Task-based language assessment represents a major component of task-based language teaching syllabi. Current perspectives emphasise the importance of tasks in the assessment process, suggesting that adherence to influential models of language production during task design yields predictable test outcomes. The current study contends that the…

Evaluators often lament that the general public does not understand what we do. Yet, there is limited empirical research on what the general public does know--and think--about program evaluation. This article seeks to expand our understanding in this domain by capturing views about evaluation from a demographically representative sample of the U.S…

Few studies have engaged in data-driven investigations of the presence, or frequency, of what could be considered retaliatory assessor behaviour in Multi-source Feedback (MSF) systems. In this study, authors explored how assessors scored others if, before assessing others, they received their own assessment score. The authors examined assessments…

Peer review is integral to the evaluation of grant proposals. Reviewer perceptions and characteristics have received limited study, especially their associations with reviewers' evaluations. This mixed methods study analyzed the unstructured comments of 270 experienced peer reviewers after they scored proposals based on mock overall evaluations…

When forensic interviewers reject children's "Don't know" responses, either by repeating questions or pressuring the children to provide different responses, children may change their subsequent responses. The primary objective of the current study was to examine interviewer reactions following preschool-aged alleged abuse victims'…

The rise of the digital era has led to a decline in handwriting as the primary mode of communication, resulting in negative effects on handwriting literacy, particularly in complex writing systems such as Chinese. The marginalization of handwriting has contributed to the deterioration of penmanship, defined as the ability to write aesthetically…

This article aims to review and comment on the articles in this Special Issue and suggest directions for Singaporean evaluators to consider in the future. Based on the review, we found education evaluators in Singapore are familiar with up-to-date evaluation theories and approaches and successfully apply them. We also found that a substantial…

Debates about appropriate, fair and effective ways of assessing research and researchers have raged through the scientific community for decades, recently mostly concerned with discussing the merits and limitations of metric-based, quantitative assessments versus peer review-based, qualitative alternatives. Ample attention has been paid to formal…

This study aimed to develop and validate the Evaluator Competencies Assessment Tool (ECAT) Cultural Competencies Subscale, which measures cultural competence among evaluators. By addressing the scarcity of validated tools in this area, the study offers professionals a valuable resource to assess their strengths and areas for improvement. The…

The purpose of this study was to determine professional evaluators' perceptions of reflective practice (RP) and the extent and manner in which they engage in RP behaviors. Nineteen evaluators with 10 or more years of experience in the evaluation field were interviewed to explore our understanding and practice of RP in evaluation. Findings suggest…

Anxiety is a multifaceted force that can negatively impact the ability of evaluators to succeed in practice. In the evaluation literature, discussions concerning anxiety have primarily been limited to strategies to reduce stakeholder anxiety to encourage positive and productive working relationships with evaluators. This study was among the first…

Psychological theory suggests that evaluators' individual values and traits play a fundamental role in evaluation practice, though few empirical studies have explored those constructs in evaluators. This paper describes an empirical study on evaluators' individual, work, and political values, as well as their personality traits to predict…

Recent developments in the use of large-language models have led to substantial improvements in the accuracy of content-based automated scoring of free-text responses. The reported accuracy levels suggest that automated systems could have widespread applicability in assessment. However, before they are used in operational testing, other aspects of…

First impressions can influence rater-based judgments but their contribution to rater bias is unclear. Research suggests raters can overcome first impressions in experimental exam contexts with explicit first impressions, but these findings may not generalize to a workplace context with implicit first impressions. The study had two aims. First, to…

Background: Mid-semester evaluations are gaining traction as a means to gather evaluation data for formative purposes. However, it is not clear if course coordinators who conduct these evaluations are adequately equipped with evaluative knowledge and skills to guide them through their evaluative processes. Objectives: This study is a…