The purpose of the present study is to examine concurrent and predictive evidence used in the validation of ACCUPLACER, a purchased test used to place first-year students into writing courses at an urban, public research university devoted to science and technology education. Concurrent evidence was determined by correlations between ACCUPLACER…

The purpose of the essay portion of the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test is to identify students whose English language skills are not sufficiently strong to ensure that they can successfully manage the writing required in regular freshman classes. Students are given 20 minutes to read and respond to the essay topic. The essays…

A study investigated whether a positive correlation existed between scores obtained by incoming freshman on the recently developed Degrees of Reading Power Test (DRP) and the required Reading Comprehension subtest of the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test (NJCBSPT). The subjects, 217 William Paterson College freshman enrolled in a…

The New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test (NJCBSPT) is designed to measure certain basic language and mathematics skills of students entering New Jersey colleges. The primary purpose of the two mathematics sections is to determine whether students are prepared to begin certain college-level work without a handicap in computation or…

This report presents the major available evidence to date on the validity of the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test (NJCBSPT). The findings are as follows: (1) results of two content-validity questionnaires show New Jersey college instructors to be in general agreement that the test content is appropriate and important to assess; (2)…

To analyze test item and person interactions according to the Rasch Model, 822 incoming community college freshman were administered the New Jersey Basic Skills Placement Test. The Logical Relationships and Elementary Algebra subtests were chosen to examine the effect of differing average item difficulty on descriptions of fit statistics and on…

The New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test (NJCBSPT) was instituted in 1978 as a proficiency examination designed to measure the reading, writing, and mathematics skills of students entering college. In spring and summer 1982, 51,135 students at New Jersey's state and county colleges and at 10 independent colleges took the NJCBSPT. Of…

Replicating a 1978 study of methods of setting cut-off scores in standardized tests for student placement, the Rasch model was used to estimate ability levels and item difficulty for use in determining the probability of course success. Community college students were administered the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Tests and items were…

Test results are summarized for the second year of the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test administered to 47,725 entering freshmen in the fall of 1979. Performance is categorized into one of three groups: appears proficient in basic skills tested; demonstrates proficiency in some (but not all) of the areas tested; and demonstrates a…

The effect of increased writing or planning time on a test of basic college level writing ability was studied. The essay portion of the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test was given to students in nine New Jersey public colleges and three New Jersey public high schools. Each student wrote two essays on two different topics. The first…

Four tests were pre-equated on the basis of item-test regressions computed from a large sample providing pretest data. The tests were two mathematics tests (math computation and elementary algebra) and two verbal tests (sentence sense and reading comprehension) from the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test. Regular equipercentile…

In Connecticut, the Board of Trustees for Community-Technical Colleges mandated the assessment and placement of entering community college students, adopting the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test (NJCBSPT) for a systemwide pilot test beginning in spring 1989. At (then) South Central Community College, a study was conducted to…

This paper describes the meeting of the Reading and Writing Advisory Committee of the New Jersey Basic Skills Council with selected high school English teachers and administrators. This panel established cut scores for statewide interpretation of the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test (NJCBSPT). The NJCBSPT is administered to all…

The New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test was administered to 42,984 freshmen entering New Jersey colleges and universities and four independent colleges in the fall of 1978 in order to assess students' specific strengths and weaknesses in reading, writing, and mathematics for placement in appropriate first-year courses. Based on test…

The New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test (NJCBSPT) is designed to measure basic reading, writing, and mathematics skills of students entering New Jersey colleges. The test consists of five sections: Essay, Reading Comprehension, Sentence Sense, Mathematical Computation, and Elementary Algebra. The test is intended to answer the question…