Educational Testing Services

The organization that sanctions Advanced Placement exams has invalidated test scores of about 250 Mira Costa High School students after some students alleged that cheating had taken place during the exams and that seating guidelines were not followed. The Educational Testing Service notified the district Thursday that scores on exams in chemistry, English literature, microeconomics, U.S. history, biology, Spanish, European history, calculus and government and politics would be thrown out.

Because nearly half of all students who start doctoral programs don't finish, educators have long wondered how best to judge applicants to graduate schools and reduce that attrition rate. Is there a way to evaluate a student's drive, persistence, honesty and creativity? What is needed beyond college grades, test scores and traditional recommendation letters? The Educational Testing Service says it has just the thing.

An arbitrator has ruled that the Educational Testing Service lacked substantial evidence when it invalidated the college entrance test score of USC football recruit Ken Haslip Jr. Haslip, a defensive back and wide receiver who sat out his freshman year without playing, reacted with delight after learning of the decision that ended a year-long ordeal. News of the ruling came as the Trojans prepared for their first day of football practice. Haslip plans to be there.

The Educational Testing Service announced Wednesday that it will discontinue flagging the results of disabled students who received extra time or other special accommodations on standardized tests widely used by colleges and graduate schools.

USC, on the verge of reviving its storied football tradition under Coach John Robinson, is encountering some new academic embarrassments. In the past year, three top Trojan recruits have been accused, in effect, of cheating on their college entrance examinations. A fourth recruit was accused in 1993 but, unlike the others, he was disqualified before he could matriculate.

Just a few weeks after suspending its computerized version of graduate school admission tests, the Educational Testing Service has filed a federal lawsuit against the company that revealed the program's vulnerability to cheating.

Because nearly half of all students who start doctoral programs don't finish, educators have long wondered how best to judge applicants to graduate schools and reduce that attrition rate. Is there a way to evaluate a student's drive, persistence, honesty and creativity? What is needed beyond college grades, test scores and traditional recommendation letters? The Educational Testing Service says it has just the thing.

The Educational Testing Service announced Wednesday that it will discontinue flagging the results of disabled students who received extra time or other special accommodations on standardized tests widely used by colleges and graduate schools.

A high school principal in Mission Viejo has told at least 300 students that they have to retake their advanced placement exams after an investigation found some students had cheated. In a letter to parents, the Trabuco Hills High School principal said the College Board and Educational Testing Services nullified the scores of students who took the tests in May. The letter said an investigation found that a "number of students" cheated on a statistics exam. The probe also found the school failed to follow proper test-taking guidelines.

In recent months the Planned Parenthood Federation of America has been made the scapegoat for many of America's problems. I would like to set the record straight. Planned Parenthood is a professional service agency. It provides educational and birth control services throughout America, following the guidelines set by legal decisions handed down by our court system. Planned Parenthood of Orange County's services also include medical referrals, counseling, women's gynecological services and educational and testing services for sexually transmitted diseases for both men and women.

The organization that sanctions Advanced Placement exams has invalidated test scores of about 250 Mira Costa High School students after some students alleged that cheating had taken place during the exams and that seating guidelines were not followed. The Educational Testing Service notified the district Thursday that scores on exams in chemistry, English literature, microeconomics, U.S. history, biology, Spanish, European history, calculus and government and politics would be thrown out.

An arbitrator has ruled that the Educational Testing Service lacked substantial evidence when it invalidated the college entrance test score of USC football recruit Ken Haslip Jr. Haslip, a defensive back and wide receiver who sat out his freshman year without playing, reacted with delight after learning of the decision that ended a year-long ordeal. News of the ruling came as the Trojans prepared for their first day of football practice. Haslip plans to be there.

USC, on the verge of reviving its storied football tradition under Coach John Robinson, is encountering some new academic embarrassments. In the past year, three top Trojan recruits have been accused, in effect, of cheating on their college entrance examinations. A fourth recruit was accused in 1993 but, unlike the others, he was disqualified before he could matriculate.

Just a few weeks after suspending its computerized version of graduate school admission tests, the Educational Testing Service has filed a federal lawsuit against the company that revealed the program's vulnerability to cheating.

National Education Corp., which operates the world's largest correspondence school program, said Wednesday it will be acquired by Sylvan Learning Systems Inc., creating the country's biggest for-profit educational and vocational training business. The $675-million stock deal caps a turnaround year for Irvine-based National Education. The company posted a string of hefty losses in the late 1980s and early '90s, but broke into the black last year.

Prized UCLA basketball recruit Schea Cotton has been declared academically ineligible after a review of his June SAT test by the NCAA, Cotton's parents confirmed to The Times on Saturday. Cotton's parents said they have been told by a school official that Cotton cannot receive a scholarship at UCLA, and that his status as an incoming freshman is in limbo, pending a possible appeal of the NCAA ruling. Classes at UCLA begin Thursday.