Two Basic Skill Centers were set up in Minneapolis in 1969 to help inner-city students improve their reading skills. This report covers the fourth year's operation of the project. The goals of the program include remediation of subskill weaknesses, achievement of functional reading levels, and raising the rate of reading growth of children in…

A discussion of performance contracting, defined as an agreement between a group offering instruction and a school needing the services, is presented. Four major hazards to direct measurement of specific learning are considered: poor statement of objectives; selection of the wrong tests; misinterpretation of test scores; and depersonalization of…

To obtain information concerning current practices in placing community college students in English Composition courses, a two-page questionnaire was mailed to each of California's 93 community colleges; replies were received from 62. Summaries of the replies are provided in seven tables. Observations resulting from the survey data include the…

The plan calls for a six stage development process. Stages one and two represent a needs assessment for testing, in which the target population and general subject areas to be assessed are determined. The remaining four stages are performed for each test developed. They include: item pool development, item filtering at the technical and lay…

The first part of this report highlights what is required in the legislative language of statutes enacted by various States by identifying their specific characteristics in a series of tables. Discussion of these characteristics and comparisons and comments on omissions and trends are presented in the text. The second part of the report consists…

This paper considers the question of bias in group administered academic achievement tests, bias which is inherent in the instruments themselves. A body of data on the test of performance of three disadvantaged minority groups--northern, urban black; southern, rural black; and, southwestern, Mexican-Americans--as tryout samples in contrast to…

This paper illustrates how changing emphases and trends in education have led to a reformulation of notions of assessment and an awareness of the limitations of current measurement technology to deal with newer conceptualizations. Discussed are: 1) the antecedents of learning and the transactions which take place during the learning process, as…

This document is an English-language abstract (approximately 1,500 words) of an analysis of tests given to newly enrolled first graders in Zagreb public schools. The analysis of the results of the investigation are presented into three sections: reading, mathematics, and social studies. The aim of the examination in the rudiments of literacy was…

Results of research performed to determine whether or not newly enrolled freshman students improved after one and one-half quarters of composition instruction at Western Illinois University are presented. Using an essay-type placement test given at initial enrollment as a pre-test, 158 students were selected as the experimental group to write…

The activities of the Nucleus Testing Committee of the Madison County (Wisconsin) Schools in developing a new student testing program are discussed, and suggestions for the development of appropriate testing procedures are given. An individualized learning packet, developed by the author, using the psychological and educational modalities of…

Information regarding the various publishers' priorities and data to support the supposition that the test publishers do differ in their priorities as reflected in their test characteristics, are presented. Evaluation ratings available for 1,600 published scales appropriate for grades 1, 3, 5, and 6 were from 39 publishers and distributers. A…

The Test Collection of the Educational Testing Service is an extensive library of standardized tests, record and report forms, and assessment devices. It also includes publishers' catalogs and descriptive materials, information on scoring service and systems, test reviews and reference volumes on measurement and evaluation. A special Head Start…

A study was conducted to test and compare the effects of a group-paced, multimedia, non-lecture method and a traditional lecture method of instruction in General Biology, and to determine if the type of evaluation used influenced a student's chances of successfully completing the course. Subjects were 308 students enrolling in General Biology…

The article discusses recommended adaptive behavior scales for use with hearing impaired, visually impaired, and multihandicapped sensory impaired individuals. Assessment instruments developed and used in the National Independent Living Skills Project, which have applicability across sensory impaired populations, are also described. (Author/JW)

Explores the relationship between mandates for educational excellence and more rigorous standards and the community college's role in providing access to educational opportunity for all students. Underscores the difference between accountability-based assessment and compliance-based testing. (DMM)