Criterion-referenced and norm-referenced tests are compared, and norm-referenced tests are found to have inadequacies as a basis for evaluation or instructional improvement. Disadvantages of norm-referenced tests, which measure a student's performance relative to the performance of other students, are: (1) mismatches between local curriculum and…

The question asked in this study is "What are the processes by which different methods of desegregation affect different types of students on different kinds of outcomes?" This analysis focuses on three different types of outcomes: achievement test scores, college attendance, and reaching the junior year of college. The relationship between school…

Census data were used to predict average district scores on standardized achievement tests for grades one, two, three, six, and twelve, in 716 California school districts. The following census variables were used: education, income, college, poverty (families); poverty (children); professional occupations; housing; Spanish surnames; and Black.…

The following papers were delivered: Introductory Remarks, John W. Evans; An Evaluator's Perspective, Michael J. Wargo; Problems of Achievement Tests in Program Evaluation, Donald Ross Green; Diverse Human Populations and Problems in Educational Program Evaluation via Achievement Testing, Edmund W. Gordon; Critical Issues in Achievement Testing of…

This document describes the principles of the basic testing program of the Department of Defense Dependents Schools (DoDDS) and reports results in detail for the year 1978-79. Included are (1) the procedures used in developing the tests, (2) the statistical characteristics of the tests, (3) the methods employed in analyzing the findings, and (4)…

The Number Test of the ACER Mathematics Profile Series, contains 30 items, for each of three suggested grade levels: 7-8, 8-9, and 9-10. Raw scores on all tests in the ACER Mathematics Profile Series (Number, Operations, Space and Measurement) are converted to a common scale called MAPS, a major feature of the Series. Based on the Rasch Model,…

The Skills Achievement Monitoring (SAM) program, developed by teachers and administrators in the public schools of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, is described. The program, used in writing and mathematics, is based on three assumptions: (1) that classroom teachers are the primary untapped resource in schools, (2) that tests of any kind must be used as…

The procedures used in Phase I of the Individually Guided Education (IGE) evaluation to scale, adjust, and aggregate reading and mathematics achievement in grade 5 are described. An explanation is included of the administration procedures. The tests used (The Short Form Test of Academic Aptitude and the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills) and the…

The procedures used in Phase I of the Individually Guided Education (IGE) evaluation to scale, adjust, and aggregate reading and mathematics achievement in grade 2 are described. An explanation is included of the administration procedures. The tests used (the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills and the Short Form Test of Academic Aptitude) and the…

The differences in types of information-processing skills developed by different instructional backgrounds affect, negatively or positively, the learning of further advanced instructional materials. If prior and subsequent instructional methods are different, a proactive inhibition effect produces low achievement scores on a post test. This poses…

THE INCREASED EMPHASIS ON THE AUDIOLINGUAL SKILLS REQUIRES NEW APPROACHES IN TESTING. THESE SKILLS CAN BE SEPARATED INTO SEVERAL AREAS FOR WHICH GROUP AND INDIVIDUAL OBJECTIVE TESTS CAN BE CONSTRUCTED. EXAMPLES OF GROUP TESTS ARE AURAL WORD-RECOGNITION TESTS AND TESTS OF LISTENING COMPREHENSION. TESTS WHICH MUST BE ADMINISTERED INDIVIDUALLY ARE…

Scores on mental ability and academic skills for 1958 and 1978 of representative sample of grade 4 and 7 classes in Saskatchewan were compared. The selected students were administered appropriate levels of the Otis-Lennon Mental Ability Tests, and the Canadian Tests of Basic skills in vocabulary, reading, language skills (spelling, capitalization,…

The first of three project goals formulated for the Cleveland Public Schools was to improve the level of mastery of specified language and mathematics skills. The second, but primary, goal of this three-year endeavor was to develop, implement, and refine a replicable mastery-learning instructional model involving a staff team (English teacher/…

This study develops a weighted least squares method for transforming a logistic scale in such a way that the estimates of ability parameters on the tranformed scale are as comparable as possible with those on another scale. This scale tranformation process is referred to as equating of scales. Equating is an important procedure in studies…

Twelve common errors which can invalidate an otherwise sound evaluation are identified, and ways to avoid them are presented. The hazards are: (1) grade-equivalent scores; (2) inappropriate statistical adjustments with nonequivalent control groups; (3) administering norm-referenced tests at inappropriate times of the school year; (4) inappropriate…