Criterion-referenced test is a term you won't often hear in schools. However, criterion-referenced tests are used daily in your child's classes in both regular and special education programs. These tests assess specific skills covered in class.
Teachers use criterion-referenced tests to determine what specific concepts a child has learned. Some criterion-referenced tests are commercially produced and sold as part of a curriculum. The Brigance system is an example.
Criterion-referenced tests measure specific skills and concepts. Typically, they are designed with 100 total points possible. Students are earn points for items completed correctly. The students' scores are typically expressed as a percentage. Criterion-referenced tests are the most common type of test teachers use in daily classroom work.
In addition to providing scores to measure progress, criterion test results give specific information on skills and sub-skills the student understands. They also provide information on skills the student has not mastered. Both types of information are useful in determining what type of specially designed instruction the student needs and what the instruction should cover.
Most assessments administered in schools are criterion-referenced. Teachers create these tests based on the school's curriculum and learning expectations in a given subject area. Teachers may also use professionally developed, commercially produced criterion-referenced tests.
Educators use criterion-referenced tests to evaluate the effectiveness of teaching programs, to determine students' mastery of concepts and skills, and to measure progress toward IEP goals and objectives.
