Iowa Tests of Educational Development
Encyclopedia
The Iowa Tests of Educational Development (ITED) are a set of standardized tests given annually to high school
students in many schools in the United States, covering Grades 9 to 12. The tests were created by the University of Iowa
's College of Education in 1942, as part of a program to develop a series of nationally accepted standardized achievement tests.
The primary goal of the ITED is to provide information to assist educators in improving teaching.
and critical analysis of texts. These are considered by the authors of the ITED to be skills acquired across multiple curricular areas and skills that are important for academic success. Within the skill areas evaluated by the ITED, the test is designed to elicit information about a student's current skill level, growth and abilities within each area tested. The ITED is designed to examine and compare a student's ability in several educational fields, including vocabulary, reading comprehension, language, spelling, mathematical concepts and problem solving, computation, analysis of social studies materials, analysis of science materials, and use of sources. Although the test is broken up into these fields, the goal of the ITED is to track the development of the skills and analysis needed in each of these areas rather than the content.
section of the ITED focuses on testing the development of students' vocabulary for everyday communication.
section of the ITED tests literal understanding as well as the higher-level skills of inference and analysis.
section of the ITED focuses on students' ability to revise and edit texts, include issues of style and clarity as well as grammatical errors.
test presents students with groups of words; students must indicate which word is misspelled or whether they are all spelled correctly.
skills rather than mathematical computation. Some questions require basic computation while others require students to determine the steps necessary to solve a problem without actually completing the problem itself.
, graphs
and reading passages.
and their ability to understand and analyze scientific information and methods.
, both in the public
and private education sectors, and the tests have found some use in other regions of the United States. The ITED is administered in the fall and results are used along with classroom observation and student work by teachers to evaluate the progress of a student's abilities. The ITED results are also used by the state of Iowa to monitor schools' progress and determine if schools and students are meeting goals.
Individual student ITED results are used to help determine placements and tracks. The ITED helps educators and students plan student schedules by providing information for the school to use in placing students in classes of varying levels of difficulty. The results also provide information about students' academic potential, assisting students and school advisors as they make their high school course selections and plan for college.
The ITED is scored based on the number of questions a student answered correctly. Research has indicated that there is a correlation between ITED scores and student grade point averages (GPAs), although these correlations were lower than expected and lower than indicated by prior research.
Iowa Education
Education in the United States
Secondary education in the United States
Iowa Tests of Basic Skills
High School - United States
Secondary education in the United States
In most jurisdictions, secondary education in the United States refers to the last six or seven years of statutory formal education. Secondary education is generally split between junior high school or middle school, usually beginning with sixth or seventh grade , and high school, beginning with...
students in many schools in the United States, covering Grades 9 to 12. The tests were created by the University of Iowa
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
's College of Education in 1942, as part of a program to develop a series of nationally accepted standardized achievement tests.
The primary goal of the ITED is to provide information to assist educators in improving teaching.
Goals of the ITED
Rather than testing a student's content knowledge, the ITED endeavors to evaluate students' skills in a variety of areas, especially based on problem solvingProblem solving
Problem solving is a mental process and is part of the larger problem process that includes problem finding and problem shaping. Consideredthe most complex of all intellectual functions, problem solving has been defined as higher-order cognitive process that requires the modulation and control of...
and critical analysis of texts. These are considered by the authors of the ITED to be skills acquired across multiple curricular areas and skills that are important for academic success. Within the skill areas evaluated by the ITED, the test is designed to elicit information about a student's current skill level, growth and abilities within each area tested. The ITED is designed to examine and compare a student's ability in several educational fields, including vocabulary, reading comprehension, language, spelling, mathematical concepts and problem solving, computation, analysis of social studies materials, analysis of science materials, and use of sources. Although the test is broken up into these fields, the goal of the ITED is to track the development of the skills and analysis needed in each of these areas rather than the content.
