The issues surrounding the comparability of various tests used to assess performance in schools received broad public attention during congressional debate over the Voluntary National Tests proposed by President Clinton in his 1997 State of the Union Address. Proponents of Voluntary National Tests argue that there is no widely understood, challenging benchmark of individual student performance in 4th-grade reading and 8th-grade mathematics, thus the need for a new test. Opponents argue that a statistical linkage among tests already used by states and districts might provide the sort of comparability called for by the president's proposal. Public Law 105-78 requested that the National Research Council study whether an equivalency scale could be developed that would allow test scores from existing commercial tests and state assessments to be compared with each other and with the National Assessment of Education Progress. In this book, the committee reviewed research literature on the statistical and technical aspects of creating valid links between tests and how the content, use, and purposes of education testing in the United States influences the quality and meaning of those links. The book summarizes relevant prior linkage studies and presents a picture of the diversity of state testing programs. It also looks at the unique characteristics of the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Uncommon Measures provides an answer to the question posed by Congress in Public Law 105-78, suggests criteria for evaluating the quality of linkages, and calls for further research to determine the level of precision needed to make inferences about linked tests. In arriving at its conclusions, the committee acknowledged that ultimately policymakers and educators must take responsibility for determining the degree of imprecision they are willing to tolerate in testing and linking. This book provides science-based information with which to make those decisions.

For well over a half century, American Universities and Colleges has been the most comprehensive and highly respected directory of four-year institutions of higher education in the United States. A two-volume set that Choice magazine hailed as a most important resource in its November 2006 issue, this revised edition features the most up-to-date statistical data available to guide students in making a smart yet practical decision in choosing the university or college of their dreams. In addition, the set serves as an indispensable reference source for parents, college advisors, educators, and public, academic, and high school librarians. These two volumes provide extensive information on 1,900 institutions of higher education, including all accredited colleges and universities that offer at least the baccalaureate degree. This essential resource offers pertinent, statistical data on such topics as tuition, room and board; admission requirements; financial aid; enrollments; student life; library holdings; accelerated and study abroad programs; departments and teaching staff; buildings and grounds; and degrees conferred. Volume two of the set provides four indexes, including an institutional Index, a subject accreditation index, a levels of degrees offered index, and a tabular index of summary data by state. These helpful indexes allow readers to find information easily and to make comparisons among institutions effectively. Also contained within the text are charts and tables that provide easy access to comparative data on relevant topics.