Traces the history of minimum competency testing in the United States from 1890 to the present. (FL)

A procedure for sampling questions from a universe for repetition of criterion performances is described. Academic and administrative benefits are also noted. Available from: Kenyon College, Gambier, Ohio 43022. (Author/LBH)

Examines linguistic encoding of curricular knowledge in classroom testing events. Argues that dominant epistemological orientation of testing events is positivist and values a discrete, bounded form of knowledge. Compares the language of testing events and earlier lesson presentations of the same curricular information, suggesting that testing…

Current coaching practices used in training test wiseness for analogy items on standardized test batteries were investigated in a 3-group design involving about 100 undergraduates in each condition. The largest improvement came in items in the middle range of difficulty, but overall effects of coaching were important. (SLD)

Discusses appropriate ways to prepare students for performance assessments and proposes a list of six guidelines for teaching to performance assessments. The focus is on elementary and secondary education. It is believed that these guidelines will help balance the domain and sample problem. (SLD)

Presents a collection of suggestions for using computers to enhance learning, including: creating a Webquest to help students recognize the tactics advertisers use; using the Internet to participate in a global water sampling project; creating, administering, and grading tests online; and going to a Cyrano de Bergerac Web site to compose a love…

We evaluated computerized training and testing programs with children who were having difficulties learning prereading skills. The programs were derived from equivalence research and were written in authoring software designed for educators. After learning to match uppercase and lowercase printed letters to the corresponding letter names (Tasks 1…

The idea of causality is central in science and has long given rise to debate among philosophers and scientists. While the tendency to avoid causality seems to have become dominant in science and philosophy, research in science education has shown the strong presence in common reasoning of causal explanations, often conceived as a 'mechanism'…

Group exams in science courses can enhance students' achievement and encourage retention of students within the discipline. The challenge to instructors is to recognize when and how they are best used.

Troubleshooting in a practice situation requires two types of information, namely for reasoning about the problem-cause and for finding an adequate solution ("declarative information") and for manipulating the environment ("procedural information"). It is hypothesized that presenting this information piece-by-piece during practice (i.e.,…

Educators make decisions on how they are going to approach teaching and learning based on the goals they are required, or hope, to attain. In many cases, when high-stakes tests are utilized to determine whether a curriculum has been taught and students have mastered it, the curriculum and teaching are so aligned with testing objectives that the…

This paper addresses the problematic nature of pupils' attempts to use their science conceptions in contexts other than the ones in which the original learning of the concept takes place. It reports research with 60 Year-5 primary school children studying current electricity, during which the researcher employed metacognitive activities alongside…

Many people believe that art education is important, but few can say exactly why. In this book, are the results of the first in-depth research on the "habits of mind" that are instilled by studying art--habits the authors argue that could have positive impacts on student learning across the curriculum. "Studio Thinking" provides art teachers with…

The accuracy of achievement test score inferences largely depends on the sensitivity of scores to instruction focused on tested objectives. Sensitivity requirements are particularly challenging for standards-based assessments because a variety of plausible instructional differences across classrooms must be detected. For this study, we developed a…

Currently, many students have had experience with both face-to-face and online classes. We asked such students at 46 different universities in the United States to evaluate the pedagogical characteristics of their most recently completed face-to-face class and their most recently completed online class. The results show that students rate online…