The study reported here was intended to "round out" the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) Board's continuing study of special test preparation for the GRE General Test by providing information that was previously unavailable on the effects of one kind of special test preparation--self-test-familiarization for the verbal and quantitative…

An attempt was made to evaluate the standard error of equating (at the mean of the scores) in an ongoing testing program. The interest in estimating the empirical standard error of equating is occasioned by some discomfort with the error normally reported for test scores. Data used for this evaluation came from the Admissions Testing Program of…

This paper provides an historical perspective on the content of the SAT. The review begins at the beginning, when the first College Board SAT (the Scholastic Aptitude Test) was administered to 8,040 students on June 23, 1926. At that time, the SAT consisted of nine subtests: Definitions, Arithmetical Problems, Classification, Artificial Language,…

Lessons learned in changing a large-scale testing program are outlined. The redesigned Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) will be administered in spring 1994. Major changes for the verbal SAT section include more emphasis on critical reading, longer and more accessible passages, measurement of vocabulary in context, and use of double passages with two…

This summary report of test data provides meaningful demographic information about students in the Albuquerque (New Mexico) Public Schools taking the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and the American College Testing (ACT) Program tests. The district's scores for the 1986-87 year were higher on the ACT than were those of students across the nation.…

This report covers the levels of basic skills (verbal and computational skills and elementary algebra skills) among freshmen admitted to New Jersey's public colleges and universities during 1988. These levels of proficiency are estimated from results of the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test. Designed both to assist colleges in the…

A necessary prerequisite to the operational use of item response theory (IRT) in any testing program is the investigation of the feasibility of such an approach. This report presents the results of such research for the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). Despite the fact that GMAT data appear to violate a basic assumption of the…

Alaskan students' scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) increased nine points between 1984 and 1985, matching the national gain. These scores marked the fourth year of increases following 17 years of consistently declining scores. Thirty-three percent of Alaska's high school seniors took the SAT in 1985. The combined score of 923 was 17…

A review of the significant research on gender differences in test performance is provided, including studies documenting these differences and theories forwarded for the factors related to differential test performance. Research covered addresses undergraduate admissions tests, graduate and professional school admission tests, validity studies,…

The primary purpose of the Statewide Testing Program is to assess the achievement of 4th, 5th, and 10th grade students in South Carolina public schools. The results provide educators with information which facilitates the decision-making process at the State, district, and school levels. For the third consecutive year, Form U of the Comprehensive…