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The article discusses a consensus on the need for improvement of educational accountability tests to include critical thinking skills. Handy E. Bennett, a distinguished presidential scholar at the Educational Testing Service, is quoted saying the test should become a learning experience so that students benefit from taking it and teachers glean important information to improve instruction. The article notes that tests measuring complex thinking often require expensive human grading.

The article reports on the effect of budget cuts on educational testing in the United States, and the renewal of debates about the usefulness of standardized tests. Studies show that while states are cutting back on testing not required by federal rules, local school districts continue to use optional benchmark tests to track student progress.

The article covers "Building a Grad Nation," a report from the Civic Enterprises and the Everyone Graduate Center at Johns Hopkins University which found that 83.2 percent of U.S. students are completing high school on time. It focuses on how the report addressed concerns over the validity of the high graduation rate.

The authors discuss their support for validity studies of teacher-evaluation systems that are based on student test scores used in some U.S. states. They argue that testing professionals must provide a framework for evaluating systems that measure teacher quality while also stating that failure to conduct validity studies would violate the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing.

The author presents her opinion on the importance of standardized educational testing and assessment for teaching and learning practices, advocating a reforming approach to educational testing rather than a complete elimination of testing and assessment as an accountability tool. She stresses the importance of validity in standardized tests, and she discusses the U.S. No Child Left Behind (NCLB) act, the SAT college-entrance test, and the U.S. Common Core State Standards.

The article discusses debate over the comparability and scoring fairness of computer versus paper-and-pencil educational tests designed for the U.S. Common Core State Standards by two state consortia to be used in 2015. Schools' transition to computer tests for English and mathematics, test validity, and educational equality are discussed, as well as the psychometric aspects of computer versus paper tests.

The article reports on a study conducted by the journal which finds that the test scores of teachers passing licensure examinations are well above the minimum passing score required for certification in the U.S. Differing opinions regarding the validity of the tests and the results are presented and the function of teacher licensure examinations are explored. Other topics include the Higher Education Act, the quality of U.S. teacher education, and professional standards for teachers.

The article discusses a boycott conducted by teachers of the Garfield High School in Seattle, Washington, against the school's Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) computerized high-stakes educational test. Topics include the impact of the MAP tests on teacher evaluation according to Kris McBride, Garfield's testing coordinator, support for the boycott by the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), and the importance, according to the boycotting teachers, of testing validity of high-stakes tests.

The article discusses a report by Joshua N. Feinman, managing director of the investment bank Deutsche Asset Management in the Americas, that suggests that tests used for admission into specialized public high schools in New York City may not be valid. He suggests that scaling of scores can prevent the admission of students with strong academic performance and that the test does not accurately evaluate student ability.

The author reflects on the issue high-stakes testing in U.S. education. He argues that research on the topic shows high stakes testing to be ineffective and explains that most educational evaluation is based on the results of high-stakes tests. The need to boycott the testing is suggested as a way of reevaluating educational assessment.

The article discusses the decision by the Georgia education department to invalidate the social studies test results of middle school students. The article describes how state officials believed the results were too low to adequately represent student progress and achievement. Potential revising to the state curriculum and standards is discussed. State superintendent Kathy Cox's role in the decision is also presented.

The article reports on a U.S. National Center for Education Statistics analysis of Puerto Rico's mathematics scores on the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP). Trial test in 2003 and 2005 caused officials to doubt the NAEP's validity in Puerto Rico. Changes to the mathematics test will allow Puerto Rico's results to be included among those for the 2009 test. The NAEP determines eligibility for federal Title 1 aid for schools serving low-income families.

The article focuses on the issue of errors that were printed in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) standardized test. It explains that due to the errors, the reading scores from the test have been discounted. Mark S. Schneider, the commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, comments on the incident. The PISA test is described and the errors contained in the mathematics and science portions of the exam are also discussed.

The article reports that Washington state lawmakers have postponed deciding whether high school students who fail the math portion of the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) will be allowed to graduate or not. Some lawmakers would prefer to use an end-of-course assessment test in place of the WASL.

Deals with the concerns of educators about test security and validity in line with the decision of Wisconsin officials to administer the same proficiency tests to 4th, 8th and 10th graders. Use of the Terra Nova tests form; Comments from Michael H. Kean, the vice president for public and governmental affairs at CTB/McGraw-Hill.

Reports on the validity of exam results in line with the widespread security breaches. Administration of different versions of the 4th, 8th and 10th grade English and Math assessments in Rhode Island in May 1999; Examples of state test-security problems.