The purpose of this article is to describe and demonstrate a three-step process of using differential distractor functioning (DDF) in a post hoc analysis to understand sources of differential item functioning (DIF) in multiple-choice testing. The process is demonstrated on two multiple-choice tests that used complex alternatives (e.g., "No…

The average grade equivalent reading comprehension scores of students in Black schools are compared to those of students in White schools under two forms of test administration. Concludes that use of grade level testing with the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills is biased in favor of low scoring subgroups. (Author)

Results are presented, in the form of an annual report, of the standardized test performance of elementary and secondary school students in the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), Rockville, Maryland. This year, as in the past, the report includes an update of the historical record of countywide test results on the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills…

The predictive validity of the California Achievement Test, Reading (CAT-R) was examined for 480 Hispanic and Anglo pupils in Grades 2 and 3. The validity of the CAT-R as a predictor for reading for combined groups of Hispanic and Anglo pupils appeared to be limited. (Author/LMO)

For 1989, the ninth year of standardized norm-referenced achievement testing mandated by the Arizona State Legislature, the Arizona State Board of Education adopted the Riverside Basic Skills Assessment Program (RBSAP). According to the RBSAP, the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills are administered to students in grades 1 through 8, and the Tests of…

April 1986 marked the sixth year of the statewide testing program in reading, language, and mathematics mandated by the Arizona legislature. For 1986, the Arizona State Board of Education adopted three tests to fulfill the legislative mandate: the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (grades 1 through 8); the Stanford Achievement Test (grade 9); and the…

The Iowa Tests of Basic Skills were administered to over 600 black and white students in grades six through nine, to determine if the test showed bias against minorities. Outliers were identified from test results. Outliers are items which differ from the central core of test items because they fall outside the range expected from a random…

Test results are presented from the 11th year of the Arizona Pupil Achievement Testing Program, administered as mandated by the state legislature, which requires that a nationally standardized norm-referenced achievement test in reading, grammar, and mathematics be given to students in grades 2 through 11, with representative samples tested in…

Test results are presented for the Arizona Pupil Achievement Testing Program for fall 1991. In the 1991-92 school year, the state legislature mandated that only grades 4, 7, and 11 be tested. Although school districts could elect to test other grades, results in this report represent only tests for grades 4, 7, and 11 on either the Iowa Tests of…