The provinces of Canada have sole and final legal responsibility for education. For some of them, the task of evaluation may be one they would rather not face, and for others, it may be too expensive. Nevertheless, the responsibility remains theirs. (Author)

In 97 Ohio school districts, 484 teachers and administrators rated their school's standardized testing practices as average or above, compared to school performance in other areas. Highest rated testing practices were related to test quality, pupil records, and understandable scores and reports; lowest rated practice was use of test results to…

The increased use of test scores as a measure of school quality is discussed. Legitimate and illegitimate practices of test preparation are considered. Some commercial test preparation programs are reviewed, with some conclusions about their effectiveness and desirability. (SLD)

Surveys the legal challenges to teacher certification based on objective competency tests; analyzes the theories of the challenges; and discusses implementation of these tests with particular reference to the declining number of eligible minority candidates. Describes "custom designed" certification programs used by a few states. (MLF)

Differences in the Texas Teacher Appraisal System scores of teacher subgroups over 2 years were examined for 2,366 teachers for scores on individual domains, sums of scores of the 1st 4 domains, and overall summary performance scores, as well as appraiser differences. Implications for teacher evaluation are discussed. (SLD)

Describes a study investigating the academic relationship between passing standards on Florida's College-Level Academic Skills Test (CLAST) and student achievement as measured by CLAST. Discusses assumptions underpinning the phased-in implementation of twice raised CLAST passing standards. Indicates that increased academic standards failed to…

Portfolios are the centerpiece of Vermont's statewide assessment program in mathematics. Portfolio scores in the first two years were not reliable enough to permit the reporting of student-level results, but increasing the number of readers or the number of portfolio pieces is not operationally feasible. (SLD)

Five articles in this special issue present the approaches to accountability found in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, Quebec, and Newfoundland, provinces that represent 85% of all Canadian elementary and secondary school students. The articles are then discussed by representatives of four national Canadian educational associations. (SLD)

The adequacy of linking statewide standardized test results to the National Assessment of Educational Progress by using equipercentile equating procedures was investigated using statewide mathematics data from four states. Results suggest that the linkings are not sufficiently trustworthy to make comparisons based on the tails of the distribution.…

The influence of state-mandated tests on thoughts and actions of three middle school or junior high school literature teachers was studied. Case studies indicated that the changes that tests caused in teacher thinking were a function of teachers' preferred approach to teaching literature and their place in curricular decision making. (SLD)

This paper responds to an article that criticizes S. A. Cohen's position on the application of instructional alignment to teaching test wiseness. The value and ethics of using certain types of norm-referenced tests are criticized, based on data for the Missouri Mastery Achievement Test. (TJH)

Reviews the origin, practice, and effects of the "payment by results" law in late nineteenth-century England, in which elementary education was funded on the basis of students' examination results. Argues that such a system of educational accountability severely hampered development of English and Welsh elementary education. (PAA)

Argues against large-scale, federally funded, census approaches to measuring higher education outcomes, outlining specific problems. Discusses the effects of tests as instruments of educational reform, the cross-discipline transfer of higher-order skills, and the technology of setting performance standards. Places measurement within the broader…

The validity of using readiness tests for placing children in regular or 2-year kindergarten programs was studied in 9 Virginia school districts with a total enrollment of 17,662 in 1986-87. Four tests were evaluated; none were impressive predictors of performance on tests administered at the end of kindergarten. (SLD)

Places performance assessment in the context of high-stakes uses, describes underlying technologies, and outlines the history of performance testing from 210 B.C.E. to the present. Historical issues of fairness, efficiency, cost, and infrastructure influence contemporary efforts to use performance assessments in large-scale, high-stakes testing…