This study examined the relationships between the SOL End-of-Course Reading and Writing tests and the new PSAT/NMSQT Verbal and Writing tests. The PSAT/NMSQT Writing tests were administered for the first time in October 2004. Two linear regression analyses were utilized, with PSAT/NMSQT Verbal and writing scores, gender, race, and special education as the independent variables, and SOL End-of-Course Reading and Writing scores as the dependent variables. Additionally, two logistic regression analyses were employed with the same variables to predict whether or not a student would pass the SOL End-of-Course Reading and Writing tests. Results indicated that the PSAT/NMSQT Verbal and Writing scores accounted for the bulk of the variance in the SOL Reading and Writing scores. Special education students were predicted to have much lower scores than their non-special education counterparts. Gender and race contributed the least to the regression analyses. With the emphasis on scientifically-based research, this study could be utilized to develop remediation programs for students predicted to fail the SOL tests. Further research is warranted using additional variables, such as GPA, socio-economic status, and a wider variety of race.

Educators are examining many aspects of schools as they find ways to help students improve their performance on standardized tests in order to meet both federal and state standards. This study examined the relationship between organizational climate and student achievement on the Virginia Standards of Learning tests. A total of 1,061 teachers in 47 schools across the Commonwealth of Virginia responded to the climate survey. The survey instrument was the Organizational Health Inventory for Elementary Schools (OHI-E). This brief survey instrument examined five aspects of school climate. They were Teacher Affiliation, Collegial Leadership, Resource Influence, Institutional Integrity, and Academic Emphasis. Third and fifth grade Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) tests were the measure of student achievement in English. mathematics, science, and social studies. This study also examined the effects of socioeconomic status as measured by the percentage of students receiving free and reduced price lunches.There was a significant positive relationship between overall school climate and third grade performance on the mathematics SOL test and fifth grade performance on the social studies SOL test. Socioeconomic status was significantly negatively correlated with SOL scores in third grade math, science, and social studies and all fifth grade tests except mathematics.Further regression analyses of the aspects of climate measured by the OHI-E (Institutional Integrity, Collegial Leadership, Resource Influence, Teacher Affiliation, and Academic Emphasis) indicated that Academic Emphasis had a significant independent effect on third grade English and mathematics SOL scores as well as fifth grade English, science, and social studies SOL scores. There was a negative correlation between Institutional Integrity and English SOL scores in both the third and fifth grade. This negative correlation shows that when teachers perceive that the school is vulnerable to outside interference, English scores tend to be higher.

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There are an estimated 1.2 million children with one or both parents enlisted in military service. These children are more geographically mobile than civilian children on average, and previous research suggests that mobility can have great effects on an individual's academic performance. This study seeks to answer the question: How does the standardized test performance of Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) schools compare to those of public schools with high concentrations of military children (funded by Impact Aid). It is hypothesized that due to higher average levels of funding, a standard curriculum, and both embedded and intentional social support, DoDEA schools will have higher standardized test scores than public schools with high concentrations of military children. Consistent with previous literature that finds a standardized test bias in favor of white students, it is also hypothesized that schools that are located in ZIP Codes with high percentages of Black and Hispanic residents will have lower test scores. This research will contribute to a growing body of literature on childhood migration, as well as the literature focused on the effects of the military on personnel's families and children. Through a series of bivariate correlations and nested regression analyses, I find that Impact Aid schools had higher percentages of students proficient in reading, math, and science than DoDEA schools. ZIP Code Tabulation Area measures of racial and ethnic composition, as reported in the American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (2007- 2011), were statistically significant predictors of proficiency in reading and math. As the percentage of non-White community composition increased, the percentage of students proficient in reading and math decreased (β = -11.328*, p ≤ .05). Controlling for these community-level variables still resulted in higher overall standardized test proficiency in Impact Aid schools

