Achievement Tests

An achievement test (e.g., a bar exam) is an assessment of one or more persons’ knowledge or skills (typically during a specific period of time). (In the remainder of this entry, “test” only refers to an achievement test.) In addition to evaluating individuals’ competences, tests can assess (a) their learning, (b) teachers’ impact on their learning, and (c) the school or school system’s effects on their learning. Testing can also influence individuals’ behaviors before, during, and after the exam. Designing suitable tests requires creating specific test questions (or test items) and testing them with advanced statistics. Country, family, school system, school, schoolmate, teacher, and individual characteristics all influence achievement test scores. Likewise, achievement test scores are linked to future academic performance, the graduation rate, job ...