Several models for optimizing incomplete sample designs with respect to information on the item parameters are presented. The following cases are considered: (1) known ability parameters; (2) unknown ability parameters; (3) item sets with multiple ability scales; and (4) response models with multiple item parameters. The models are able to cope…

The Scientific Theory and Method Project (STAMPS) is concerned with students' understanding of two areas of science in secondary schools. One is understanding what a scientific theory is, and the other is understanding the methods used in conducting scientific research. In the science curriculum these topics are often described as the process of…

In Arkansas, in reaction to complaints about traditional methods of selection for promotion, the civil service commission has chosen to base promotions in the police department solely on scores on locally-developed objective tests. Items developed and loaded into a computerized test bank were selected from six areas of responsibility: (1) criminal…

This report focuses on teacher reactions in the Mississippi Delta to the state-wide curriculum and testing program. A Basic Skills Assessment Program tests achievement of the state curriculum objectives at grades 3, 5, 8, and 11. Eleventh grade students are also required to pass a Functional Literacy Examination for each content area. Mathematics…

Statistical equating of scores from direct writing assessments is performed in Maryland to hold the difficulty of passing the Maryland Writing Test (MWT) equivalent from year to year and to allow a demonstration of growth in student writing achievement over the years. Passage of the test is a high school graduation requirement. Prior to…

This document acquaints teachers and curriculum directors with the reading, mathematics, and problem solving indicators assessed by the Georgia Basic Skills Tests, initially given in grade 10. Students who fail initially in grade 10 have at least five other opportunities to take the test and must pass it in order to graduate. In reading, skill…

These two booklets, one for juvenile counselor candidates and one for test administrators, provide information about the examination developed as part of the evaluation procedures for juvenile counselor candidates in the Standards and Training for Corrections program in California. The candidate information booklet (1) provides background…

The 1988 assessment of U.S. history objectives by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is the first such assessment in U.S. history. This booklet presents a framework of objectives for U.S. history courses, including: (1) the chronology of people, events, documents, and interrelationships that form U.S. history; (2) the context…

This book focuses on the education commission and its policy recommendations and provides an evaluation of policies on teachers and teaching, equity, and uses of educational testing to assess the effects of reform. The volume examines both equity and excellence in American education. After an introductory chapter providing an overview of the…

The goal of this monograph is to explain the evaluation program designed by Schaumburg Community Consolidated District 54, Schaumberg, Illinois. It discusses the process used in the development of the model, the product, the implication for classroom teachers and the effects of using an evaluation to assess science process skills. The process…

This study investigated the potential usefulness of a cognitive education intervention approach to improving learning abilities of underachieving Native adolescents. The specific variables considered were: (1) the manner in which this approach may affect cognitive development; (2) academic learning; (3) attitudes towards and interest in academic…

A survey of testing practices at two-year colleges was conducted by the American College Testing Program (ACT) and the American Association of Community and Junior Colleges (AACJC) to gather information about the use of tests in admissions, placement, and program completion. A questionnaire was distributed to 1,303 two-year institutions,…

Eleven mathematics objectives for seventh grade students to attain are listed. After general specifications for test items and the format for the test package are noted, specifications for assessing each objective are given, with enabling skills, a description of test questions, a description of answer choices, and examples of test questions for…

The preliminary work of the Scottish "School-Based Assessment of Communicative Foreign-Language Skills in Secondary Classes 3 and 4" to train teachers to undertake increased testing responsibilities under recent educational reforms is explained. The models of communicative competence and performance being developed for use with classroom…

This article describes Allegro, a computer-assisted report writing procedure developed by a rural school psychology staff to aid in the rapid development and creation of high quality psycho-educational reports. The program's structure, procedural steps, and function are detailed and examples of the program structure are provided through printouts…