Addresses the issue of using computers in educational and psychological assessment. Results support the comparability of scores yielded by computerized and paper-and-pencil versions of the third edition of the Self-Description Questionnaire and respondents' preferences for computerized assessment. (Contains 47 references and 3 tables.) (Author/GCP)

Performed a simulation study to demonstrate the dramatic impact of capitalization on estimation errors on ability estimation in adaptive testing. Discusses four different strategies to minimize the likelihood of capitalization in computerized adaptive testing. (SLD)

Proposes a new multistage adaptive-testing procedure that factors the discrimination parameter (alpha) into the item-selection process. Simulation studies indicate that the new strategy results in tests that are well-balanced, with respect to item exposure, and efficient. (SLD)

Several techniques exist to automatically put together a test meeting a number of specifications. In an item bank, the items are stored with their characteristics. A test is constructed by selecting a set of items that fulfills the specifications set by the test assembler. Test assembly problems are often formulated in terms of a model consisting…

This is a validation study of a computerized adaptive (CAT) version of the Schedule for Nonadaptive and Adaptive Personality (SNAP) conducted with 413 undergraduates who completed the SNAP twice, 1 week apart. Participants were assigned randomly to 1 of 4 retest groups: (a) paper-and-pencil (P&P) SNAP, (b) CAT, (c) P&P/CAT, and (d) CAT/P&P. With…

A multiple-form structure (MFS) is an ordered collection or network of testlets (i.e., sets of items). An examinee's progression through the network of testlets is dictated by the correctness of an examinee's answers, thereby adapting the test to his or her trait level. The collection of paths through the network yields the set of all possible…

Item exposure control, test-overlap minimization, and the efficient use of item pool are some of the important issues in computerized adaptive testing (CAT) designs. The overexposure of some items and high test-overlap rate may cause both item and test security problems. Previously these problems associated with the maximum information (Max-I)…

In the present study, a procedure that has been used to select dichotomous items in computerized adaptive testing was applied to polytomous items. This procedure was designed to select the item with maximum weighted information. In a simulation study, the item information function was integrated over a fixed interval of ability values and the item…

The University entrance examination (PAU) is the most important high-stakes exam in the General educational system in Spain. It has 6 sections of which the Foreign Language one is very relevant to the final score. The English section has had almost not significant changes in the last 20 years despite all the research in language learning and…

We present principles for the design of an online system to support computer algebra enabled questions for use within the teaching and learning of mathematics in higher education. The introduction of a computer algebra system (CAS) into a computer aided assessment (CAA) system affords sophisticated response processing of student provided answers.…

This study examined comparability of student scores obtained from computerized and paper-and-pencil formats of the large-scale statewide end-of-course (EOC) examinations in the two subject areas of Algebra and Biology. Evidence in support of comparability of computerized and paper-based tests was sought by examining scale scores, item parameter…

This article explores the effect on assessment of "translating" paper and pencil test items into their computer equivalents. Computer versions of a set of mathematics questions derived from the paper-based end of key stage 2 and 3 assessments in England were administered to age appropriate pupil samples, and the outcomes compared.…

The current study aims to contribute to classroom instruction of undergraduate education faculty students through development of an online contest, and evaluation of test items based on participants' responses. It is a pilot study which covers four units of a single course offered in the Department of Computer Education and Instructional…

In many discrimination-learning tests, spatial separation between stimuli and response loci disrupts performance in rhesus macaques. However, monkeys are unaffected by such stimulus-response spatial discontiguity when responses occur through joystick-based computerized movement of a cursor. To examine this discrepancy, five monkeys were tested on…

In this report four educators discuss the issues which they see to be most current in the fields of testing, measurement and evaluation. The first section discusses the mastery of basic skills, defined by minimum levels of competence. Factors such as accountability, social policy, instructional implications, and psychometric issues are brought to…