The Assessment Resource Center (ARC) at Florida State University provides computer assisted testing (CAT) for approximately 4,000 students each term. Computer capabilities permit a small proctoring staff to administer tests simultaneously to large numbers of students. Programs provide immediate feedback for students and generate a variety of…

All teacher education students in Texas must pass three minimum competency examinations to be admitted to a teacher education program. The Pre-Professional Skills Tests (PPST) contains three separate tests in reading, mathematics, and writing. West Texas State University requires all entering freshmen to submit scores from the American College…

This package consists of an information booklet for job candidates preparing to take California's Corrections Officer Examination and a user's manual intended for those who will administer the examination. The candidate information booklet provides background information about the development of the Corrections Officer Examination, describes its…

Coventional true score approaches to criterion-referenced tests are not applicable when tests are used for classification. Criterion-referenced testing is now used frequently for educational decision making. The assumption is made that these instruments are to be considered as tests designed to classify into "mastery" and "non-mastery" groups,…

This document traces the development of the testing and reporting system used in the Elkhart Community Schools (ECS), Indiana, from 1981 through 1985. Performance objectives were established when the program was initiated. Analyses of standardized test results were provided for teachers, principals, and central administrative staff. All school…

Various test validation alternatives available to the small company are presented, along with a series of questions, the purpose of which is to help the small company focus on the type of test validation for which it is best suited. A case study is described to serve as a model. (Author)

Argues that there is room for both those tests that focus on stable between-individual gains, and discusses how to evaluate a test along both the psychometric and edumetric dimensions. (Author/JM)

One of the major responsibilities of school psychologists is assessment, one goal of which is to provide services for children who need assistance in meeting the demands of the student role. Mercer (1977) points out that the student role includes two dimensions (social and cognitive), that student success depends upon progress in both dimensions,…

The consumer of educational tests is not being protected and reforms are badly needed. (JH)

The secondary level English proficiency (SLEP) test is a group administered 150 item multiple-test of English language proficiency that includes two subscores and eight different item types. It is designed to assess a foreign student's readiness for English medium instruction at the secondary level. This paper reports on two studies which were…

A study was conducted to explore the reliability and validity of three prominent procedures used in informal reading inventories (IRIs): (1) choosing a 95% word recognition accuracy standard for determining student instructional level, (2) arbitrarily selecting a passage to represent the difficulty level of a basal reader, and (3) employing…

Truth in testing, competency testing, and intelligence tests constitute the central topics of this newsletter. The authors review a report prepared by the Education Commission of the States on truth-in-testing legislation and litigation, covering recent efforts at the state and federal levels to open the testing process to public scrutiny. They…