A variety of Flashcard Apps (FCAs) for standardized tests such as the IELTS, TOEFL, TOEIC, GRE and SAT can be downloaded from the Google Play, and iPhone App Stores for free and used by the students to prepare for any of those tests. FCAs contain thousands of essential words and specialized vocabulary covering several categories such as biology,…

As states, districts, and schools plan to return for the 2021-22 school year, questions are raised about whether and how to test children with disabilities, including children with the most significant cognitive disabilities and English learners with disabilities. This FAQ addresses some common questions and provides links to useful resources.

Composition researchers have become increasingly concerned with the issue of knowledge transfer: the use of knowledge and skills learned in one setting to complete tasks in a different setting. In terms of writing-related knowledge transfer, research suggests that rigid rules and formulas for writing do not transfer as successfully as flexible…

Kelly Gallagher writes that "wide swaths of students are not developing their writing skills--skills we know to be foundational to their literate lives." In this article, he explains how school districts can go about developing students' writing skills in all content-area classrooms. He highlights five reasons why students should write…

This article gives a brief introduction to the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) and analyzes developmental progress of OSCE at both home and abroad and standardized patients' application in OSCE. Also, this article expounds application of OSCE in graduation exam of clinical medical students. Finally, this article summarizes…

Test-preparation classes that focus on skills will benefit students beyond the test by developing skills they can use at university. This article discusses the purposes of various tests and outlines how to design effective test-prep classes. Several practical activities are included, and an appendix provides information on common standardized…

In this webinar, Dr. Carol Tomlinson of the University of Virginia presented the research base supporting the practice of differentiation and described the characteristics of effective differentiation. She led a discussion of how quality preparation can build and strengthen teachers' knowledge and skills in implementing differentiated instruction…

Preparing middle school students for the mathematics portion of standardized tests without "teaching to the test" may sound challenging and implausible. Building students' confidence and competence for test taking by way of mathematics homework may also sound unrealistic. However, in this age of high-stakes testing, teachers must find ways to…

The Net-Talk is an online forum in which AISD staff and students can voice their opinions and share ideas with the Superintendent. This report summarizes the most popular topics in the 2011-2012 student Net-Talk.

Even though it often feels like standardized testing is a relatively recent phenomena, it has been around at least since the 1800s, when in China, those that wanted a government job were required to take a test on their expertise of Confucian philosophy and poetry. During the Industrial Revolution, standardized tests were a quick way to test large…

Now administered in 27 states and affecting 65 percent of all students, high school exit exams are gaining influence on teaching and learning because they constitute tests with extraordinarily high stakes. But what happens when students fail a high school exit exam? Few studies address the best way to remediate students in these situations.…

Learning as much as possible about what to expect and how best to select among response choices enables students to improve their scores so as to reflect more fully their knowledge and abilities, whether taking the SAT, ACT, AP history exams, multiple-choice exams in college courses, the GRE, or any other standardized examinations that include…

Much has been written about student preparation for standardized tests such as: get enough sleep, do not eat sugary food or drinks, eat a well-balanced meal, wear comfortable clothing, bring appropriate supplies especially extra #2 pencils, answer every question, write neatly and legibly, deduce wrong answers immediately and use all of the time…

Just as comprehension strategies have helped millions of students learn to read like proficient readers, they can also help students think like effective test-takers. The authors show how students can use background knowledge, mental images, synthesizing, monitoring, inferring, questioning, and determining of importance to understand the genre of…

By viewing standardized reading tests as a unique genre that could be taught, the author designed a two-week genre study for her reading workshop. The article describes how she planned, taught, and reflected on the unit. This genre study resolved some of the dilemmas she faced around preparing students for mandated testing. (Contains 1 table and 2…