There have been many theories about cultural differences found between groups on intelligence test scores. The main debate has been between those in favor of a genetic explanation versus those in favor of a more environmental one. When considering environmental influences, one explanation has been that there could be differential effects due to the assessor. Although there have been several studies that have considered this possibility, the results are inconclusive. The current study attempted to tease apart the assessor effects by focusing on biases in the assessor alone and by eliminating effects from the test taker. The study is an experimental design where participants were randomly assigned a WISC-III protocol of members of different ethnic groups. It was hypothesized that different groups may score these IQ tests differentially depending on the race/ethnicity of the person who was assessed. Results showed that when given identical protocols, participants scored African American protocols lower than Caucasian American protocols in both high and average IQ conditions. Clinical implications of these results are discussed.

When a private school works to serve a diverse student population and provide excellence in education, academic aptitude is important to evaluate to better predict whether a student will be provided an education that is appropriately leveled. Comparing the previous grades of a diverse applicant pool may prove problematic because of the differing scaling and grading methods utilized in differing educational systems. A nonverbal aptitude test may be utilized to fill this purpose by not only gauging a student’s aptitude, but also by minimizing bias associated with cultural or linguistic differences, as well as differences that may present themselves because of sex. The present study included an ex post facto review of data collected over three academic years from 2013 to 2016 at a private secondary school. The nonverbal aptitude of applicants was gauged utilizing the Naglieri Nonverbal Aptitude Test (NNAT). The students’ overall GPA during their second semester at the school was identified to gauge academic achievement. These two values were then compared utilizing a hierarchical regression analysis to identify the ability of nonverbal aptitude to predict academic achievement. Additionally, the mean values of nonverbal aptitude between the sexes as vi well as between native and non-native English speakers were compared utilizing a t-test. The sample consisted of 203 students. The study will add to the existing literature on the ability of nonverbal aptitude as measured by a nonverbal intelligence test to predict academic achievement in an academic setting. The study found that the NNAT was statistically significant at the .005 alpha level in predicting academic achievement. The amount of variance explained by the overall model was 15.5% suggesting that other factors also explain the variance in academic achievement. Additionally, the t-tests performed in comparing the difference of means between the sexes as well as between native and non-native English speakers did not reflect any potential bias within the NNAT for these groups. As part of an overall admissions process, the NNAT test can be utilized to better predict academic achievement while at the same time reduce bias toward minority students that is found in numerous aptitude tests commonly utilized in student placement processes.

With the passing of the No Child Left Behind legislation (2001), individual states have been required to administer standardized tests to measure students’ academic achievement in several academic areas, including reading comprehension. Many schools are using curriculum embedded reading comprehension tests to assess students’ progress in achieving grade level expectations before the administration of state standardized test. This study used de-identified student data on curriculum embedded reading comprehension tests and the state standardized reading test, FCAT 2.0 to assess the correlation between a specific curriculum-based measure and the FCAT 2.0. The researcher used Pearson and Spearman Correlation to assess the predictive relationship of the curriculum-embedded reading tests and FCAT 2.0 reading. Strong correlations were found between the two assessments which educators may find useful when planning and differentiating reading comprehension instruction throughout the school year.

Over the past 10-15 years, the epidemiological research literature on juvenile delinquency has suggested that there is an over-representation of males and Hispanics within the juvenile justice system, and a disproportionate number of youths having an IDEA disability, including emotional disability, learning disability, and mental retardation. In addition, juvenile delinquents tend to perform lower academically than their peers, come from low socioeconomic status backgrounds, drop out of school more often, and frequently come into contact with law enforcement agencies. Moreover, low academic achievement, male gender, and drop out contribute to the increased chances that adolescents will become involved in delinquent activities. Characteristics of juvenile delinquents also tend to be stable over time and resistant to most types of intervention.The purpose of the present study was to examine whether there were significantly greater percentages of school drop out in adjudicated versus non-adjudicated delinquent high school youths with and without an IDEA disability diagnosis. Significant differences between standardized test scores of those adjudicated and non-adjudicated youths who dropped out versus remained in school were also examined. Other variables studied in conjunction with these included gender, minority, and free/reduced lunch status.Chi-Square Tests of Independence revealed a significant association between adjudication and drop out, regardless of disability, gender, minority, or free/reduced lunch status. Chi-Square results also showed a significant association between adjudication and disability, but for non-drop out delinquent youths only. Drop out and disability was found to be significantly associated for males only.Univariate Analyses of Variance revealed significant differences in AIMS Reading standard scores between delinquents who had, versus had not, been identified as having a disability. Significant differences in reading scores were also found between those identified, versus not identified as SLD. Furthermore, an interaction effect between disability and minority status was present. Similar differences were found with respect to AIMS Math scores. Limitations and implications of findings as well as future research directions were discussed.

