Multiple-choice (MC) reading comprehension test items comprise three components: text passage, questions about the text, and MC answers. The construct validity of this format has been repeatedly criticized. In three between-subjects experiments, fourth graders (N[subscript 1] = 230, N[subscript 2] = 340, N[subscript 3] = 194) worked on three…

Body mass index (BMI) is increasingly recognized as an inadequate measure for determining obesity in children. Therefore, the aim within this study was to investigate other indirect methods of body fat assessment that could potentially be used in place of BMI. Twenty-four children (boys: 13.8 [plus or minus] 0.8 yr; girls: 13.3 [plus or minus] 0.5…

This study explored the validity of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale in a sample of 853 practicing teachers from Australia, Canada, China (Hong Kong), Indonesia, and Oman. The authors used multigroup confirmatory factor analysis to test the factor structure and measurement invariance across settings, after which they examined the relationships…

Psychometric practice does not always converge with the advances of psychometric theory. In order to investigate this gap, the authors focus on the 10 most used psychological tests in Europe, as identified by recent surveys. The article analyzes test manuals published in 6 different European countries for these 10 most used tests. A total of 32…

The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not survey medium (electronic versus paper format) has a significant effect on the results achieved. To compare survey media, responses from elementary students to British Columbia's Satisfaction Survey were analyzed. Although this study was not experimental in design, the data set served as a…

This study is concerned with different forms of assessment of pupils' skills in experimentation. The findings of three studies are reported. Study 1 investigates whether it is possible to develop reliable multiple-choice tests for the skills of forming hypotheses, designing experiments and analysing experimental data. Study 2 compares scores from…

This research aimed at developing a methodological framework to investigate the alignment of the Lebanese national math exam tests with the curriculum at the middle school level, during the transitory period of a major curricular reform. The focus is on exploring the characteristics of an "assessment culture" set by the national exams…

The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is widely used to screen university applicants for whom English is not their native language. Although the cutoff scores vary, in Ontario those with scores much lower than 550 are rarely admitted to any university. Two exceptions are the University of Western Ontario and its affiliate, Brescia…

In September 2005 the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) in association with the Department for Education and Skills (DfES), the Sutton Trust and the College Board, began a five-year research study to examine the validity of an aptitude test in higher education admissions. This report describes and explores the relationships…

Extending the earlier work of B. M. Byrne and P. Baron (1990), the factorial invariance of the 21-item Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) was tested using 351 non-clinical adolescent males and 334 non-clinical adolescent females. All subjects were in grades 9 through 12 and attended the same secondary school in a large metropolitan area in central…

In this study, the authors improved the understanding of the cognitive processes underlying the reflective-impulsive cognitive style (RI), which was initially measured by J. Kagan, B. L. Rosman, D. Day, J. Albert, and W. Phillips (1964) on the Matching Familiar Figures Test (MFFT). The authors determined the relationships between the RI style and…

The importance of the presentation order of items on Likert-type scales was studied. It was proposed that subjects tend to choose the first alternative acceptable to them from among the response categories, so that a primacy effect can be predicted. The effects of reversing the order of the response scale on the latent factor structure underlying…

Four new versions of an acoustic structuring test were developed, administered, and analyzed in order to produce better tests and to contribute to better understanding of the abilities measured by these tests. The tests consist of tape recordings of patterns of musical notes played on an electric organ or an acoustic guitar. Item analyses and…

Sources of item bias located in characteristics of the test item were studied in a reasoning test developed in South Africa. Subjects were 1,056 White, 1,063 Indian, and 1,093 Black students from standard 7 in Afrikaans and English schools. Format and content of the 85-item Reasoning Test were manipulated to obtain information about bias or…

To compare achievement standards of 1977 with those of 1956, three tests were administered in their original form to all third graders in a large school district. Approximately 3500 students in 1956 and 4500 in 1977 were administered the California Achievement Tests, the California Short Form Tests of Mental Maturity, and the Gates Advanced…