Objective: This article examines the effectiveness of remediation for community college students who are identified as having the lowest skills in math. Method: We use transcript data from a state community college system and take advantage of a regression discontinuity design that compares statistically identical students who are assigned to the…

Prerequisite skill structures have been closely studied in past years leading to many data-intensive methods aimed at refining such structures. While many of these proposed methods have yielded success, defining and refining hierarchies of skill relationships are often difficult tasks. The relationship between skills in a graph could either be…

This study investigated the impact of electronic-based dynamic assessment on the listening skill of Iranian EFL learners to achieve this goal, a group of 40 female EFL upper-intermediate students (aged between 26 to 38 years old) from to language institutes were selected as the participants of the study after administering a Quick Placement Test…

The present study aims to investigate the role of extensive reading in the acquisition of implicit phonological knowledge. Through extensive exposure to print, L2 learners can improve their phonological processing skills, and this could contribute to their word recognition fluency. On the basis of the Oxford Placement Test, 30 9th graders and 30…

At community colleges, student preparedness for college-level work is a significant initial barrier. Over 70% of community college students are reported to be inadequately prepared for college mathematics. Because students need to pass college-level math in order to enroll in subsequent courses required for their majors or to complete general…

In this paper, I describe the design and evaluation of automated essay scoring (AES) models for an institution's writing placement program. Information was gathered on admitted student writing performance at a science and technology research university in the northeastern United States. Under timed conditions, first-year students (N = 879) were…

A significant challenge in higher education is to narrow the educational attainment gap between academically prepared and unprepared students. To this end, developmental or remedial education is intended to improve the academic skills and knowledge of students who are unprepared for undergraduate coursework, particularly in the areas of…

This study examined the use of automatic speech recognition (ASR) scored elicited oral response (EOR) tests to assess the speaking ability of English language learners. It also examined the relationship between ASR-scored EOR and other language proficiency measures and the ability of the ASR to rate speakers without bias to gender or native…

A college administered the computer-adaptive ACCUPLACER (College Board, 1995) reading placement test to 399 entering students and its paper-and-pencil version, COMPANION, to 481 students. When the age of the two groups was held constant, no differences were found between the groups. (SLD)

The student placement test in English as a Second Language used for the Eurocentres schools in the United Kingdom differs from traditional placement tests in that it is a vocabulary test and does not attempt to measure other aspects of learner knowledge of English. The test attempts to measure absolute size of the learner's English vocabulary. The…

Three test administration procedures for making placement decisions in adult education were compared (paper-based, computer-based, and computerized-adaptive tests) with 90 adult-education students. Test performance was not differentially affected by the mode of administration, but the computerized adaptive test always yielded more precise ability…

Describes computer-based placement tests developed at the second language institute at the University of Ottawa, Canada using Ficelle. Students in the French as a second language program were tested using either the computer-based test or a pencil-and-paper test. Statistical analysis indicated no significant differences between the two test…

The purpose of this research was to compare two different forms of a placement test in French as a second language at the post-secondary level, a conventional test and a computerized test. First, expectations regarding a placement test as a measure of general proficiency are discussed and principles of adaptive testing that have been used to…

This report outlines the program structures and faculty/staff roles of a developmental learning community (LC) initiative at Hillsborough Community College, Ybor Campus (Florida). The program consists of educational structures that link existing developmental courses and curriculum materials to a central theme: the importance of technology…

Considers the computerization of an English-language placement test for delivery on the World Wide Web. Describes a pilot study to investigate potential bias against students who lack computer familiarity or have negative attitudes towards technology, and assesses the usefulness of the test as a placement instrument by comparing the accuracy of…