By using carefully constructed measurement scales that span grades, Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) interim assessments from Northwest Evaluation Association™ (NWEA™) offer educators efficient and very accurate estimates of student achievement status within a subject. Before achievement test scores can be useful to educators, however, they…

In the context of an upper-level psychology course, even when students were given an opportunity to refer to text containing the answers and change their exam responses in order to improve their exam scores, their performance on these questions improved slightly or not at all. Four experiments evaluated competing explanations for the students'…

The 2014 Michigan Public High School Context and Performance Report Card is the Mackinac Center's second effort to measure high school performance. The first high school assessment was published in 2012, followed by the Center's 2013 elementary and middle school report card, which used a similar methodology to evaluate school performance. The…

The current main world university rankings broadly group the leading research universities of nations. Australia's Go8 universities are generally within the top 250 ranked universities, with several institutions in the top 50-100 on some measures. This recognition is commendable, however imperfect the individual rankings may be. Use is made of…

Assessing a high school's effectiveness is not straightforward. Comparing a school's standardized test scores to those of other schools is one approach to measuring effectiveness, but a major objection to this method is that students' test scores tend to be related to students' "socioeconomic" status--family household income, for…

School reform efforts across the US have focused on creating systems in which all students are expected to achieve to high standards. To ensure that students reach those standards and to document what students know and can do, schools collect assessment information on students' academic achievement. More information is needed, however, to find out…

For a multitude of reasons candidates do not always complete all assessments in the examinations they are entered for. Using examination data across a range of GCSE specifications offered by the Assessment and Qualifications Alliance, this article details the impact of "unaccepted" absence on educational attainment, and explores absence…

This book contains a compilation of papers presented at the International Psychological Applications Conference and Trends (InPACT) 2019, organized by the World Institute for Advanced Research and Science (W.I.A.R.S.). Modern psychology offers a large range of scientific fields where it can be applied. The goal of understanding individuals and…

In April 1986 the Congressional Budget Office issued a report, "Trends in Educational Achievement," which shows that the trend in rising standardized test scores began in the elementary grades in the mid-1970's and is not due to the current educational reform movements. (MD)

Adopting a new series of tests can raise student test scores. Scores can also be inflated by ensuring certain students do not take specific tests or by not counting some scores. Dramatic rises in standardized scores are likely to be accompanied by skepticism. (MD)

Presents new norms on the Nelson-Denny Reading Test for healthcare-professional students. Notes that it is generally accepted that professional and graduate schools require students with good reading ability because of the quantity of material to be read. Presents standard scores, percentile ranks, and stanine scores as revised norms based on test…

Findings from a study of San Diego (California) elementary schools indicate that students in year-round schools outperformed those in traditional schools in the degree of achievement in reading, language, and math test scores. (MLF)

Discusses the necessity for the use of test score data in measuring school effectiveness. Outlines the types of tests best suited to particular schools. (MD)

This 1993 report is the second issue of the "State of the State--Education Performance in North Carolina," which monitors the health of North Carolina's education system as a whole and compares it to national and regional performance data. The first two sections define characteristics of North Carolina and its schools. Information about…

The study evaluated the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery (WJPEB) with 71 elementary grade learning disabled (LD) students. The following questions were addressed: (1) Are there significant discrepancies between ability and achievement, as measured by the WJPEB, for LD children, and if so, in what academic areas? (2) Are there patterns…