This paper reports a method for assessing the adequacy of existing item banks for computer adaptive testing. The method takes into account content specifications, test length, and stopping rules, and can be used to determine if an existing item bank is adequate to administer a computer adaptive test efficiently across differing levels of examinee…

Summarized are the proceedings of the conference (discussions, agenda, invitees), held to examine the present state of the testing and evaluation of blind and visually impaired persons. Not only tests and methods were covered, but also how evaluation procedures fit into educational and rehabilitation procedures, ethical considerations, and…

The author describes the testing efforts of Student Services in his school in the light of financial cutbacks, public demand for accountability, student demand for relevance and student apathy toward the counseling center. (Author/HMV)

Reviews research on student assessment and placement, focusing on problems and questions; methods of assessment; establishing cut scores; and evaluation of course placement systems. Includes an extensive bibliography. (LAL)

Critically discusses existing objective tests of students' language abilities. (RD)

Six articles discuss testing and measurement in Soviet schools. Subjects include problems and reliability of psychological testing, methods for improvement, testing of teaching results, and teaching and evaluation of pupils' knowledge. (KC)

National Assessment of Educational Progress writing sample essays from 1988 and 1990 (495 and 599 essays) were subjected to computerized grading and human ratings. Cross-validation suggests that computer scoring is superior to a two-judge panel, a finding encouraging for large programs of essay evaluation. (SLD)

The authors examined the extent to which the Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional scales and 3-point codes of the Self-Directed Search may be considered statistically and practically equivalent across 3 different modes of administration: paper-and-pencil, personal computer, and Internet. Student preferences…

The primary purpose of this research is to examine the impact of estimation methods, actual latent trait distributions, and item pool characteristics on the performance of a simulated computerized adaptive testing (CAT) system. In this study, three estimation procedures are compared for accuracy of estimation: maximum likelihood estimation (MLE),…

The history of American schooling is replete with the interplay between politics, economics and social behavior. This has never been more evident than in the current environment of high stakes testing on core subjects that largely ignores other important noncognitive outcomes of education. Within this context, the present study built on previous…

There are many kinds of classroom assessment--from informal observation of students to more formal exams and standardized tests. Two categories have been identified--formative assessments and summative assessments. Formative assessments are used by teachers to provide feedback to students and to guide improvement of instruction. For example, if a…

In this article, we explore the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) with a lens informed by the socioscientific issues (SSI) movement. We consider the PISA definition of scientific literacy and how it is situated with respect to broader discussions of the aims of science education. We also present an overview of the SSI framework…

This article reports on a comprehensive study, investigating the use of e-tools for formative assignment assessment. The study conducted a large-scale literature review and interviews with 90 academics at five New Zealand tertiary institutions. The focus of the study was on formative assessment provided in assignments, an area in which educational…

This article reports on a study aimed at testing the hypothesis that, because of strategic and temporal variables, composing rate and text quantity may not be valid measures of writing fluency. A second objective was to validate the mean length of writers' translating episodes as a process-based indicator that mirrors their fluent written…

Effects of two methods of test-taking behavior on performances were compared. Further study is in order of the hypothesis that students who take exams in small groups working for a common grade will perform better then when taking exams individually. (Author/JB)