Achievement Test Standardized Achievement History 5

Question 1

The 'Lake Wobegon Effect,' named by educator John Cannell in 1987, refers to which problematic pattern in standardized testing?

Accepted Answer

Most states reporting above-average student performance using their own norm-referenced tests

Answer

Cannell found that almost all states using norm-referenced tests reported their students performed above the national average, a statistical impossibility, revealing problems with outdated norms.

Question 2

Computer-adaptive testing (CAT) differs from fixed-form achievement testing primarily in that CAT:

Accepted Answer

Adjusts item difficulty based on each student's responses during the test

Answer

CAT algorithms select each subsequent item based on the student's performance on previous items, improving measurement precision with fewer questions.

Question 3

What role did Edward Thorndike play in the history of standardized achievement testing?

Accepted Answer

He pioneered the scientific measurement of educational outcomes and developed early arithmetic and reading tests

Answer

Thorndike applied psychological measurement principles to education in the early 1900s, creating some of the first standardized tests of specific academic skills.

Question 4

Which term describes the alignment between what is taught in a curriculum and what is measured on an achievement test?

Accepted Answer

Curricular validity

Answer

Curricular validity (also called content validity) refers to how well test content reflects the curriculum students are expected to have been taught.

Question 5

The Common Core State Standards, adopted by most states around 2010, led to the creation of which two major multi-state assessment consortia?

Accepted Answer

PARCC and Smarter Balanced

Answer

PARCC (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers) and Smarter Balanced were federally funded consortia that developed Common Core-aligned assessments.

Achievement Test Practice Test

Achievement Test Practice Test

Achievement Test Standardized Achievement History 5