Local educational agencies and county office staff are provided with information and specific guidelines on the development, maintenance and evaluation of local district testing programs. This manual contains New Jersey approved criteria for local testing programs, a step-by-step presentation of methods for planning, designing and evaluating testing programs, summary information about tests, scoring procedures, types of scores, methods of reporting and interpreting results and a selective annotated reference section. A commercial test selection checklist is presented, as well as a discussion on the advantages and disadvantages associated with locally developed tests. Assistance in the development of local tests is available from the Office of State Educational Assessment or the Educational Improvement Centers. Information is provided about paper and pencil tests only. (RL)