As test standards and research literature in general indicate, definitions of test bias and item bias vary considerably, as do the results of existing methods of identifying biased items. The situation is further complicated by issues of content, context, construct, and criterion. In achievement tests, for example, content validity may impose…

The definition of test bias--the inventory of the ways in which the term is used--has many widely disparate aspects frequently stemming from entirely different universes of discourse. This article attempts a review of the status of each of these. (Author)

Presents documentation suggesting sex bias can be found in educational testing and suggests that a more objective treatment of women in educational tests can be made by showing women in a wider variety of occupations and activities and by more equal representation of women in test content. (Author/DN)

This paper makes a start in the search for a fair test of prelingually deaf children's short-term visual memory ability by exploring the coding problems presented to them by the traditional digit-span test. It suggests that more research be devoted to the problem of stimulus-response compatibility. (Suthor/SJL)

Explores why underrepresented minorities test relatively low on college admission tests and how the tests can be improved to predict student success. Argues that the system must address differences in backgrounds, learning styles, and study habits. Outlines a research agenda to arrive at a solution. (EV)

The project reported here consisted of a sensitivity review of the items of Forms 11, 12, and 13 of the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB). Because administration of this battery is a required step in the accession process, it should be free from perceived bias or offensiveness that could detract from the measurement process. In…

Discusses some problems encountered in educating students in a multicultural society. (HMV)

The author traces reasons to support his contention that the state of the art in assessing learning disabled students is not good. Among issues examined are the following: use of tests for purposes other than those for which they were intended; technical adequacy of currently used tests (standardization, reliability, validity); the use of deficit…

The first eight chapters of this book introduce the topic of test bias. The basic issues involved in criticisms of mental tests and arguments about test bias include: (1) variety of tests and test items; (2) scaling of scores and the form of the distribution of abilities in the population; (3) quantification of subpopulation differences; (4)…

An historical overview is presented of criticisms arising during an early period of large-scale standardized testing in the United States: the post World War II period when the Educational Testing Service was established. Not only is a brief description of the controversy provided, but the fact that many problems of assessment are not transient…

Differences in test scores can be attributed to various causes, including genuine knowledge differences, test-taking abilities, and irrelevant and biased questions. The Golden Rule reform is a safeguard to ensure that standardized tests measure relevant knowledge differences between test takers and not irrelevant, culturally specific factors. (JAZ)

Discusses issues in reading assessment, including the concern that tests can not measure the reading process. Concludes that tests will never be more than useful indicators; calls for more research and examination of existing and new types of reading comprehension tests. (MM)

A study was conducted to ascertain whether use of an interpreter and/or a regular examiner in administering the WISC would affect test results of a group of Mexican-American children. Spanish administration of some scales of the performance test are likely to elicit optimum performance. (Author)

Support claims that the "Defining Issues Test" of cognitive-moral development cannot be faked higher. Finds that instruction about cognitive-moral development affected the scores of the teacher trainees who were tested. (RL)

Standarized, multiple-choice tests have become the major criterion for a wide range of school decisions affecting student placement, curriculum format, and teaching style. Improved assessment will not reform education. The more insightful and powerful the assessment tool, the more damage is caused by its misuse. Includes 70 references. (MLH)