This document describes the breadth of the research being conducted in 2008 by the Research and Development Division at Educational Testing Service (ETS). The research described falls into three large categories: (1) Research supported by the ETS research allocation; (2) Research funded by testing programs at ETS; and (3) Research funded by…

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) permits the Secretary of Education to use NAEP achievement level scores, in concert with other data, to confirm state testing results. The U.S. Department of Education has not yet published a guidance document describing how NAEP might be used appropriately. A review of the literature from the Department and…

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of formulaic writing such as the five-paragraph theme (FPT) or essay for the purpose of earning high scores on high-stakes writing assessments. This qualitative descriptive study analyzed more than 1000 essays from Delaware Grade 8 and 10 writers, written for a statewide…

A STUDY DESIGNED TO IDENTIFY SOME OF THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE RESPONSES ON THE GATES ADVANCED PRIMARY READING TEST AND THE KINDS OF RESPONSES OBTAINED FROM AN INFORMAL READING INVENTORY (IRI) IS REPORTED. SUBJECTS WERE 65 THIRD-GRADE PUPILS IN WEST BABYLON, NEW YORK. PUPILS AT THE SAME INSTRUCTIONAL LEVEL SCORED HIGHER IN THE RECOGNITION TEST…

The city-wide standardized testing program of Madison Public Schools was reviewed by a committee of a cross-section of school system educators as part of a total effort to design a testing program more sensitive to the needs of the system. As a result, standardized testing was reduced to reading (grades 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 8) and mathematics (grade…

THE STUDY MEASURED THE EFFECTS OF TRAINING IN A SERIES OF CLOZE PROCEDURE EXERCISES UPON READING COMPREHENSION. STUDENTS WERE INSTRUCTED TO FILL IN BLANK SPACES IN WRITTEN TEXT. THIS ACT OF CLOSURE ITSELF WAS CONSIDERED TO BE A NONOVERT REINFORCEMENT. STUDENTS (1,411) IN 49 CLASSROOMS PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY. A CROSS-SECTIONAL GROUP WAS STUDIED…

Michigan's superintendent of public instruction is convinced that a state testing program can provide the kind of information educators need to improve instructional planning. (Author)

Developed by the National Education Association Task Force on Testing, this list of alternatives to standardized tests and testing programs includes the use of anecdotal records, oral presentations, student contracts, self and peer evaluations, and teacher-made tests.

An assessment of the effects of rest intervals of varying lengths following a five minute warm-up revealed no significant differeence among them for perceived exertion, heart rate, and state anxiety. (MB)

This paper presents the characteristics, properties and development of the National Reference Scale for reading. This new scale is the result of a reanalysis of the Anchor Test Study data using Rasch model procedures, in an effort to produce equated scores among all reading tests included in that study. (Author/JKS)

Three methods of estimating point-biserial correlation coefficient standard errors were compared: (1) assuming normality; (2) not assuming normality; and (3) bootstrapping. Although errors estimated assuming normality were biased, such estimates were less variable and easier to compute, suggesting that this might be the method of choice in some…

This module explains test review as it is now performed in most large-scale testing programs. It addresses the fundamental aspects of item review principally for fairness, sensitivity, and bias, and to a lesser degree for content and construct validity. The module is designed for a survey course and thus has a broad, rather than deep, focus. The…

Most large-scale testing programs facing computerized adaptive testing (CAT) must face the challenge of maintaining extensive content requirements, but content constraints in computerized adaptive testing (CAT) can compromise the precision and efficiency that could be achieved by a pure maximum information adaptive testing algorithm. This…

This guide explains the results and other information contained in the "Test Item Analysis Report," the "Test Item Report Summary," the "School Report," and the "District Report" for the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) tests of spring 2002.The report contains these sections: (1)…

This report shares with educators and the public all of the test items on which spring 2002 student results from the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) are based. The release of these items provides information on the kinds of knowledge and skills students are expected to demonstrate on the MCAS tests. Local educators are…