This study reports on the development and psychometric properties of a new 87-item Mathematics Information Processing Scale that explores learning strategies, metacognitive problem-solving skills, and attentional deployment. Results with 340 college students support the use of the instrument, for which factor analysis identified five theoretically…

A Swedish empathy test for professional helpers, the Affect Reading Scale, was developed and tested on several occasions with 1000 caregivers in different sectors. Results support the conceptual validity of the scale and demonstrate that it is responsive to educational experiences that influence empathy. (SLD)

The usefulness of Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) scores in combination with grades in high school courses and the number and quality of these courses in predicting college grades in various fields was studied for 981 college freshmen. The SAT and collateral variables were able to predict grades in different areas and could be useful in guidance.…

Development of a student rating scale to assess the degree to which students identify with school and gender or racial group differences in identification is described. Confirmatory factor analysis results with 3,539 eighth graders suggest that a unidimensional scale reflects identification better than separate measures of belonging and valuing.…

A computer-delivered problem-solving task based on cognitive research literature was developed and its validity for graduate admissions assessment was studied with 107 undergraduates. Use of the test, which asked examinees to sort word-problem stems by prototypes, was supported by the findings. (SLD)

Qualitative assessment methods typically are holistic and integrated. Compared with standardized tests, they offer a more active role for clients, a more intimate connection between assessment and the counseling process, and greater adaptability to ethnic, cultural, age, gender, and other individual differences. (Author/TE)

Explores what some deem the best way to objectively determine what a student knows. Adaptive Testing has been around since the early 1900's, but only with the advent of computers has it been effectively applied to day to day educational management. Cites a pilot study in Portland, Oregon, public schools. (MVL)

Describes the results of a national survey that was conducted to determine the current state of Spanish-language testing for placement and outcome assessments. The survey was undertaken in the United States in the departments of Spanish in B.A.-granting institutions. (Author/VWL)

Analyzes early childhood evaluation policies as implemented by state departments of education in the United States. Data were collected from 48 states (2 states declined participation) concerning: (1) kindergarten and school entrance screening, (2) kindergarten exit and first grade entrance testing, and (3) testing in the primary grades. (NH)

Undergraduate grade point average and American College Test subtest scores continue to correlate as well with the new National Teacher Examination (NTE) Core Battery as they did with the old NTE Common Examinations. Subjects were 94 teacher education graduates. Implications for teacher education programs are discussed. (IAH)

Fitting item response models to data from 2 Advanced Placement exams (18,462 and 82,842 students) demonstrates that constructed response items add little to information provided by multiple choice and that scoring on the basis of student item selection gives almost as much information as scoring on the basis of answers. (SLD)

Suggests that teachers can combine the use of portfolios and tests to evaluate student performance without having to choose between one approach or the other. Discusses techniques to make portfolios and tests more indicative of student performance and achievement. (MDM)

If entrance to tertiary education in South Africa is restricted to successful school final-examination scores, blacks may be underrepresented for many years. Difficulties in ridding South African education of racism and alternative strategies for conditional enrollment in higher education are discussed. (SLD)

A study investigated performance of 51 second-year internal medicine residents on an objective structured clinical examination and analyzed the test's role in evaluating clinical competence. The examination included nine physical diagnoses and several test-interpretation stations. Performance was analyzed statistically and correlated with…

Parental attitudes about standardized tests and performance assessments were studied through interviews with 60 parents or parent dyads in schools involved in a project to develop new assessments and through questionnaires completed by parents from control schools. Parent approval of standardized tests did not imply disapproval of performance…