This article presents the results of our analysis of a sample of 254 Calculus I final exams (collectively containing 4,167 individual items) administered at U.S. colleges and universities. We characterize the specific meanings of foundational concepts the exams assessed, identify features of exam items that assess productive meanings, distinguish categories of items for which students’ responses are not likely to reflect their understanding, and suggest associated modifications to these items that would assess students’ possession of more productive understandings. The article concludes with a discussion of what our findings indicate about the standards and expectations for students’ learning of calculus at institutions of higher education in the United States. We also discuss implications for calculus assessment design and suggest areas for further research.

本文介绍了我们对美国高校进行的254次微积分I期末考试（总共包含4,167个单独项目）进行抽样分析的结果。我们表征考试评估的基础概念的具体含义，确定评估生产意义的考试项目的特征，区分学生的回答不太可能反映其理解的项目类别，并建议对这些项目进行相关修改以评估学生拥有更富有成效的理解。文章最后讨论了我们的发现表明了在美国高等教育机构中学生学习微积分的标准和期望。