's impact…

This paper examines the efficacy of content-general reading tests used to place students into development courses. It argues that the discipline-generic model of comprehension supporting content-general reading tests is challenged by conclusions emerging from studies of schema theory, construction-integration theory, domain-knowledge theory, and…

This study was undertaken to determine whether students retain information about self-care better when it is presented orally, in writing, or in a combination of oral and written material. (Author)

Effective schools research problems (unreliable descriptions and definitions, over-dependency on tests, research limited primarily to elementary schools) result in narrow formulas leading to increased standardization, neglect of nonacademic areas, and failure to improve in schools with high test scores. Author urges using broader, more complex…

Course Progress Survey (CPS) is a scheme allowing students to assess their progress during a course by taking multi-choice answer cards and producing for each student a report sheet listing the correct answers and offering remedial advice for incorrectly answered questions. (Author/MLW)

This memorial article reviews some of E. F. Lindquist's contributions, paticularly as they were presented in his four textbooks on statistics and educational research. These include work on analysis of variance and covariance, multi-factor designs, the sensitivity of the F-test, Latin square designs, and contributions towards generalizability…

The effects of questions on attention and achievement were studied. Children were exposed to the same lesson and questions. Control subjects were called upon randomly, and experimental subjects were asked to indicate responses to every question with a nonverbal gesture. Questions addressed to individuals were less effective than questions used as…

Reviews elements of college entry assessment, diagnosis, and analytic tests and surveys. Discusses what to assess and how, gathering information and the ethics of tests and describes various achievement, guidance, vocational, reading, and self-concept tests. (MB)

Describes Maryland's attempt to implement a system of high academic standards and testing in its public schools. Addresses businesses' support of new student testing plans, highlights the "Maryland K-16" educational improvement program, discusses Maryland's intent to eliminate any need for postsecondary remedial programs for high school…