There is no agreement at present about the importance or meaning of the term "consequential validity." It is important that the authors of revisions to the "Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing" recognize the debate and relegate discussion of consequences to a context separate from the discussion of validity.…

Discusses evaluation of tests both in terms of their measurement properties and their potential social consequences. Presents a model for evaluating test validity based on empirical evidence as well as on ethical decisions. Stresses the importance of construct validity as a rational foundation for test predictiveness and relevance; and the…

In this article, the author explains the key differences among three kinds of instructionally relevant tests that can have a huge impact on what goes on in classrooms: "instructionally insensitive tests," "instructionally sensitive tests," and "instructionally informative tests." If educators understand the advantages and limitations of these…

The inclusion of young children with disabilities has remained a function of the Head Start program since its inception in the 1960s when the United States Congress mandated that children with disabilities comprise 10% of the Head Start enrollment (Zigler & Styfco, 2000). Standardized, norm-referenced tests used to identify children with…

Article discussed the disadvantages of student testing as a means of evaluating student progress in the classroom and suggested the use of a new model of assessment. Three steps intended for classroom diagnosis of students were described. (RK)

Analyzes the sources of the inequality caused by tracking, and discusses the constitutional tools available to correct this injustice. (Editor)

The authors report on two studies showing that the Slosson Intelligence Test yields higher scores than the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test for both nursery school and third-grade children, indicating that care should be taken when the SIT is used for intellectual screening. (Author)

Testing is a means of obtaining information about people and their status. Too often tests and testing govern us as educators rather than being governed by us. Reviews the problem and offers some suggestions. (Editor)

Responds to letters to the editor regarding comments on semantics, psychometrics, and assessment reform regarding authentic assessment of student academic achievements. Suggests that psychometric concerns need to be addressed. (MMU)

Government agencies administer exams to appraise educators' effectiveness. However, most teachers and administrators are unfamiliar with how such large-scale tests are put together or polished. A profession's adequacy is being judged on the basis of tools that the profession's members don't understand. As such, educators need to have a dose of…

Accountability for educational quality is a priority at all levels of education. Low-stakes testing is one way to measure the quality of education that students receive and make inferences about what students know and can do. Aggregate test scores from low-stakes testing programs are suspect, however, to the degree that these scores are influenced…

A new approach to measurement in education is suggested which affords some hope that the traditional view of examining can be given a better justification. (JD)