The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has conducted state assessments in 1990, 1992, 1994, and 1996. At present, after the fourth round of state assessments, it is clear that the program is generally successful. A survey of state testing directors indicates that the NAEP has considerable credibility as a valid and reliable source…

The Cherry Creek School district (Englewood, Colorado) is a growing district of 37,000 students in the Denver area. The 1988 Colorado State School Finance Act required district-set proficiencies (standards), and forced agreement on a set of values for student knowledge and skills. State-adopted standards added additional requirements for the…

Clear communication with parents about educational reform issues and the implementation of standards is essential. This publication presents ideas for state leaders on how better to inform parents about statewide assessments and how to report the results of these assessments to parents so that the results are more meaningful. The first section…

As part of a major effort to raise student achievement, Colorado schools have been putting into place rigorous academic content standards that spell out the skills and knowledge students should acquire in core subject areas. This guide contains information about part of this effort, the new Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP), to help…

The new Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) was developed to provide a measurement of how well students and schools are meeting Colorado's academic content standards. The CSAP tests are not norm-referenced showing how much a student has learned in comparison with other students. Instead, they are based on the state's content standards.…

The School-Based Management and Accountability Program, also known as the "ABCs of Public Education," or just "the ABCs," is the statewide school-based accountability program for public schools in North Carolina. This document reports the results of the 1997-98 ABCs, in the second year of the implementation of the ABCs in…

The 8th Grade Test (1984) of the Illinois Inventory of Educational Progress includes 22 reading items, 39 geometry items, 41 science items, a 27-item student questionnaire regarding science opinions, and 46 mathematics items. The test booklet only is included here. (PN)

The role of the state government in higher education assessment is clearly expanding as both the state's interest and investment in higher education grows. Currently, patterns of state involvement vary widely--from indirect incentive programs to direct legislation or regulatory action. Institutional assessment and the resulting reform must be…

This paper reviews the process employed in Pennsylvania to develop, refine, select, and implement educational indicators at the state level as part of a state testing program. The indicators are used to provide meaningful comparative information for analysis and planning, to encourage school employees to make productive curricular or…

The New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test (NJCBSPT) is administered in a new form each year to all entering freshmen in New Jersey public colleges and 12 participating independent colleges. The NJCBSPT was taken by 44,344 students from March through December 1985. Test results revealed the following: (1) 26% were proficient in verbal…

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) was initiated in the mid-1960's to collect student achievement information over time and describe the data in ways meaningful to the nation's educational and civic leaders. This work presents the Florida perspective on how NAEP can be improved to aid educational decision-makers in the…

A final report is provided of the CASAS Project, a comprehensive educational assessment system designed to measure the identified competencies of local educational programs for all levels of Adult Basic Education (ABE) and English as a Second Language (ESL). The report begins with lists of personnel involved in the project, and an overview of…

Kansas law requires setting passing scores for the reading and mathematics competency test for 2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th, and 11th grade students, administered annually since April of 1980. New objective-referenced tests are prepared each year. Both judgmental (Angoff, Ebel, and Nedelsky) methods and empirical (contrasting groups and borderline) methods…

The Wisconsin Pupil Assessment Program is a testing service which provides the State of Wisconsin with: (1) a measure of student performance in selected academic areas by developing objective-referenced tests in reading, mathematics, economic understanding, and writing; (2) a comparison of Wisconsin public school students to the rest of the nation…

The activities and results of the first year of a two-year student assessment pilot program are described, based on a 1978 mandate by the Kansas Legislature requiring the development of minimum competency objectives in the areas of reading and mathematics for students in grades 2, 4, 6, 8, and 11 and instruments for assessing those competencies.…