Skip to main content

Achievement Tests

  • Reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Adolescence
  • 48 Accesses

Overview

Achievement tests measure gains in skills or knowledge, come in different guises, and are used in a variety of ways. Some tests have attracted considerable controversy, especially those that have become “high-stakes” tests. Despite controversies, achievement tests can play important roles in not only assessing achievement but also fostering learning and creating more effective educational environments. These types of tests are common, but they are particularly important for children and adolescents as they provide important ways to understand youth and shape their development.

Achievement Tests

Achievement tests are evaluations that seek to measure knowledge or skills gained after training, instruction, or other experiences (Gibson and Mitchell 2008; McMillan and Schumacher 2010). These types of tests are taken by adolescents throughout their educational careers, even though they sometimes may not even realize that they are taking them.

Although a wide variety of achievement...

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 2,900.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 549.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Al-Kadri, H. M. (2015). From assessment cocktail to assessment symphony: The development of best assessment practices. Health Professions Education, 1(1), 58–64.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Au, W. W. (2008). Devising inequality: A Bernsteinian analysis of high-stakes testing and social reproduction in education. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 29(6), 639–651.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cunningham, W. G., & Sanzo, T. D. (2002). Is high-stakes testing harming lower socioeconomic status schools? NASSP Bulletin, 86(631), 62–75.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gibson, R., & Mitchell, M. (2008). Introduction to counseling and guidance. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jones, G. M., Jones, B. D., & Hargrove, T. (2003). The unintended consequences of high-stakes testing. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • McMillan, J., & Schumacher, S. (2010). Research in education: Evidence-based inquiry. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reay, D., & Wiliam, D. (1999). ‘I’ll be a nothing’: Structure, agency and the construction of identity through assessment. British Educational Research Journal, 25(3), 343–354.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whiston, S. (2009). Principles and applications of assessment in counseling. Belmont: Brooks/Cole/Cengage Learning.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Roger J. R. Levesque .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Levesque, R.J.R. (2018). Achievement Tests. In: Levesque, R.J.R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Adolescence. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-33228-4_354

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics