ABSTRACT
No activity in educational assessment raises more instructional, ethical, and validity issues than preparation for large-scale, high-stakes tests. Historically, college admissions examinations and professional licensure examinations have been targets of the most concerted test preparation efforts. The primary responsibility of preparing for such tests generally rests with individual examinees who often purchase special “test prep” materials or enroll in private coaching schools. Now, however, K-12 students are subject to high-stakes testing situations where graduation or promotion to the next grade may depend on their performance on state assessment tests in reading, writing, or mathematics. Furthermore, in this age of accountability, teachers and school administrators now shoulder major responsibility for preparing students for various academic assessment programs with ensuing rewards or sanctions for these educators based on their students’ performance. In this environment demand for test preparation materials and programs florishes as debate about appropriate examinee test preparation practices intensifies (Jones, Jones, & Hargrove, 2003; Smith, Smith, & Delisi, 2001; Wilson, 2002). Most debate focuses on three fundamental measurement issues:
1. Validity of inferences drawn from test scores when coaching and test preparation contribute to test performance (Allalouf & Ben-Shakhar, 1998; Haladyna & Downing, 2004; Messick, 1989; Powers, 1985a,b; Shepard, 1990);
2. Fairness to examinees who have differential access to test preparation opportunities (Bond, 1989; Crocker, 2003; Linn, 1990; Rogers & Bateson, 1991); and
3. Consequences of test use when instructional time and resources are dedicated to examinee test preparation (Cizek, 1998; Koretz, McCaffrey, & Hamilton, 2001; Popham, 2003; Smith & Rottenberg, 1991; Stecher, 2002).
