Guidelines for evaluating responses to requests for proposals (RFPs) for state-level educational assessment programs are presented. The guidelines articulate key choice points, options, and considerations by state (and district) testing directors as they solicit services for large-scale assessment from commercial testing companies. Focus is on…

The paper examines issues, philosophy and guidelines for psychological assessment of the disabled. Focused on are: (1) adjustments in testing procedures and (2) applicability of standard norms with commonly used psychological test instruments for the assessment of ability, interest, and personality. The importance of accurate assessment for…

This newsletter issue focuses on the subject of mandatory testing of prospective teachers prior to certification. The following questions are discussed: (1) What are the major types of teacher tests? (2) How prevalent are teacher tests? (3) What are the major teacher tests? (4) What problems do teacher testing programs address? (5) What are the…

This paper is based in part upon a doctoral dissertation completed at the University of Missouri under the supervision of John F. McGowan.

This document describes seven steps that were followed to develop and validate a pool of mathematical problem-solving situations and a set of questions for each situation which were designed to provide information about students' qualitatively different levels of reasoning ability. For each stage a description is presented of the work that was…

Focusing on the use of "paper and pencil" criterion-referenced tests in educational measurement, and to correct misconceptions, the definitions of basic terms and historical antecedents are discussed. Classifications of the tests are compared with other achievement tests. The phases in developing criterion-referenced tests are presented with the…

An assessment instrument to evaluate the competency of speech language pathologists, developed by the Special Education Competencies for Teachers Project, is presented. The instrument was developed by a committee of concerned educators, and a survey of Georgia special education directors, speech language pathologists, and a 10% sampling of…

The development of a diagnostic test at the Catholic University of Chile is described. The 50-item multiple choice test is used as an entrance and prerequisite test for students about to take a first university course in trigonometry and analytic geometry (MAT-111). Thirty items pertain to algebra and 20 to geometry. Each question corresponds to…

This book describes a procedure for scoring writing samples with holistic methods and for analyzing the results with methods from primary trait scoring, analytical scoring, and discourse scoring. Following an introduction, the four chapters in the book focus on (1) the selection of topics to be used in a writing assessment, (2) the format for…

Provided are hypotheses and evaluation forms to evaluate vocational-occupational-technical education (V.O.T.E.) programs whose purposes include the mainstreaming of handicapped students. Materials are geared toward testing the following five hypotheses: most occupational administrators can cite specific examples of formal or informal evaluations…

This paper presents a concise non-technical explanation of the process of classroom developmental assessment, a child-centered, classroom-centered multi-dimensional assessment process designed to help teachers find out as much as possible about individual children so that appropriate educational experiences can be planned for each child. A…

This guidebook puts testing in proper perspective as one aspect of evaluation and leads the test user through a practical discussion about selecting and developing valid, reliable tests. Its primary purpose is to assist classroom teachers, reading consultants, and school administrators in making decisions about measuring student reading…

In an attempt to improve Head Start evaluations, several methodological techniques are proposed. Since programs vary in approach, evaluations must be made on the success of the individual programs. Formulation of research questions should provide information as to the process and outcome of the program. To avoid experimenter bias, experimenters…

The booklet is designed to show how agencies work together to meet the educational needs of young multiply handicapped children from the time of referral through entry into regular school. Section I on identification focuses on agency contacts, presentations, documentation, and cooperative agreements. A second section covers checklist, the…

The plea has been made to interpret the concept of criterion-referenced measurement in a broader sense, so that the idea will be utilized in more ways in educational measurement. While applications of the concept have been suggested mainly for programs of individualization, there is no reason to limit the ideas of criterion-referenced measurement…