A dissertation completed at The Center for Education, Widener University, One University Place, Chester, PA 19013
THE EFFECTS OF TEACHING TEST - TAKING STRATEGIES TO HIGH SCHOOL SPECIAL EDUCATION STUDENTS ON ACHIEVEMENT SCORES ON THE NEW JERSEY HIGH SCHOOL PROFICIENCY ASSESSMENT Linda M. Lance, Ed. D. July 19, 2004
RETURN edited 11/3/04

ABSTRACT

The High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA) is a standardized test that is administered in the state of New Jersey to all juniors in high school. Special education students are no longer exempt from taking this standardized measure of achievement. Mainstream English classes are taught test - taking skills and use grid - in format sheets when taking teacher made tests. Classified students who are placed in resource rooms are not exposed to this material, hence inhibiting their chances for academic achievement on the HSPA. This study investigated how well special education students placed in a resource room environment can learn and remember test -- taking skills and utilize these skills when taking standardized tests.

Fifty - two high school students ages 15 to 18 participated in an experimental study on the effects of teaching test - taking strategies and achievement on standardized tests. All fifty - two students are classified as Specific Learning Disabled and were placed in a resource room for English. This experimental design study investigated how two treatment variables, teaching test - taking strategies and teaching how to use grid- in format sheets, help resource room students improve their achievement scores on standardized tests. All fifty - two subjects were randomly assigned to either an experimental or control group. Experimental group one was instructed using test - taking strategies (treatment 1), experimental group two practiced using grid - in format sheets (treatment 2), and experimental group three incorporated both treatments in conjunction

with the existing English resource room curriculum. There were three control groups that participated in this study as well. All three control groups were taught the English curriculum only. The six groups were pre - tested using the Preparation for the HSPA sample workbook pretest published by American Guidance Service, Circle Pines, 2001. At the end of the treatment, all six groups were administered the HSPA sample posttest.

The research was conducted in a regional high school district in Southern New Jersey beginning on January 20, 2004. All fifty - two students were posttested using the Preparation for the HSPA posttest beginning on April 5, 2004. Multiple t tests were used to analyze and determine how each of the groups performed on the pretest and posttest. A multivariate test was administered to analyze how the groups differed from each other.

Independent t tests revealed significant differences in the open-ended subtest as well as in the total scores between the pre and posttest. A Multivariate Test of Covariance revealed significant differences between the speculative, persuasive, and analytical writing pre and post subtest scores in two of the three experimental groups.