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The Effect of Response Order on Candidate Viewing Behaviour and Item Difficulty in a Multiple-Choice Listening Test
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Holzknecht, Franz; McCray, Gareth; Eberharter, Kathrin; Kremmel, Benjamin; Zehentner, Matthias; Spiby, Richard; Dunlea, Jamie – Language Testing, 2021
Studies from various disciplines have reported that spatial location of options in relation to processing order impacts the ultimate choice of the option. A large number of studies have found a primacy effect, that is, the tendency to prefer the first option. In this paper we report on evidence that position of the key in four-option…
Descriptors: Language Tests, Test Items, Multiple Choice Tests, Listening Comprehension Tests
Facilitating the Interpretation of English Language Proficiency Scores: Combining Scale Anchoring and Test Score Mapping Methodologies
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Powers, Donald; Schedl, Mary; Papageorgiou, Spiros – Language Testing, 2017
The aim of this study was to develop, for the benefit of both test takers and test score users, enhanced "TOEFL ITP"® test score reports that go beyond the simple numerical scores that are currently reported. To do so, we applied traditional scale anchoring (proficiency scaling) to item difficulty data in order to develop performance…
Descriptors: English (Second Language), Second Language Learning, Language Proficiency, Scores
Determining Cloze Item Difficulty from Item and Passage Characteristics across Different Learner Backgrounds
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Trace, Jonathan; Brown, James Dean; Janssen, Gerriet; Kozhevnikova, Liudmila – Language Testing, 2017
Cloze tests have been the subject of numerous studies regarding their function and use in both first language and second language contexts (e.g., Jonz & Oller, 1994; Watanabe & Koyama, 2008). From a validity standpoint, one area of investigation has been the extent to which cloze tests measure reading ability beyond the sentence level.…
Descriptors: Cloze Procedure, Language Tests, Test Items, Item Analysis
Lexical Difficulty--Using Elicited Imitation to Study Child L2
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Campfield, Dorota E. – Language Testing, 2017
This paper reports a post-hoc analysis of the influence of lexical difficulty of cue sentences on performance in an elicited imitation (EI) task to assess oral production skills for 645 child L2 English learners in instructional settings. This formed part of a large-scale investigation into effectiveness of foreign language teaching in Polish…
Descriptors: Difficulty Level, Second Language Learning, Second Language Instruction, Elementary School Students
Self-Assessment of Japanese as a Second Language: The Role of Experiences in the Naturalistic Acquisition
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Suzuki, Yuichi – Language Testing, 2015
Self-assessment has been used to assess second language proficiency; however, as sources of measurement errors vary, they may threaten the validity and reliability of the tools. The present paper investigated the role of experiences in using Japanese as a second language in the naturalistic acquisition context on the accuracy of the…
Descriptors: Self Evaluation (Individuals), Error of Measurement, Japanese, Second Language Learning
Use of Tree-Based Regression in the Analyses of L2 Reading Test Items
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Gao, Lingyun; Rogers, W. Todd – Language Testing, 2011
The purpose of this study was to explore whether the results of Tree Based Regression (TBR) analyses, informed by a validated cognitive model, would enhance the interpretation of item difficulties in terms of the cognitive processes involved in answering the reading items included in two forms of the Michigan English Language Assessment Battery…
Descriptors: Test Items, Reading Tests, Item Analysis, Reading Processes
The Influence of Test and Sample Dimensionality on Latent Trait Person Ability and Item Difficulty Calibrations.
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Henning, Grant – Language Testing, 1988
Violations of item unidimensionality on language tests produced distorted estimates of person ability, and violations of person unidimensionality produced distorted estimates of item difficulty. The Bejar Method was sensitive to such distortions. (Author)
Descriptors: Construct Validity, Content Validity, Difficulty Level, Item Analysis