Studies have confirmed that fair assessment practices in educational contexts affect learners' motivation, self-regulation, and above all teacher credibility, yet the concept has been subject to educational stakeholders' diverse outlooks and perspectives. On this basis, this study delves into the high school English as Foreign Language (EFL)…

This paper reports on an investigation of differential item functioning (DIF) in the Iranian Undergraduate University Entrance Special English Exam (IUUESEE) across four native language groups including the Azeri, the Persian, the Kurdish, and the Luri test takers via Rasch analysis. A total sample of 14,172 participants was selected for the…

The present study aims to examine gender differential item functioning (DIF) in the reading comprehension section of a high stakes test using cognitive diagnosis models. Based on the multiple-group generalized deterministic, noisy "and" gate (MG G-DINA) model, the Wald test and likelihood ratio test are used to detect DIF. The flagged…

The purpose of the present study was two-fold: (a) First, it examined fairness of Special English Test (SET) of Iranian National University Entrance Exam (INUEE) by analyzing Differential Item Functioning (DIF) with reading comprehension section of this test (b) second, it explored test takers' attitudes towards possible sources of unfairness and…

The purpose of this study was to examine gender and discipline-based Differential Item Functioning (DIF) and Differential Distractor Functioning (DDF) on the Islamic Azad University English Proficiency Test (IAUEPT). The study evaluated DIF and DDF across genders and disciplines using the Rasch model. To conduct DIF and DDF analysis, the examinees…

The present study tries to investigate the fairness of an English reading comprehension test employing Kunnan's (2004) test fairness framework (TFF) as the most comprehensive model available for test fairness. The participants of this study comprised 300 freshman students taking general English course chosen based on the availability sampling,…

The documentation of test takers' achievements has been accomplished through large-scale assessments to find general information about students' language ability. To remove subjectivity, Cognitive Diagnostic Assessment (CDA) has recently played a crucial role in perceiving candidates' latent attribute patterns to find multi-diagnostic information…

Threats to construct validity should be reduced to a minimum. If true, sources of bias, namely raters, items, tests as well as gender, age, race, language background, culture, and socio-economic status need to be spotted and removed. This study investigates raters' experience, language background, and the choice of essay prompt as potential…

This article attempts to present emotioncy as a potential source of test bias to inform the analysis of test item performance. Emotioncy is defined as a hierarchy, ranging from "exvolvement" (auditory, visual, and kinesthetic) to "involvement" (inner and arch), to emphasize the emotions evoked by the senses. This study…

Differential Item Functioning (DIF) analysis is a key element in evaluating educational test fairness and validity. One of the frequently cited sources of construct-irrelevant variance is gender which has an important role in the university entrance exam; therefore, it causes bias and consequently undermines test validity. The present study aims…

The current simulation study examined the effects of Item Parameter Drift (IPD) occurring in a short scale on parameter estimates in multilevel models where scores from a scale were employed as a time-varying predictor to account for outcome scores. Five factors, including three decisions about IPD, were considered for simulation conditions. It…

Differential Item Functioning (DIF) exists when examinees of equal ability from different groups have different probabilities of successful performance in a certain item. This study examined gender differential item functioning across the PhD Entrance Exam of TEFL (PEET) in Iran, using both logistic regression (LR) and one-parameter item response…

Test method is deemed to affect test scores along with examinee ability (Bachman, 1996). In this research the role of method facet in reading comprehension tests is studied. Bachman divided method facet into five categories, one category is the nature of input and the nature of expected response. This study examined the role of method effect in…

In many reading comprehension tests, different test formats are employed. Two commonly used test formats to measure reading comprehension are sustained passages followed by some questions and cloze items. Individual differences in handling test format peculiarities could constitute a source of score variance. In this study, a bifactor Rasch model…

Multilevel models (MLMs) are flexible in that they can be employed to obtain item and person parameters, test for differential item functioning (DIF) and capture both local item and person dependence. Papers on the MLM analysis of item response data have focused mostly on theoretical issues where applications have been add-ons to simulation…