Student team techniques, involving two conceptually distinct components--a cooperative reward structure, in which students are evaluated and rewarded based on the performance of the group as a whole, and a cooperative task structure, in which students are encouraged to peer tutor--have had positive effects compared to control methods on academic…

The feasibility of training selected abilities so as to facilitate transfer among tasks requiring these abilities and therefore reduce training time and increase personnel flexibility was investigated by the Office of Naval Research. Sixty undergraduate college students participated in a study of from one to five days duration. Experimental…

This monograph briefly describes state legislation and administrative rules concerning competency-based education. Defeated legislation is also included. In 1978-79 California, Nevada, and New York are requiring graduating seniors to pass a proficiency exam before receiving a diploma. In Nevada and New York similar exams are administered to…

The viewpoint is expressed that adding to test reliability by either selecting a more homogeneous set of items, restricting the range of item difficulty as closely as possible to the most efficient level, or increasing the number of items will not add to test validity and that there is considerable danger that efforts to increase reliability may…

Determination of the fairness of preschool tests for use with children of varying cultural backgrounds is the major objective of this study. The predictive validity of a battery of preschool tests, chosen to represent the core areas of preschool assessment, across race and sex, was evaluated. Validity of the battery was examined over a 12-month…

An evaluation-reward system was developed in which students received points based on a comparison of their weekly quiz performance to a "base score" which was derived from a pretest, and adjusted to reflect actual weekly performance. This system was evaluated in terms of its effect on student achievement, using a group of English classes…

The purposes of the North Dakota Statewide Assessment of Student Performance in Mathematics are: (1) to meet the public's right to know about the current status of student knowledge throughout the state; (2) to provide information and recommendations for corrective action concerning areas of student performance needing improvement; and (3) to…

Over the past few years, several complicated innovations, such as mainstreaming and minimal competency testing, have confronted teachers in addition to their usual responsibilities. In order to facilitate the teachers' implementation of such changes, the Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM) was developed, using the teacher and the innovation as…

A study was conducted that addressed job literacy in a cross-section of occupations. The Diehl-Mikulecky Job Literacy Survey was administered to 107 subjects who represented a full range of occupational types and levels and who comprised a sample similar to the adult working population on the demographic variables of sex, race, income earned, and…

The Class Achievement Test in Mathematics (CATIM) test booklet and teachers' manual are presented. The 45-item multiple-choice test is intended for years 4-5 of the Australian school system, and measures four levels of mathematics skills; knowledge, computation, application, and understanding. Approximately 45 minutes are required to complete…

Focusing on assessment centers, this chapter is one of seven in a report that examines the assessment of occupational competence. Assessment centers are presented first in a historical context (their origins in personality theory), through which their evolution is traced and examined. What follows is a description of current assessment center…

Intended for parents, this guide discusses the effects of standardized tests on children, using test items from recent standardized reading tests which have been administered to children aged 7 to 13 and children's responses to these items. For each item, comments are made about the ambiguity of the item; the various interpretations that can be…

The first portion of this paper discusses the procedure for placing freshmen in a remedial composition course at a small liberal arts college. The design of the basic skills test used for placement is criticized on the basis of the inappropriateness of both content and format (multiple choice) in determining which students required remedial…

THE MAJOR OBJECTIVES WERE TO DEVELOP CRITERIA FOR THE EVALUATION OF SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION, TO DEFINE THE NATURE OF THE JOB, AND TO DEVELOP AN INSTRUMENT FOR THE SELECTION OF ADMINISTRATORS. THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPAL WAS CHOSEN FOR THE STUDY BECAUSE OF THE HOST OF PROBLEMS RELATED TO THE CONDUCT OF AN EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM, INCLUDING THE…

CHANGES WERE STUDIED IN THE PROBLEM-SOLVING BEHAVIOR OF HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS AS A FUNCTION OF A CAREFULLY DESIGNED TRAINING PROGRAM. TRAINING WAS DEFINED AS THE DEVELOPMENT OF STUDENT AWARENESS OF PROBLEM-SOLVING STRATEGIES USED. INSTRUMENTS WERE DEVELOPED AND REFINED TO MEASURE PROBLEM-SOLVING BEHAVIOR. SPECIFICALLY TESTED WAS THE FOLLOWING…