The impact of test item multidimensionality was examined as it affected fitting items on a teacher licensure test to an item response theory (IRT) model. Test item data from the 1990 study of G. W. Guiton and G. Delandshere are used. The Connecticut Elementary Certification Test (CONNECT) is a licensure examination designed to assess the subject…

The results are provided of an initial analysis of the reliability (generalizability) of the System for Teaching and Learning Assessment and Review (STAR) as a comprehensive measure of classroom teaching and learning for making teacher certification decisions. The STAR contains 140 indicators of teacher effectiveness and student learning, which…

The statute authorizing the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) calls for the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) to set appropriate achievement levels in all areas and grades tested by the NAEP. These levels are intended to establish what students should know, not just what they do know. In 1990, the NAEP posited three…

Issues related to the Education Reform Bill of Ohio are discussed. Administration of norm-referenced achievement tests in reading, mathematics, language, and related school-ability tests is required for grades 4, 6, and 8 (effective by 1990) and grade 10 (effective by 1991). The reform bill specifies rewards and sanctions in addition to statewide…

Five papers presented at a symposium during the 1991 annual conference of the National Council on Measurement in Education explore the design, development, and implementation of the Texas Master Teacher Examination (TMTE) Program. Educational policymakers have begun to maintain that the professionalization of teaching can be substantially…

The activities of Sacramento City College's (SCC's) Assessment Center are described in this report for April 1, 1982 through October 31, 1982. After revealing a 12.13% increase in the use of the Assessment Center over the previous year, the report provides data on the reading levels of SCC students and shows that through the college's assessment…

Trends in quantitative facts relevant to public education in South Carolina are provided for the 1988-89 school year along with information beginning with the reference year of 1969-70. Twenty-six tables contain statewide information on enrollment, educational finances, programs, and test scores. Thirty-three other tables provide district…

The efforts of the Florida Institute for Instructional Research and Practice in designing, developing, and analyzing the subject area knowledge tests of the Florida Master Teacher Program are described. A total of 13 subject area examinations was developed in 1984-85, and 5 additional tests were developed the following year. For each subject area…

Development of the Welcome Center for immigrants and refugees in the School District of Philadelphia is chronicled. The program emerged from dialogue between the Task Force for the Education of Asian Immigrants and Refugee Students and the Philadelphia School District, and began operation under the aegis of the Department of Foreign Language…

The Teacher Evaluation and Assessment Center (TEAC) was established by the Department of Education at the University of South Florida in 1984 to serve the state in the certification of trainers and observers of the Florida Performance Measurement System (FPMS) and to score and report performance evaluations for special programs. This report…

This report concerns a descriptive study undertaken in 1982-1983 as part of the Second International Science Study (SISS) under the auspices of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) for the purpose of examining key elements of K-12 science instruction in the United States. Special attention was directed…

A necessary prerequisite to the operational use of item response theory (IRT) in any testing program is the investigation of the feasibility of such an approach. This report presents the results of such research for the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). Despite the fact that GMAT data appear to violate a basic assumption of the…

Recent research findings on the economic implications of investments in the quality of education are examined in this report. "The Quality of Education and Economic Growth: A Review of Literature" (Lewis C. Solmon) reviews evidence on ways to develop educational policy that would stimulate economic growth in developing countries. "School Quality…

Ten papers, four general overviews,, and three commentaries delivered at the General Assembly of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) in 1983 are presented. The papers include: (1) "Why Join IEA?" (J. P. Keeves); (2) "Research and Policymaking in Education: An International…

The results of the administration of the California Achievement Tests (CAT) to students in the Montgomery County Public Schools, Maryland (MCPS) are presented. The battery is administered in the fall of each school year to students in grades three, five, and eight under a state mandate. The CAT is administered to students in Grade 11 under a local…