The judgment of whether or not a city's Title I reading program is a success is dependent upon the length of time used in the evaluation. This study's findings that estimates of achievement rates and judgments of success were dramatically affected by the length of time used in the evaluation was consistent across all the compensatory education…

The impact of achievement testing on a Spring-Spring vs. a Fall-Spring basis in evaluation of compensatory education programs is examined. The effects of the summer vacation period and crossing test levels were examined. Significant decreases in achievement test scores were found, at all grade levels, between Spring and Fall test administrations.…

If the years in school are to seem important to the developing human being, they must be important in ways that a young person can understand. Many children do not enjoy learning simply because they do not believe that what they are required to learn is practical and important. (Author/IRT)

The author of "The Tyranny of Testing" discusses his objections to standardized testing. (IRT)

Task complexity in terms of symbolic mediation (inner thought) as a determinant of differential test performance and the prediction of dissimilar functioning were examined. Preschool children with moderate to profound speech and/or language handicaps were tested using: (1) a sound-in-words subtest of the Test of Articulation (TA); (2) Action…

A one-day conference was held at the University of New South Wales in Australia to consider alternatives to the Higher School Certificate as a college selection device. The first address was by L. H. T. West, who outlined some of the current controversies in the debate about selection and presented evidence that pointed to serious weaknesses in…

This document provides information for teachers and administrators about 54 tests which can be used with young children (2-5 years of age) to assess and evaluate early childhood education programs. Brief descriptions of the tests, presented in charts, include the following information: the name of each measure its author, the publisher, age or…

There are four steps in obtaining test data, each requiring planning and decision-making: assembling students, administering tests, scoring, and recording scores. In assembling students, two cautions are in order. First, for norm referenced tests, students in the treatment group should take the test at the same time of the year as the students in…

This booklet offers English teachers a summary of the literature on test development and practical suggestions for test writing. The issues addressed include (1) honesty in testing, (2) understanding the place of testing, (3) characteristics of good testing, (4) preparing a classroom test, (5) what diagnostic tests reveal, (6) essay questions, and…

Advanced level French syllabuses of the nine GCE Boards in the United Kingdom are examined. The Southern Universities Joint Board has recently introduced the most radical innovations. As an alternative to its traditional examination it offers Syllabus "B" which dispenses with prescribed tests, but where each student must produce for the…

A SURVEY, KNOWN AS PROJECT TALENT, IS TO BE A SERIES OF EXAMINATIONS ADMINISTERED TO 500,000 STUDENTS IN 1,000 SAMPLE SCHOOLS. IT AIMS AT MEASURING THE STUDENT'S PRESENT KNOWLEDGE AND HIS POTENTIAL APTITUDES AND ABILITIES. THE RESULTS OF THIS 1960 CENSUS WILL BE SCORED, ANALYZED, AND EVALUATED BY SPECIAL ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT. THE PROJECT IS BEING…

RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN A TEACHER'S WRITTEN COMMENTS ON A TEST AND (1) SUBSEQUENT STUDENT ATTAINMENT AS MEASURED BY TEST PERFORMANCE AND (2) ATTITUDE CHANGE TOWARD 9TH-GRADE ENGLISH, WERE INVESTIGATED. 9 CLASSES (225 STUDENTS) WERE GIVEN 4 TESTS BY THEIR TEACHERS OVER A 6-WEEK PERIOD. TESTS WERE RETURNED WITH NUMERICAL SCORES, LETTER GRADE, AND…

THE CALIFORNIA MEXICAN-AMERICAN EDUCATION RESEARCH PROJECT INITIATED AN ASSESSMENT PROPOSAL DIRECTED TOWARD MORE EFFECTIVE EDUCATION OF MEXICAN-AMERICAN STUDENTS IN WASCO PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND THROUGHOUT CALIFORNIA. A SAMPLE OF THIRTEEN STUDENTS FROM EACH GRADE, PRE-SCHOOL THROUGH TWELVE, WAS RANDOMLY SELECTED FROM STUDENTS WITH SPANISH SURNAMES…