Eighty undergraduates were administered four self-report locus of control inventories, in order to evaluate the convergent and discriminant validity of four categories common to these inventories: chance, fate, personal control, and powerful others. The four inventories were: (1) Internal, Powerful Others and Chance scales; (2) James Internal…

This study investigated participants' reactions to computerized testing and assessed the practicability of this testing method in the classroom. A sample of 315 secondary-level students took a computerized and a printed version of a standardized aptitude test battery and a survey assessing their reactions to the computerized testing. Overall…

A brief summary of the progress and status of the Individualized Instruction for Data Access (IIDA) project is followed by a report dealing with two studies in the environment for which the system was intended. These field experiments were conducted with research engineers and chemists at two different Exxon Research and Engineering Company sites.…

The random response technique was compared to a direct questionnaire, administered to college students, to investigate whether or not the responses predicted the social desirability of the item. Results suggest support for the hypothesis. A 33-item version of the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale which was used is included. (GDC)

Although behaviorally anchored rating scales have both intuitive and empirical appeal, they have not always yielded superior results in contrast with graphic rating scales. Results indicate that the choice of an anchoring procedure will depend on the nature of the actual rating process. (Author/JKS)

The two studies reported examined the validity of several Evaluation/Survey Service (ESS) surveys for accurately reflecting changes in students' perceptions resulting from changes made by an institution in its policies, programs, services, or environment. In study 1, personnel from nine postsecondary institutions identified items on various ESS…

In September 2005 the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) in association with the Department for Education and Skills (DfES), the Sutton Trust and the College Board, began a five-year research study to examine the validity of an aptitude test in higher education admissions. This report describes and explores the relationships…

Two studies investigated the comparability of scores from paper-and-pencil and computer-administered versions of the College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) General Examinations in mathematics and English composition. The first study used a prototype computer-administered version on each examination for 94 students for mathematics and 116 for…

The knowledge that 17-year-old students in a local city school district had of literature and history was assessed using the same test items administered by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). A review of national results of the NAEP examination in 1986 has highlighted the gaps in knowledge of this age group. The Austin (Texas)…

The Pre-Professional Skills Test (PPST) and the National Teacher Examinations (NTE) were examined as predictors of student classroom performance as measured by three instruments from the "Teacher Performance Assessment Instruments" (TPAIs) of W. Capie et al. (1979). Subjects were 305 teacher education students taking the student teaching…

The effect of collaborative testing on junior high school students' scores was investigated. Twenty-two students in grades 7, 8, and 9 were given curriculum-based tests in their pre-algebra classes. Some tests were taken individually in the traditional manner, and others were taken collaboratively by students in pairs over a 10-week period.…

The insights provided by Rasch analysis of results from a literature test were explored. Students in grades 9, 10, and 11 (n=261) responded to a 28-item test before they received one of three treatments: (1) direct instruction, based on research on metacognition in reading, which attempts to give conscious control of strategies used to understand…

Six university English departments collaborated in this examination of the differences between multiple-choice and essay tests in evaluating writing skills. The study also investigated ways the two tools can complement one another, ways to improve cost effectiveness of essay testing, and ways to integrate assessment and the educational process.…

A follow-up study of two instruments for evaluating college writing was conducted. The experimental scale (E Scale) was developed in 1976 and revised for this study. The control scale (C Scale) was described in the literature in 1977. Ten English majors graded ten essays from diagnostic entrance exams. Both the E Scale and the C Scale were used,…

Since 1985, the students in grades 2-8 in three selected elementary schools in Palau have been tested on basic math skills. This report describes the data collected in May 1993 and indicates the relative strengths and weaknesses of students at each grade level in each school. Major outcomes include: (1) the students at Harris School scored…