Providing students with feedback on their performance is a critical part of enhancing student learning in chemistry and is often integrated into homework assignments, quizzes, and exams. However, not all feedback is created equal, and the type of feedback the student receives can dramatically alter the utility of the feedback to reinforce correct…

This study presents new models for item response functions (IRFs) in the framework of the D-scoring method (DSM) that is gaining attention in the field of educational and psychological measurement and largescale assessments. In a previous work on DSM, the IRFs of binary items were estimated using a logistic regression model (LRM). However, the LRM…

In the current study, two pools of 250 essays, all written as a response to the same prompt, were rated by two groups of raters (14 or 15 raters per group), thereby providing an approximation to the essay's true score. An automated essay scoring (AES) system was trained on the datasets and then scored the essays using a cross-validation scheme. By…

Many assessments of writing proficiency that aid in making high-stakes decisions consist of several essay tasks evaluated by a combination of human holistic scores and computer-generated scores for essay features such as the rate of grammatical errors per word. Under typical conditions, a summary writing score is provided by a linear combination…

Classical test theory assumes that ability level has no effect on measurement error. Newer test theories, however, argue that the precision of a measurement instrument changes as a function of the examinee's true score. Research has shown that administration errors are common in the Wechsler scales and that subtests requiring subjective scoring…

The attribute hierarchy method (AHM) is a psychometric procedure for classifying examinees' test item responses into a set of structured attribute patterns associated with different components from a cognitive model of task performance. Results from an AHM analysis yield information on examinees' cognitive strengths and weaknesses. Hence, the AHM…

This article examines a subscore augmentation procedure. The approach uses empirical Bayes adjustments and is intended to improve the overall accuracy of measurement when information is scant. Simulations examined the impact of the method on subscale scores in a variety of realistic conditions. The authors focused on two popular scoring methods:…

Using a new coefficient, a rescaling of the Bayes risk is examined and a modification of this coefficient is described which yields an index that always has a value between zero and one. (Author/MH)

Four procedures are discussed for obtaining a confidence interval when answer-until-correct scoring is used in multiple choice tests. Simulated data show that the choice of procedure depends upon sample size. (GDC)

This study investigated the number-correct scoring method based on different theories (classical true-score theory and multidimensional item response theory) when a standardized test requires more than one ability for an examinee to get a correct response. The number-correct scoring procedure that is widely used is the one that is defined in…

Four equating methods (3PL true score equating, 3PL observed score equating, beta 4 true score equating, and beta 4 observed score equating) were compared using four equating criteria: first-order equity (FOE), second-order equity (SOE), conditional-mean-squared-error (CMSE) difference, and the equi-percentile equating property. True score…

The relationship between true ability (operationally defined as the number of items for which the examinee actually knew the correct answer) and the effects of guessing upon observed test variance was investigated. Three basic hypotheses were treated mathematically: there is no functional relationship between true ability and guessing success;…

It is shown that all obtained scores must meet the requirements for classical test-score theory with respect to definitions of true scores and errors of measurement if that frame of reference is to yield valid variance errors of measurement. (DG)

A desirable goal would be to develop a methodology for scoring essays so that the final grades are less affected by when or by whom each essay was read. It seems sensible to derive such grades by somehow adjusting the ratings originally given by each reader. This essay describes a solution that relies on statistical adjustment, using the context…

Current usage and theory of standard error of measurement calls for one standard error of measurement figure to be used across all levels of scoring. The study revealed that scoring variance across scoring levels is not constant. As scoring ability increases scoring variance decreases. The assertion that low and high scoring subjects will…