Both school and district administrators use the results of standardized, large-scale tests to inform decisions about the need for, or success of, educational programs and interventions. However, test results at the school level are subject to random fluctuations due to changes in cohort, test items, and other factors outside of the school's…

In response to a request for additional analyses, in particular reporting confidence intervals around the results, we re-analyzed the data from prior studies. This supplementary report presents the results of the additional analyses addressing classification accuracy, reliability, and criterion-related validity evidence. For ease of reference, we…

In response to a request for additional analyses, in particular reporting confidence intervals around the results, we re-analyzed the data from prior studies. This supplementary report presents the results of the additional analyses addressing classification accuracy, reliability, and criterion-related validity evidence. For ease of reference, we…

The study aimed to identify the effect of using Jigsaw strategy in teaching science on the acquisition of scientific concepts among the fourth graders of Bani Kinana Directorate of Education compared to the traditional way. The study sample consisted of 70 male and female students, divided into two groups: experimental and control where the…

This study aimed to investigate the structure and the validity of the cognitive components of reading in Thai, which is a language with a high degree of grapheme-phoneme correspondence. The participants were 1181 fourth-grade students in 29 schools in Thailand, divided into two subsamples for data analysis. Phoneme isolation, rapid colour naming,…

This longitudinal study of 78 Canadian English-speaking students examined the applicability of the stability, cumulative, and compensatory models in reading comprehension development. Archival government-mandated assessments of reading comprehension at Grades 3, 6, and 10, and the Canadian Test of Basic Skills measure of reading comprehension…

This study examines whether the self-concepts, social skills, problem behaviors, and loneliness levels of students with special educational needs (SEN) in inclusive elementary classrooms differ from those of students without special educational needs (non-SEN). This study also aimed to identify the roles of self-concept, social skills, and problem…

Although federal regulations require testing students with severe cognitive disabilities, there is little guidance regarding how technical quality should be established. It is known that challenges exist with documentation of the reliability of scores for alternate assessments. Typical measures of reliability do little in modeling multiple sources…

Including students with special educational needs in learning (SEN-L) is a challenge for large-scale assessments. In order to draw inferences with respect to students with SEN-L and to compare their scores to students in general education, one needs to assure that the measurement model is reliable and that the same construct is measured for…

This study presents evidence of the validity and reliability of scores for the newly developed Brazilian Portuguese version of the Delaware School Climate Survey-Student (Brazilian DSCS-S). The sample consisted of 378 students, grades 5 through 9, attending four private and three public schools in southern Brazil. Confirmatory factor analyses…

This study was designed to investigate the predictive relationships of creative problem-solving attributes, which comprise divergent thinking, convergent thinking, motivation, general and domain knowledge and skills, and environment, with mathematical creativity of sixth grade students in Thai Nguyen City, Viet Nam. The study also aims to revise…

Although researchers call for inquiry learning in science, science assessments rarely capture the impact of inquiry instruction. This paper reports on the development and validation of assessments designed to measure middle-school students' progress in gaining integrated understanding of energy while studying an inquiry-oriented curriculum. The…

Teacher preparation programs face great challenges in ensuring their graduates are prepared for the demands of today's classrooms. The authors explore how teacher accountability has evolved based upon federal legislation leading to adoption of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Recognizing that future teachers will be held accountable for…

In the social sciences, latent traits often have a hierarchical structure, and data can be sampled from multiple levels. Both hierarchical latent traits and multilevel data can occur simultaneously. In this study, we developed a general class of item response theory models to accommodate both hierarchical latent traits and multilevel data. The…

Purpose/Objectives: The National School Lunch Program is well situated to address the vulnerability of lower income children at increased risk for both under and overnutrition. Evidence suggests, however, that a significant amount of food served in the program goes uneaten. One way to monitor this problem is through children's self-reported plate…