Specific Assessments For Coaching

A test or examination (informally, exam or evaluation) is an  intended to measure a test-taker’s , , , , or classification in many other topics (e.g., ). A test may be administered verbally, on paper, on a , or in a predetermined area that requires a test taker to demonstrate or perform a set of skills. Tests vary in style, rigor and requirements. For example, in a closed book test, a test taker is usually required to rely upon memory to respond to specific items whereas in an open book test, a test taker may use one or more supplementary tools such as a reference book or calculator when responding. A test may be administered formally or informally. An example of an informal test would be a reading test administered by a parent to a child. A formal test might be a  administered by a teacher in a classroom or an I.Q. test administered by a psychologist in a clinic. Formal testing often results in a  or a . A test score may be interpreted with regards to a  or , or occasionally both. The norm may be established independently, or by  analysis of a large number of participants. An exam is meant to test a persons knowledge or willingness to give time to manipulate that subject.

A  is any test that is administered and scored in a consistent manner to ensure legal defensibility. Standardized tests are often used in , ,  (e.g., ), the , and many other fields.

A non-standardized test is usually flexible in scope and format, variable in difficulty and significance. Since these tests are usually developed by individual instructors, the format and difficulty of these tests may not be widely adopted or used by other instructors or institutions. A non-standardized test may be used to determine the proficiency level of students, to motivate students to study, and to provide feedback to students. In some instances, a teacher may develop non-standardized tests that resemble standardized tests in scope, format, and difficulty for the purpose of preparing their students for an upcoming standardized test. Finally, the frequency and setting by which a non-standardized tests are administered are highly variable and are usually constrained by the duration of the class period. A class instructor may for example, administer a test on a weekly basis or just twice a semester. Depending on the policy of the instructor or institution, the duration of each test itself may last for only five minutes to an entire class period.

In contrasts to non-standardized tests, standardized tests are widely used, fixed in terms of scope, difficulty and format, and are usually significant in consequences. Standardized tests are usually held on fixed dates as determined by the test developer, educational institution, or governing body, which may or may not be administered by the instructor, held within the classroom, or constrained by the classroom period. Although there is little variability between different copies of the same type of standardized test (e.g.,  or ), there is variability between different types of standardized tests.

Any test with important consequences for the individual test taker is referred to as a .

A test may be developed and administered by an instructor, a clinician, a governing body, or a test provider. In some instances, the developer of the test may not be directly responsible for its administration. For example,  (ETS), a nonprofit educational testing and assessment organization, develops standardized tests such as the SAT but may not directly be involved in the administration or proctoring of these tests. As with the development and administration of educational tests, the format and level of difficulty of the tests themselves are highly variable and there is no general consensus or invariable standard for test formats and difficulty. Often, the format and difficulty of the test is dependent upon the educational philosophy of the instructor, subject matter, class size, policy of the educational institution, and requirements of accreditation or governing bodies. In general, tests developed and administered by individual instructors are non-standardized whereas tests developed by testing organizations are standardized.

History[]

Early history[]

Ancient China was the first country in the world that implemented a nationwide standardized test, which was called the . The main purpose of this examination was to select able candidates for specific governmental positions. The imperial examination was established by the  in 605 AD and was later abolished by the  1300 years later in 1905. England had adopted this  in 1806 to select specific candidates for positions in , modeled on the Chinese . This examination system was later applied to education and it started to influence other parts of the world as it became a prominent standard (e.g. regulations to prevent the markers from knowing the identity of candidates), of delivering .

Modern era[]

Civil service[]

As the profession transitioned to the modern mass-education system, the style of examination became fixed, with the stress on standardized papers to be sat by large numbers of students. Leading the way in this regard was the burgeoning  that began to move toward a  basis for selection in the mid 19th century in England.

British civil service was influenced by the  system and meritocratic system of China. Thomas Taylor Meadows, Britain’s consul in , China argued in his Desultory Notes on the Government and People of China, published in 1847, that “the long duration of the Chinese empire is solely and altogether owing to the good government which consists in the advancement of men of talent and merit only,” and that the British must reform their civil service by making the institution meritocratic. As early as in 1806, the  established a  near London to train and examine administrators of the Company’s territories in India. Examinations for the Indian ‘civil service’- a term coined by the Company – were introduced in 1829.

In 1853 the  , commissioned Sir  and  to look into the operation and organisation of the . Influenced by the ancient Chinese Imperial Examination, the  of 1854 made four principal recommendations: that recruitment should be on the basis of merit determined through standardized written examination, that candidates should have a solid general education to enable inter-departmental transfers, that recruits should be graded into a hierarchy and that promotion should be through achievement, rather than ‘preferment, patronage or purchase’. A  was also set up in 1855 to oversee open recruitment and end patronage, and most of the other Northcote–Trevelyan recommendations were implemented over some years.

The Northcote–Trevelyan model of meritocratic examination remained essentially stable for a hundred years. This was a tribute to its success in removing corruption, delivering public services (even under the stress of two world wars), and responding effectively to political change. It also had a great international influence and was adapted by members of the . The  established a similar system in the United States.

Education[]

Written examinations had been unheard of before 1702 for European education. “The Chinese examinations were described repeatedly in Western literature on China of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.”  began to influence the method of examination in British universities from the 1850s, where  had been the norm since the . In the US, the transition happened under the influence of the educational reformer . This shift decisively helped to move education into the modern era, by standardizing expanding curricula in the sciences and , creating a rationalized method for the evaluation of teachers and institutions and creating a basis for the  according to ability.

Both World War I and World War II demonstrated the necessity of  and the benefits associated with these tests. Tests were used to determine the mental aptitude of recruits to the military. The US Army used the  to test the  of the soldiers.

After the War, industry began using tests to evaluate applicants for various jobs based on performance. In 1952, the first Advanced Placement (AP) test was administered to begin closing the gap between high schools and colleges.