ABSTRACT
In studies concerned with the influence of teachers and schools on pupil achievement, the nature of the tests used is obviously of crucial importance. This chapter concerns describing the tests used to measure achievement in the basic skills of literacy and numeracy. It is well established that the development of reading ability is one of the principal aims of the primary school. The items in the reading test are taken from the Richmond Tests of vocabulary and reading comprehension. Mathematics, like reading, was one of the areas ranked most highly in the Aims of Primary Education project. The test of language skills was derived by taking items from four Richmond Tests; spelling, punctuation, use of capitals and usage. Items were selected from the Richmond Tests for inclusion in the three tests described above on the basis of their immediate or ‘face’ validity.
