This study evaluated the efficacy of two proposed methods in an operational standard-setting study conducted for a high-stakes language proficiency test of the U.S. government. The goal was to seek low-cost modifications to the existing Yes/No Angoff method to increase the validity and reliability of the recommended cut scores using a convergent…

Post-secondary data literacy education is critical to students' academic and career success. However, the literature has not adequately addressed the conceptualization and assessment of data literacy for post-secondary students. In this study, we introduced a novel digital performance-based assessment for teaching and evaluating post-secondary…

Automatic item generation may supply many items instantly and efficiently to assessment and learning environments. Yet, the evaluation of item quality persists to be a bottleneck for deploying generated items in learning and assessment settings. In this study, we investigated the utility of using large-language models, specifically Llama 3-8B, for…

Technical documentation for educational tests focuses primarily on properties of individual scores at single points in time. Reliability, standard errors of measurement, item parameter estimates, fit statistics, and linking constants are standard technical features that external stakeholders use to evaluate items and individual scale scores.…

Many workforce development training programmes use learning gains as a measure of programme effectiveness. However, research on K-12 education suggests that posttest scores may be influenced by pretesting effects. Pretesting may improve posttest performance by giving learners preknowledge of posttest content. Alternatively, pretesting may enhance…

The distinguishing feature of dynamic assessment (DA) is the dialectical integration of assessment and instruction. However, how to design the targeted instruction or mediation has been relatively underexplored. To address this gap, this study proposes the attribute-based mediation model (AMM), an English-as-a-foreign-language listening mediation…

Achievement tests are among the most widely used data collection tools to measure the knowledge and skill levels of individuals. For this reason, the existence of valid and reliable achievement tests that can perfectly reveal the competencies that a person should have in any discipline is of great importance. The purpose of this research is to…

This paper presents research and provides a method to ensure that parallel assessments, that are generated from a large test-item database, maintain equitable difficulty and content coverage each time the assessment is presented. To maintain fairness and validity it is important that all instances of an assessment, that is intended to test the…

Student Experience surveys are used to measure student attitudes towards their campus as well as to initiate conversations for institutional change. Validity evidence to support the interpretations of these surveys' results, however, is lacking. The first purpose of this study was to compare three Differential Item Functioning (DIF) methods on…

In today's digital age, tests are increasingly being delivered on computers. Many of these computer-based tests (CBTs) have been adapted from paper-based tests (PBTs). However, this change in mode of test administration has the potential to introduce construct-irrelevant variance, affecting the validity of score interpretations. Because of this,…

Language testing and assessment have grown in popularity and gained significance in the last few decades, and there is a rising need for assessment literate stakeholders in the field of language education. As teachers play a major role in assessing students, there is a need to make sure they have the right level of assessment knowledge and skills…

Cognitive diagnostic models (CDMs) have received much interest within the field of language testing over the last decade due to their great potential to provide diagnostic feedback to all stakeholders and ultimately improve language teaching and learning. A large number of studies have demonstrated the application of CDMs on advanced large-scale…

Validating performance standards is challenging and complex. Because of the difficulties associated with collecting evidence related to external criteria, validity arguments rely heavily on evidence related to internal criteria--especially evidence that expert judgments are internally consistent. Given its importance, it is somewhat surprising…

Purpose: The Access to Literacy Assessment System--Phonological Awareness (ATLAS-PA) was developed for use with children with speech and/or language impairment. The subtests (Rhyming, Blending, and Segmenting) are appropriate for children who are 3-7 years of age. ATLAS-PA is composed entirely of receptive items, incorporates individualized levels…

Purpose: The Access to Literacy Assessment System--Phonological Awareness (ATLAS-PA) was developed for use with children with speech and/or language impairment. The subtests (rhyming, blending, segmenting) are appropriate for children who are 3 to 7 years of age. ATLAS-PA is comprised entirely of receptive items, incorporates individualized levels…