The Fractured Marketplace For Standardized Testing
Standardized testing in the United States has been increasing at a rapid pace in the last twenty-five years. The market for tests has not only been expanding rapidly, but has also been changing sharply in structure into a fractured marketplace. Indeed, one of the main features of this book is that the market for standardized testing is highly fractured - with segments of the market facing monopoly conditions, others facing oligopoly conditions and still others where near free-market...
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Standardized testing in the United States has been increasing at a rapid pace in the last twenty-five years. The market for tests has not only been expanding rapidly, but has also been changing sharply in structure into a fractured marketplace. Indeed, one of the main features of this book is that the market for standardized testing is highly fractured - with segments of the market facing monopoly conditions, others facing oligopoly conditions and still others where near free-market conditions exist. One of the main premises of the book is that the structures of markets have strong implications for how those markets perform. While this notion is widely accepted among economists, it is not widely appreciated in educational research. A second motivation for the book is that very little scholarly attention has been focused on the standardized testing industry. This topic - the structure of the testing industry and implications for the quality of tests and test use - affects how we evaluate the learning of students, the effectiveness of teaching, the quality of schools and the educational health of the nation. Of particular concern to the authors is one vital aspect of test quality: test validity. This book is the most current and authoritative review and analysis of the market for standardized testing. Booknews This volume describes the testing marketplace, recaps evidence on the extent of the marketplace and the recent growth in testing, presents estimates on the direct and indirect costs of testing, outlines the social forces behind the burgeoning market for testing, describes spin-off industries have grown up around testing, discusses the implications of the changing marketplace with regard to test quality and use, and presents alternative strategies to improve the use and prevent the misuse of tests as instruments of social and educational policy. Produced for the National Commission on Testing and Public Policy. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Preface1Introduction12The Testing Industry7The Major Companies11The Medium-Sized Companies27Small Publishers36The Secondary Industry37Military Testing40Other Players47The Fractured Market523The Extent of the Marketplace for Tests57Direct Indicators of Growth in Educational Testing59Indirect Indicators of Growth in Educational Testing66The Extent of Standardized Testing in the Employment Sector79The Expanding Marketplace for Testing924Social Investment in Educational Testing93Costs and Benefits: What Are We Talking About?96The Cost Structure of Educational Testing98An Estimated Testing Cost Function109Comparing Costs and Benefits at the Margin119The Benefits of Testing1205Forces Behind the Testing Marketplace125Dissatisfaction and Reform126Legislation133The Focus on Outcomes of Schooling149Bureaucratization of Education152New Forces1556Spin-Offs from the Testing Industry159The Computer Connection159Test Preparation and Coaching174Honesty Testing1847Test Quality and the Fractured Marketplace for Testing189Quality in Testing189The Lake Wobegon Phenomenon190The Marketing of Tests and Related Services193The RFP Process204Computer-Based Test Interpretation216Test Preparation and Coaching221Minor Mold or Major Blight?2308Mending the Fractured Marketplace247Fractures in the Testing Marketplace247Recent Proposals for New National Tests255Strategies for Mending the Fractured Marketplace271Conclusion292References295App. 1 Estimation of Number of Students Tested in State-Mandated Testing Programs319App. 2 Consumer Price Index Adjustments for Inflation325App. 3 Calculation of Standardized Growth Expectations (SGEs)327Index331
\ BooknewsThis volume describes the testing marketplace, recaps evidence on the extent of the marketplace and the recent growth in testing, presents estimates on the direct and indirect costs of testing, outlines the social forces behind the burgeoning market for testing, describes spin-off industries have grown up around testing, discusses the implications of the changing marketplace with regard to test quality and use, and presents alternative strategies to improve the use and prevent the misuse of tests as instruments of social and educational policy. Produced for the National Commission on Testing and Public Policy. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)\ \
