Ferrara, S., Willhoft, J., Seburn, C., Slaughter, F., Stevenson, J. (1991). Local Assessments Designed To Parallel Statewide Minimum Competency Tests: Benefits and Drawbacks. Advances in Program Evaluation, 1B, 41-74.

Abstract: A study was conducted to describe assessment activities of four Maryland school districts. These assessments were designed to parallel a state-mandated competency testing program, the Maryland Functional Testing Program, required for high school graduation and to report uses of scores and positive and negative impacts from these local assessment activities. Testing staff from the four school districts described these well-established parallel assessment programs, and interviews were conducted with 18 other testing directors in the state. The interviews focused on uses of scores and impacts of parallel assessments. Researchers also looked for evidence of one expected impact, an increase in the pass rates for the state assessment for these districts. The analysis did not clearly indicate a consistent positive impact on district pass rates. Perhaps the most surprising finding was the extent of parallel assessment activities. There were 31 separate tests in 12 districts, and 7 tests in the 4 districts originally studied. Teachers and instructional supervisors reported that participating in item development and essay scoring aided their efforts to target instruction for particular students and to improve classroom assessment strategies. Parallel assessments also appeared to improve the attitudes of administrators, teachers, and students toward the state competency testing program by increasing familiarity with the challenge these tests pose and by relieving anxiety. Responses also indicated that the increased focus on basic skills objectives to the detriment of other learning objectives is exacerbated by parallel assessments. A related drawback is the loss of instructional time necessary to administer parallel assessments. One of the potential benefits to parallel assessment that appears not to have been realized is the transfer of improved performance to other assessment contexts.