College-level assessment efforts in New Jersey are described. For more than a dozen years, students in public colleges and universities in New Jersey have been assessed using a common statewide instrument, the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test. This test assesses reading, writing, and mathematics skills of entering college students as…

The role and influence of mandated testing in educational reform are reviewed. Mandated testing refers to large-scale (districtwide or statewide) multiple-choice testing programs used for policy purposes of evaluation and accountability, which includes nationally normed standardized achievement tests and tests custom-developed to reflect state and…

Results from the 1993 administration of the Wisconsin Third Grade Reading Test are presented in a 43-page table that lists the results for each school district and school in Wisconsin. Statewide, over 52,000 students from over 300 districts took this test. The following categories for each 4-digit district code and each 8-digit school code…

Information was sought about three main issues related to voluntary national tests for fourth-grade reading and eighth-grade mathematics: (1) the relationship between the National Assessment Governing Board and the U.S. Department of Education; (2) costs of developing the national voluntary tests and procedures for hiring contractors; and (3)…

The effect of testing accommodations, such as extra time, oral reading of the assessment, or small group testing, on the participation and performance levels of limited-English-proficient students (LEP) on the Rhode Island Grade 4 Mathematics Performance Assessment was studied. A pilot study was conducted with 22 classes of students to provide…

Factors associated with an unusually high rate of failure on the July 1991 National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN) were analyzed for nursing students at Angelo State University in San Angelo (Texas). Of the 111 nursing degree recipients who took the examination for the first time in July 1991, 18 (16.2%) failed.…

The issue of a national assessment tool in the form of national testing has recently gained momentum. The expectation is that tough national tests would raise national standards and improve educational equity. The goals are ambitious ones and the stakes are particularly high for disadvantaged youth who currently experience the worst effects of…

The role that achievement testing plays in the educational system of Trinidad and Tobago and results from the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) tests administered in 1989 are discussed (for these tests, students generally sit for five to eight examinations on subjects they have taken throughout their secondary schooling). The educational system…

The purpose of this study was to improve both statistical and judgmental methods for detecting potentially biased test items in an attempt to examine the agreement between the results obtained with these methods. If greater agreement between methods can be achieved, test items can be more effectively screened using judgmental methods prior to…

An overview and summary are presented of the implementation of the Connecticut Mastery Test for grade 4. The testing program assesses essential skills in mathematics and language arts including listening, reading, and writing for students in grades 4, 6, and 8. The criterion-referenced mastery test assesses how well each student is performing on…

The 1992-93 school year was the second year of the implementation of the Vermont assessment program. Evaluation of the 1991-92 year yielded mixed results, with some evidence that the assessment program was having a strong impact on instruction, but other indications that the reliability of the portfolio scoring in both writing and mathematics was…

Connecticut is developing a new grade 10 statewide testing program known as the Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT). The CAPT reflects the changing nature of standardized assessment by using a variety of assessment formats including performance tasks, open-ended questions, and multiple-choice tests. This paper describes the research that…

A comprehensive overview of the current state of student assessment and a glimpse of the extent of student assessment in New York State (NYS), throughout the nation, and in foreign countries are provided. Background on existing testing programs in NYS and the assessment components of "A New Compact for Learning," a set of proposals from…

The role of statewide testing programs and the direction Pennsylvania should take in statewide educational assessment are discussed. The major purposes proposed for statewide testing programs are: (1) informing state policy; (2) curriculum reform; and (3) accountability. The ultimate purpose of statewide testing programs is to improve student…

Changes in mathematics achievement at grade 11 before and after the implementation of the Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills (TEAMS) were studied in an urban school district in Texas. High stakes tests are used by state education agencies and school districts to monitor and increase educational achievement. The TEAMS is a minimum…