September 2001 — Software/Courseware
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Focus on Assessment Tools
Curriculum Associates, Inc.'s TEST READY PLUS Reading Advanced prepares students for taking tests by reviewing key concepts prior to test day. Designed for grades 9-10 and adult students, PLUS Reading Advanced contains reading selections, including stories, informational articles, p'etry, expository passages, classic tales, speeches and biographies. Advanced skills covered include drawing conclusions; making inferences and completing analogies; distinguishing between fact and opinion; and evaluating literary forms. Students can round out their advanced practice with open-ended tasks, such as writing expository and narrative paragraphs. Each lesson also contains multiple-choice questions that test reading comprehension and critical thinking skills.
Allowing instructors to save time and measure a student's success online, NCS Pearson, Inc.'s eZ.exam software quickly and easily creates and administers online tests with minimal effort, freeing up more time to spend with learners in the classroom. The program requires no programming experience to create a question database, with optional templates available for creating various question types. Question and exam creation is flexible because of the wide range of styles available, including multiple-choice, multiple response, fill-in-the-blank, essay questions, word response, numeric questions, matching/ranking, hot spot, drag-and-drop, matrix and explanation screens. eZ.exam software also allows administrators to organize questions and add from the item bank into topics and subtopics as well as shuffle items for each participant. Administrators can set parameters for tests by defining elements such as time limits, template styles and end-of-test procedures. The test author can also preview the session prior to administration as well as deliver assessments via Microsoft Windows-based PCs, CD-ROM, LAN, Intranet or via the Internet. And though several pre-defined reports are available with eZ.exam - such as participant, survey and gradebook reports - you also have the option of creating customized reports. eZ.exam can be used to deliver exams, quizzes and surveys to learners of all ages.
Instructors can use the software to create and administer practice tests, diagnostic testing and pre-evaluation assessments. Other applications include pre-course skills assessments, end of chapter exams, mid-term and final exams to include remote learners and product knowledge aptitude tests. In addition, eZ.exam comes with several security options, including specific login names and passwords, time windows, and restrictions on the number of times a student can take a test. The software also prevents students from closing the test when using other computer applications or surfing the Web while the assessment is in progress.
Offering a wide range of content and assessment options, CTB/McGraw-Hill has released the newest member to its comprehensive family of assessment tools, TerraNova, The Second Edition - also known as the TerraNova CAT because it's the sixth edition of the California Achievement Tests (CAT). TerraNova CAT presents thematic real-world content and rich graphics with the look and feel of today's instructional materials that reflect educational material and encourage students to do their best.
