The Massachusetts Basic Skills Testing Program, mandated by Chapter 188 of the Acts of 1985, seeks to identify students who have not mastered basic skills in reading, writing, and mathematics. Because the Massachusetts Department of Education does not mandate any post-test action, it has not been possible to prescribe any method of providing help…

The proceedings of a two and one-half day symposium concerning the assessment of functional language ability through the oral interview process included the following papers: "The FSI/ILR/ACTFL Proficiency Scales and Testing Techniques: Development, Current Status, and Need Research" (John L. D. Clark, Ray T. Clifford); "The ACTFL…

State law requires that all certified professional personnel employed in Georgia school systems have their performance evaluated annually by trained evaluators. The Georgia School Counselor Evaluation Program (GSCEP) was designed to be used across all systems and schools for annual formative and summative evaluation purposes. The process used to…

Since its introduction in 1988 the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE), the main public examination for pupils at age 16 in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, has become an obvious area in which to investigate gender-related differences in performance. As a complex attainment test, the GCSE is largely made up of a coursework…

As the first paper in a series of policy papers on high-stakes student assessment programs, this paper examined high school graduation tests. High stakes refers to the use of test results to make important decisions about the test taker. Whether to use a high school graduation test is an essential policy question that will be addressed in a…

A genuine concern for the condition of education in the United States has led to misuse of standardized tests to measure teacher quality. The tests have been used for purposes of admission, advancement, merit, graduation, and certification contrary to research findings and test developer guidelines. The current use of tests has resulted in…

In April 1989, the Women's Program Forum of the Ford Foundation sponsored a seminar that examined the current debates and future directions surrounding the issue of gender bias in testing, with particular attention to the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). This booklet provides a transcript of the proceedings of the forum. P. Rosser's presentation of…

Policymakers adopt basic skills tests as admission requirements for programs of teacher education to increase the accuracy of admissions and, ultimately, to increase the competence of the teaching force. The tests are regarded as an independent measure of student academic competence. A multiple regression study of the incremental predictive…

This study sought to examine American College Test (ACT) and basic skills placement test score patterns; the use of these test scores in academic advising; student performance in freshman level reading, English, and mathematics courses; relationships among these factors and their power to predict or account for placement and performance; and…

Issues related to the Education Reform Bill of Ohio are discussed. Administration of norm-referenced achievement tests in reading, mathematics, language, and related school-ability tests is required for grades 4, 6, and 8 (effective by 1990) and grade 10 (effective by 1991). The reform bill specifies rewards and sanctions in addition to statewide…

Designed to assist community college practitioners in understanding and utilizing standardized test results for making instructional, guidance, and administrative decisions, this three-part guidebook examines the uses of test results, the evaluation of standardized tests, and procedures for interpreting test scores. Section I discusses the…

Designed for junior high and high school students and their parents, this brochure explains the structure, function, and method for interpretation of the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills and the Sequential Tests of Educational Progress. A question and answer format is used to provide information on scope and purposes of the tests, meaning and accuracy…

Information on the Ontario Test of English Achievement is presented. Attention is directed to the background and objectives of the test, test development, subtest characteristics and properties, validity, and recommendations concerning test use. The objective of the test was to determine the language competence of incoming students to assist…

Nine papers were presented at the 1986 Educational Testing Service Invitational Conference on outcomes assessment in higher education. The Award for Distinguished Service to Measurement was awarded to Frederic Kuder for development of the Kuder-Richardson 20 and KR-21 formulas for test reliability, the Kuder Preference Record, and the Kuder…

Recent developments in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) have addressed criticisms of previous assessments and have focused on state education departments as the major clients for test results. NAEP currently indicates progress in academic learning but does not define which aspects of schools are responsible for successes and…