University settings present a unique opportunity for young adults to develop characteristics constitutive of wisdom. One challenge for educators working to support this development involves effectively measuring these characteristics. In this article, we present results from a secondary analysis of cognitive interviews to examine challenges that…

The aim of this study was to determine the knowledge of fifth-grade students about the sun, earth, and moon and to examine the fact that this information can be reflected with different measurement tools. A mixed method was used in the research. Quantitative data were collected using a 3-point Likert-type questionnaire and a true-false test; and…

Language test preparation has often been studied within the consequential validity framework in relation to ethics, equity, fairness, and washback of assessment. The use of independent and integrated speaking tasks in the "TOEFL iBT"® test represents a significant development and innovation in assessing speaking ability in academic…

This research offers insight into what undergraduates at five Catholic colleges and universities learned about Catholic Social Teaching (CST) during their college experience. The study used a purposive sample of twenty-six personal interviews with students who were exposed to CST either in the classroom or through some co-curricular activity. The…

Starting in summer 2011, two librarians at Wesleyan University annually interviewed and directed usability studies with undergraduate students to determine how students interact with academic e-books. In 2014, the librarians used a campuswide quantitative survey to supplement these longitudinal qualitative findings. While students are increasingly…

Purposes: This study uses think-alouds and cognitive interviews to provide validity evidence for an online formative assessment--i-Ready Standards Mastery (iSM) mini-assessments--which involves a heavy use of innovative items. iSM mini-assessments are intended to help teachers determine student understanding of each of the on-grade-level Common…

This mixed-methods study investigates writers' task representation and the factors affecting it in test-like and non-test-like conditions. Five advanced-level L2 writers wrote two argumentative essays each, one in test-like conditions and the other in non-test-like conditions where the participants were allowed to use all the time and online…

In this article, I offer an examination of findings from a recently completed qualitative study conducted in the south-eastern region of the US. In the study, nine teachers from three different schools representing two different school districts were interviewed twice about how they dealt with their students' Stanford Achievement Test 10 (SAT 10)…

Why has large-scale standardised testing attracted such a bad press? Why has pedagogic benefit to be derived from test results been downplayed? The paper investigates this question by first surveying the pros and cons of testing in the literature, and goes on to examine educators' responses to standardised, large-scale tests in a sample of low…

Research on learning about science has revealed that students often hold robust misconceptions about a number of scientific ideas. Digital simulation and dynamic visualization tools have helped to ameliorate these learning challenges by providing scaffolding to understand various aspects of the phenomenon. In this study we hypothesize that…

This article explores Hispanics' concepts of cultural and linguistic identity. It is based on the findings of a recent study conducted by the author in Iglesia hispana de Cristo, a Hispanic church community in Western New York. Data come from ethnographic interviews conducted with 48 participants aged 13 to 80 years and with church leaders and…

In order to understand the test-taking behavior, needs, and strategies of postsecondary students with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), focus group comments from 17 university students with ADHD were analyzed. These comments formed the basis for a series of research studies that are in progress regarding test-taking and individuals…

The present paper looks at the issue of standardization in L2 oral testing. Whereas external examiners are frequently used globally, some countries opt for test-takers' own teachers as examiners instead. In the present study, Sweden is used as a case in point, with a focus on the mandatory, high-stakes, summative, ninth-grade national test in…

In the quest to improve measured educational outcomes national governments across the The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and beyond have instituted large-scale assessment (LSA) policies in their public schools. Controversy almost universally follows the implementation of such testing, related to such topics as: a)…

An English placement test (PT) is an essential component of any foundation program. It helps place students into their suitable language proficiency level so that they do not spend time learning materials below or above their levels. It also helps teachers to prepare teaching materials to students of similar levels (Brown, 2004; Illinois, 2012).…