Recent studies of turnarounds of low-performing schools have focused on the factors that made their successes possible. The author of this article realizes that it would also be valuable to look at what made the schools decline in the first place and the factors that might hinder their transformation. He focuses on some of the aspects of the…

This document outlines the framework and assessment design for the International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) sponsored by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA). Over the past 50 years, IEA has conducted comparative research studies focusing on educational policies, practices, and…

This study examined differences in nine factors between a group of the highest-performing needs high schools (HPHN) and a group of the lowest performing high-needs (LPHN) high schools using teacher responses from a national dataset. The factors are: (1) shared mission and goals; (2) professional development; (3) collaboration among teachers (4)…

This evaluation assesses the impact of New Jersey's Reading Recovery program on first-grade students in the Newark School District. The report presents results from two cohorts and is divided into two main sections. Section 1 deals with the achievement of the students from the 1991-1992 academic year. Their performance at the end of first grade in…

While the publication of school report cards and profiles is common in a number of states, their contents and formats vary as they represent the concerns and initiatives of policymakers. Over the past several years, detailed analyses have been conducted of the report cards of southern and southeastern states. This report compared report cards and…

This annual report examines trends in Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) data for Maryland vis-a-vis national trends. Major findings include the following: (1) composite SAT scores for Maryland students trail the national average for the first time since 1982; (2) composite SAT scores of African-Americans in Maryland have consistently trailed those…

The "Accountability Report" provides indicators of the condition of Public Education in New Mexico, and is published each year by the State Department of Education. The report provides narrative and statistical information on an array of educational indicators, which include enrollment trends, funding and expenditures, graduation and…

Current proposals for national testing are either for national multiple-choice tests in which all students would take the same test or for a system of performance-based examinations calibrated to national standards. The Bush administration's proposals, as enunciated in "America 2000," embrace both types, beginning with administration of…

Steps involved in the item analysis and scaling of the 1990 edition of Forms A and B of the Nevada High School Proficiency Examinations (NHSPEs) are described. Pilot tests of Forms A and B of the 47-item reading and 45-item mathematics tests were each administered to random samples of more than 600 eleventh-grade students. A computer program was…

As part of a project on assessing deep understanding of subject matter, a study was conducted to assess students' knowledge of history by focusing on essay writing. Reading a provided text was incorporated into the assessment procedure. Ratings from five high school history teachers were compared with those of four English teachers for 85 essays…

This report presents the results and sample items of a reading test and a mathematics test administered to Year 5 and Year 7 primary level students in 1989 in the Northern Territory of Australia. The Primary Assessment Program (PAP) monitors achievement in English and Mathematics in urban schools. All students in Years 5 and 7 are tested in…

The relationship between success on proficiency tests and poverty has been widely discussed. This study explores the use of a neighborhood indicator of socioeconomic status based on school lunch participation of elementary school students in that neighborhood, and examines the relationship of poverty to success on a high school proficiency test in…

This report presents the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) performance results to state officials and the public as required by state law. Compiled in two volumes, TAAS results are aggregated and reported for the state as a whole, for education service centers and individual districts, and in district demographic groupings. Section 1…

Various methods used to assess the content of a test are reviewed, and a new procedure designed to improve on these methods is presented. The two tests considered are a professional licensure examination, the auditing section of the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination, and an educational achievement test, a nationally standardized…

The report presents results of a study of: the type, content, duration, and intensity of instructional services provided to limited-English-proficient (LEP) students in the United States; administrative procedures associated with these services (including procedures for identifying students for entry into and exit from these special services); the…