| Abstract: | There is very little in the literature about the sensitivity of norm-referenced tests to growth of diverse groups of test takers, particularly low-achieving test takers, who operate at the lowest 15 percentile of their peers. To bridge the knowledge gap, this study examined the sensitivity to growth of norm-referenced achievement tests. The purpose of the study is to determine the sensitivity of norm-referenced test to the growth of low-achieving students in prekindergarten through 12th grade. Four analysis were performed to test eight identified norm-referenced test for their sensitivity to the growth of students who perform at approximately the 15th percentile or below of their grade peers. Results of the analyses suggested that two of the eight tests are adequate for use with low-achieving students within a norm period. The other six tests showed lack of precision and appeared not to be suitable for measuring progress of low -achieving students. The electronic version of this dissertation is accessible from http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/149249 |
|---|