Reviews research concerning assessment of Black children and proposes a strategy to encourage fair and appropriate psychological/educational decisions. The five phases of the model include observation, testing, data analysis, and evaluation. Culture-specific tests should be used in addition to traditional measures to provide equal opportunities…

Summarizes significant laws and court cases pertaining to discrimination in educational testing and discusses the implications for counselors. Counselors must be knowledgeable about current testing information, regulations of the state and local boards of education, and professional guidelines to avoid discrimination of students because of sex,…

Addresses the disproportionate representation of culturally and linguistically different children in special education classes. Proposes a three-tiered response model relating to the individual practitioner, the educational process, and a larger scaled systematic response to the issues. Effective practical suggestions are offered. (Author/JAC)

Presents a history and analysis of the Larry P. v Wilson Riles litigation in California which prohibited the use of intelligence tests for determining eligibility of Black children for placement in educable mentally retarded programs. Argues against the court decision, and claims tests are not biased. (APM)

The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition (WISC-III) was administered to 175 Navajo children at 2 reservation elementary schools. Local normative information was developed to reduce test bias associated with the English-laden content in the test. A procedure was developed for converting WISC-III scores, enabling comparison of…

Examines three themes in the area of standards and accountability as they apply to the current condition of teacher education in California and elsewhere: why the teacher education standards movement has gained inertia so quickly, the consequences of standards on existing accreditation processes such as that of the National Council for…

The Georgia Job Analysis Questionnaire was administered in January 1987 to all certified mathematics and science personnel identified by the State Department of Education. Ratings of task statements by 1,384 science and 1,600 mathematics teachers indicated significant differences associated with racial and gender differences. (TJH)

Mail questionnaire items that are susceptible to order effects were examined using data from 168 questionnaires in a Florida Cooperative Extension Service evaluation. Order effects were found for multiple-response and attributive questions but not for single-response items. Order also interacted with question complexity, social desirability, and…

This article discusses cultural and linguistic biases and distortions present in standardized tests and offers explanations and suggestions on modifying or eliminating them. Key cultural concepts and linguistic differences are described to assist evaluators in assessing East Asian students appropriately and fairly. Several commonly used tests are…

The Texas Academic Skills Program, a basic-skills test that all entering freshmen must pass before they can enroll in upper-level courses, is discussed. Those who fail it will be required to take non-credit remedial courses and to retake the test until they pass it. (MLW)

Describes five propositions concerning classroom assessment. Uses propositions to review seven conference papers. Propositions refer to the following: nature of achievement; student information necessary to interpret assessments; tension between need to describe and need to praise; distinction between formal and informal assessment; and need for…

Responds to Dunn's monograph on Hispanic-Anglo differences in IQ scores. Discusses the cultural/linguistic bias in IQ tests, and the inevitability of this bias due to methods of test development and standardization. Criticizes Dunn's proposal for English immersion programs to replace bilingual education. Contains 21 references. (Author/SV)

With bootstrap methodology, the stability of the Angoff delta item bias index was investigated. Data from item responses of 400 Black and 400 White fifth-grade students taking the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills indicated that the Angoff delta statistic had only moderate stability. (SLD)

The Joint Committee on Testing Practices (JCTP) is a coordinating body sponsored by professional organizations and test publishers that seeks to advance the quality of testing practices and insure the rights of test takers. The JCTP has issued a code, reprinted here, advocating fairness in test construction, selection, and interpretation. (AF)

The nature of admissions tests and their intended uses are reviewed. Evidence regarding the validity of tests, their contributions to admissions decisions, the effects of coaching, and possible bias in the predictive meaning of test scores for women and minorities are discussed. (Author/SLD)