Professional physical therapist education programs use a variety of measures of academic performance, aptitude, and interpersonal skills when selecting students for admission. Grade point averages (GPA) and scores on standardized tests, such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), are commonly used quantitative measures. The purpose of this study was to investigate the utility of these measures in predicting which physical therapist students will encounter difficulty in the academic program or in passing the National Physical Therapist Examination (NPTE). This study used a retrospective longitudinal design. A nationally representative sample of 20 programs was drawn from the population of physical therapist education programs that utilize the GRE and enroll 30 or more students per year. The sample programs provided data regarding student demographic characteristics and undergraduate GPA and GRE scores for each student admitted to the cohorts graduating in 2000 through 2004. Programs also provided data regarding academic difficulty for each student. Data provided by the programs were matched to data provided by the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy regarding whether the student encountered difficulty passing the NPTE. Data were analyzed using logistic regression, receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curves, and diagnostic likelihood ratios. The final sample included data on 3,585 students from 20 programs. When controlling for program, cohort, ethnicity, and age, undergraduate GPA (O.R. = 0.851 ±0.031), verbal GRE score (O.R. = 0.970 ±0.017), and quantitative GRE score (O.R. = 0.963 ±0.015) were independently predictive of academic difficulty. Within programs, undergraduate GPA was the most consistent predictor of academic difficulty, contributing to prediction of difficulty for 12 of the programs in the sample. When controlling for program, cohort, and NPTE test version, undergraduate GPA (O.R. = 0.882 ±0.031) , verbal GRE score (O.R = 0.935 ±0.016), and quantitative GRE score (O.R. = 0.965 ± 0.014) were independently predictive of NPTE difficulty. Within programs, verbal GRE score was the most consistent predictor of difficulty on the NPTE, contributing to prediction of difficulty in 11 of the sample programs. The results support the use of undergraduate GPA and GRE scores for making admissions and academic decisions in physical therapist education.

The iPad and other mobile devices have become so popular over the past few years that many school districts are purchasing these devices and implementing them in the classroom with little to no research. Because there has been no previous research at one rural school district in Michigan, the primary purpose of this quantitative causal-comparative study was to investigate the effects that a 1-to-1 iPad initiative program has had on only 11th grade student achievement and determine if 11th grade students' test scores on the Michigan Merit Exam in the areas of mathematics, science, and social studies for each school year from 2007 to 2016 have improved, declined, or stayed the same. The framework for this study was rooted in Kearsley and Shneiderman's engagement theory, which specifically applies to technology-based learning environments. A repeated measures analysis of variance was used to compare the standardized test scores from 2007 to 2016, with the scores as the dependent variables and the introduction of the iPad technology as the independent variable. Student characteristics of gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status were covariates. The findings from this study indicated that the iPad has improved standardized test scores at this local high school and therefore this school district should continue the promotion and investment in mobile learning devices and other technologies. The resulting policy recommendation from this study prompts the local school district to pursue the expansion of a 1-to-1 iPad program or other mobile learning device in the current curriculum to help increase student achievement on standardized tests. The incorporation of Apple's iPad in the classroom has potentially created a solution to help students increase academic performance and achieve higher levels on standardized and state tests.