In 1990 the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), the National
Council on Measurement in Education (NCME), and the National
Education Association (NEA) published Standards for Teacher
Competence in Educational Assessment of Students. Standard 1 of this
document states, "Teachers should be skilled in choosing assessment
methods appropriate for instructional decisions." (p. 3) Teachers and
all educators involved in the selection and use of tests follow several
guidelines when seeking to gain this competence. These guidelines
include understanding the purpose of the assessment and determining
the quality of the assessment. This chapter reviews these guidelines
and provides educators with important information to help them select
appropriate tests.