Teacher Beliefs About Training in Testing and Measurement

Abstract

Teachers spend approximately one third of their time in assessment activities, yet most states do not require a course in tests and measurement for certification. Three hundred ninety-seven teachers completed a survey of their formal measurement training, their beliefs about the ade quacy and importance of their training, influences on their measurement knowledge, and their perceived abilities in measurement. Forty-seven percent of the teachers reported that their mea surement training was somewhat or very inadequate. Most reported that they learned about testing and measurement by trial and error in their classes. Teachers who had taken less than one course in tests and measurement during their undergraduate course work were less likely to acquire measurement skills through graduate courses or inservice work than teachers who took one or more courses. Regardless of the amount of their measurement training, teachers reported that measurement skills were very important and that they considered their own abilities in measurement to be high.