| Abstract: | Most American postsecondary institutions have course placement systems for their first-year students. Placement systems typically consist of an assessment component (to estimate students' probability of success in standard first-year courses) and an instructional component (in which academically underprepared students are taught the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in the standard courses). Validity issues related to these functions are discussed in the context of decision theory, and methods are proposed for determining appropriate cutoff scores on placement tests. |
