A description of the difficulties encountered in constructing a criterion-referenced test to assess end-of-year skills as part of a program evaluation is presented. The problems encountered in preparing the customized test are described in humorous detail. The first problem involved the listening test obtained from a publisher without…

The educational implications of criterion-referenced tests are demonstrated. It is the hypothesis of the author that criterion-referenced tests have little educational impact unless carefully constructed around rigorous domain specifications. The paper details the process and problems of construction of a series of history tests presently being…

This report represents the results of an investigation of the appropriateness of criterion-referenced tests (CRTS) for large-scale evaluations. First, the development and validation of CRTS, including the formulation and generation of CRT objectives, items, and score-interpretation schemes and dimensions of item and test quality, were examined to…

Research evidence relating to the utility of the RMC evaluation models of compensatory education employing non-normed tests is examined. The history and evolution of five early models into the current norm-referenced model utilizing a non-normed test (Model A2), non-normed versions of a comparison model (Model B2), and the regression model (Model…

This paper delineates several problems which arise when criterion-referenced test results are used to evaluate the effects of a specific educational treatment. Focus is on these topics: (1) the aggregation of individual students' data on objectives, (2) the sensitivity of the instrument to instruction, (3) the interpretation of…

This report discusses the merits of performance contracting in the light of recent performance contract experiment evaluations, and it provides guidelines for administrators who are considering the use of performance contracts. The merits of the OEO experiment and the interpretation of the results by the OEO and the Rand Corporation are discussed.…

Although dealing broadly with issues involving program evaluation, this paper is especially concerned with large-scale evaluations of federally funded education programs that are national in scope and, to some extent at least, compensatory in nature. The paper concentrates on a few basic problem areas that seem inherent in the concept of…

A set of pilot performance reference scales was developed based upon airborne Audio-Video Recording (AVR) of student performance in T-37 undergraduate Pilot Training. After selection of the training maneuvers to be studied, video tape recordings of the maneuvers were selected from video tape recordings already available from a previous research…

A norm-referenced achievement test, in combination with supplementary items, can be used to produce norm-referenced data as well as objective-referenced data. The experiences of the Palm Beach County (Florida) school district in developing and using such a test are described. (EGS)

Two aspects of criterion referenced testing are discussed: cutting scores and test length. Several practices in determining passing scores are enumerated: (1) setting passing scores so that a predetermined percent of students pass; (2) inspecting each test item to determine how important it is that it be answered correctly; (3) determining the…

The Lake Harriet Elementary School Open Classroom was initiated at the request of parents in the summer of 1973. The program was implemented in the fall of 1973. This evaluation indicates that, after the first year of operation, the original goals for the program are being met: The students, for the most part, are performing at normal or above…

The Conference sought to provide a user-based and -oriented assessment of performance contracting for education. It focused on delineating the current interest in performance contracting, the technique's demonstrated strengths and weaknesses, and its potential as an alternative approach to school system resource allocation. Six commissioned papers…

Focusing on the use of the Metropolitan Achievement Test (MAT) with Project Follow Through evaluations, this report represents an extended discussion of the appropriateness of standardized tests for evaluation and policy research. First, the development of the MAT and its roots in the Army Alpha intelligence test are described in detail. The next…

Use of the Woodcock Reading Mastery Tests (WRMT), individually administered wide ranging reading tests, was explored, using Title I evaluation Models A1 and A2. Attention was focused on: (1) relationship of the Title I curriculum to the WRMT and the SRA Reading Test; (2) comparative reading achievement gains on both tests, using Model A1; and (3)…

Intended both to evaluate the California testing program's success in assessing student achievement in the basic skills and to suggest possible improvements in the program, this report includes an executive summary evaluating current testing procedures, describing experimental studies on new ways of testing and reporting testing information, and…