Vocabulary
The vocabularyVocabulary
A person's vocabulary is the set of words within a language that are familiar to that person. A vocabulary usually develops with age, and serves as a useful and fundamental tool for communication and acquiring knowledge...
section of the ITED focuses on testing the development of students' vocabulary for everyday communication.
Reading Comprehension
The reading comprehensionReading comprehension
Reading comprehension is defined as the level of understanding of a text. This understanding comes from the interaction between the words that are written and how they trigger knowledge outside the text. ....
section of the ITED tests literal understanding as well as the higher-level skills of inference and analysis.
Language: Revising Written Materials
The languageLanguage
Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...
section of the ITED focuses on students' ability to revise and edit texts, include issues of style and clarity as well as grammatical errors.
Spelling
The ITED spellingSpelling
Spelling is the writing of one or more words with letters and diacritics. In addition, the term often, but not always, means an accepted standard spelling or the process of naming the letters...
test presents students with groups of words; students must indicate which word is misspelled or whether they are all spelled correctly.
Mathematics: Concepts and Problem Solving
This section focuses on problem solving and logical thinkingCritical thinking
Critical thinking is the process or method of thinking that questions assumptions. It is a way of deciding whether a claim is true, false, or sometimes true and sometimes false, or partly true and partly false. The origins of critical thinking can be traced in Western thought to the Socratic...
skills rather than mathematical computation. Some questions require basic computation while others require students to determine the steps necessary to solve a problem without actually completing the problem itself.
Analysis of Social Studies Materials
This ITED section requires students to analyze information presented to them and will often contain documents including mapsMAPS
Maps is the plural of map, a visual representation of an area.As an acronym, MAPS may refer to:* Mail Abuse Prevention System, an organisation that provides anti-spam support...
, graphs
Graphics
Graphics are visual presentations on some surface, such as a wall, canvas, computer screen, paper, or stone to brand, inform, illustrate, or entertain. Examples are photographs, drawings, Line Art, graphs, diagrams, typography, numbers, symbols, geometric designs, maps, engineering drawings,or...
and reading passages.
Analysis of Science Materials
The science materials section of the ITED evaluates students' familiarity and comfort with scientific proceduresScientific method
Scientific method refers to a body of techniques for investigating phenomena, acquiring new knowledge, or correcting and integrating previous knowledge. To be termed scientific, a method of inquiry must be based on gathering empirical and measurable evidence subject to specific principles of...
and their ability to understand and analyze scientific information and methods.
Sources of Information
The sources of information section tests students' ability to do research and to use the resources available to them to find information.Uses of the ITED
The ITED is used in the majority of schools in the state of IowaIowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
, both in the public
Public education
State schools, also known in the United States and Canada as public schools,In much of the Commonwealth, including Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and the United Kingdom, the terms 'public education', 'public school' and 'independent school' are used for private schools, that is, schools...
and private education sectors, and the tests have found some use in other regions of the United States. The ITED is administered in the fall and results are used along with classroom observation and student work by teachers to evaluate the progress of a student's abilities. The ITED results are also used by the state of Iowa to monitor schools' progress and determine if schools and students are meeting goals.
Individual student ITED results are used to help determine placements and tracks. The ITED helps educators and students plan student schedules by providing information for the school to use in placing students in classes of varying levels of difficulty. The results also provide information about students' academic potential, assisting students and school advisors as they make their high school course selections and plan for college.
The ITED is scored based on the number of questions a student answered correctly. Research has indicated that there is a correlation between ITED scores and student grade point averages (GPAs), although these correlations were lower than expected and lower than indicated by prior research.
See also
Standardized testsIowa Education
Education in the United States
Education in the United States
Education in the United States is mainly provided by the public sector, with control and funding coming from three levels: federal, state, and local. Child education is compulsory.Public education is universally available...
Secondary education in the United States
Secondary education in the United States
In most jurisdictions, secondary education in the United States refers to the last six or seven years of statutory formal education. Secondary education is generally split between junior high school or middle school, usually beginning with sixth or seventh grade , and high school, beginning with...
Iowa Tests of Basic Skills
High School - United States