In 2018, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) administered two assessments--the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) assessment and the International Computer and Information Literacy Study (ICILS)--to two separate nationally representative samples of 8th-grade students in the…

The TOEFL iBT test was introduced in 2005 to better reflect the language demands of real-life academic tasks than did previous versions of the test. The task-based design of the test was intended to support the interpretation of its scores as a trustworthy measure of international students' ability to use English in an academic environment. Until…

Purpose: This study aims to reveal effects of content balancing and item selection method on ability estimation in computerized adaptive tests by comparing Fisher's maximum information (FMI) and likelihood weighted information (LWI) methods. Research Methods: Four groups of examinees (250, 500, 750, 1000) and a bank of 500 items with 10 different…

Evidence of comparability is generally needed whenever there are variations in the conditions of an assessment administration, including variations introduced by the administration of an assessment on multiple digital devices (e.g., tablet, laptop, desktop). This article is meant to provide a comprehensive examination of issues relevant to the…

Content balancing is one of the most important components in the computerized adaptive testing (CAT) especially in the K to 12 large scale tests that complex constraint structure is required to cover a broad spectrum of content. The purpose of this study is to compare the weighted penalty model (WPM) and the weighted deviation method (WDM) under…

This Information Capsule reviews research conducted on computer-based assessments. Advantages and disadvantages associated with computer-based testing programs are summarized and research on the comparability of computer-based and paper-and-pencil assessments is reviewed. Overall, studies suggest that for most students, there are few if any…

This simulation study sought to compare four different computerized adaptive testing (CAT) content-balancing procedures designed for use in a multidimensional assessment with respect to measurement precision, symptom severity classification, validity of clinical diagnostic recommendations, and sensitivity to atypical responding. The four…

Traditionally, the fixed-length linear paper-and-pencil (P&P) mode of administration has been the standard method of test delivery. With the advancement of technology, however, the popularity of administering tests using adaptive methods like computerized adaptive testing (CAT) and multistage testing (MST) has grown in the field of measurement…

This simulation investigated two procedures that reduce differences between paper-and-pencil testing and computerized adaptive testing (CAT) by making CAT content sensitive. Results indicate that the price in terms of additional test items of using constrained CAT for content balancing is much smaller than that of using testlets. (SLD)

Score comparability is important to those who take tests and those who use them. One important concept related to test score comparability is that of "equity," which is defined as existing when examinees are indifferent as to which of two alternate forms of a test they would prefer to take. By their nature, computerized adaptive tests…

Test-item writing efforts typically results in item pools with an undesirable correlational structure between the content attributes of the items and their statistical information. If such pools are used in computerized adaptive testing (CAT), the algorithm may be forced to select items with less than optimal information, that violate the content…

As testing moves from paper-and-pencil administration toward computerized administration, how to present tests on a computer screen becomes an important concern. Of particular concern are tests that contain necessary information that cannot be displayed on screen all at once for an item. Ideally, the method of presentation should not interfere…

This study investigated the comparability of scores for paper and computer versions of a writing test administered to eighth grade students. Two essay prompts were given on paper to a nationally representative sample as part of the 2002 main NAEP writing assessment. The same two essay prompts were subsequently administered on computer to a second…

Standards-based reform efforts are highly dependent on accurate assessment of all students, including those with disabilities. The accuracy of current large-scale assessments is undermined by construct-irrelevant factors including access barriers, a particular problem for students with disabilities. Testing accommodations such as the read-aloud…