Item positions in educational assessments are often randomized across students to prevent cheating. However, if altering item positions results in any significant impact on students' performance, it may threaten the validity of test scores. Two widely used approaches for detecting position effects -- logistic regression and hierarchical…

Between March and June of 2014, the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium conducted a field test of its new online assessment system. Thirteen participating states provided the results of surveys given to students and adults involved in the Field Test. Overall, more than 70% of test coordinators in each of seven states indicated that the Field…

Through the Common Core State Standards and the development of new assessments aligned to the standards, the public education system is undergoing a transformation--and administrators can help make this vision a reality. Today, more than 45 states and the District of Columbia have adopted the Common Core State Standards. The standards, however,…

This study investigated the comparability of paper and computer versions of a functional writing assessment administered to adults 16 and older. Three writing tasks were administered in both paper and computer modes to volunteers in the field test of an assessment of adult literacy in 2008. One set of analyses examined mode effects on scoring by…

The attrition of special education teachers greatly affects the quality of special education services districts can provide for students with disabilities and creates an ongoing challenge for educational leaders. It is essential to understand the factors influencing special education teachers' decisions to leave or remain in the field. If…

The purposes of this research study were to develop and field test anchor-based judgmental methods for enabling test specialists to estimate item difficulty statistics. The study consisted of three related field tests. In each, researchers worked with six Law School Admission Test (LSAT) test specialists and one or more of the LSAT subtests. The…

The goal of this project was to develop an inexpensive, self-contained system of hardware and software to support the development, administration, and evaluation of computerized adaptive tests. Toward that goal, commercial hardware was selected and a comprehensive software called the MicroCAT Testing System was developed. The MicroCAT system was…

This paper discusses the rationale for enhancing the current National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) design by adding a capacity for adaptive testing. Items are tailored to the achievement level of the student in adaptive testing. The report describes a 1993 Ohio field trail of two-stage assessment carried out by the National Opinion…

This report contains results of a field test conducted to determine the relationship between a Graduate Records Examination (GRE) linear computer-based test (CBT) and a paper-and-pencil (P&P) test with the same items. Recent GRE examinees participated in the field test by taking either a CBT or the P&P test. Data from the field test…

Concepts of adaptive testing and the related measurement model, item response theory, are introduced and benefits and limitations are outlined. Field tests with over 2,500 students illustrate the use of adaptive tests in college placement. Some future directions for computerized adaptive testing are considered. (SLD)

The need for effective ways of monitoring the quality of scoring of portfolios resulted in the development of a software package that provides scoring leaders with updated information on their assessors' scoring quality. Assessors with computers enter data as they score, and this information is analyzed and reported to scoring leaders. The…

Employment interviews are widely used in the selection of quality teachers, and indeed research confirms administrators' belief in the validity of the procedure. However, many key recommendations for improving the general reliability of interviews including selecting questions that are job-related and research grounded, including well designed…

This research report describes changes made to the Inventory of Work-Relevant Values when it was revised for online use as a part of the Internet version of DISCOVER. Users will see the following differences between the online and CD-ROM versions of the inventory: 22 items rather than 61, simplified presentation, and the contribution of all items…

As part of the United States Army's Project A, research has been conducted to develop and field test a battery of experimental tests to complement the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery in predicting soldiers' job performance. Project A is the United States Army's large-scale manpower effort to improve selection, classification, and…