This paper provides an overview of standardized tests and a summary of important psychometric and test construction properties that educators must consider when they make critical evaluations of standardized tests. Sections of the paper concern: (1) basic characteristics of standardized tests; (2) differences between norm-referenced and…

A comprehensive Instrument for Curriculum Evaluation (ICE) was developed to qualitatively and quantitatively evaluate curriculum materials. The instrument contains 115 statements for assessing 11 aspects of curriculum: philosophy, needs assessment, theme, goals, learning objectives and standards, scope and sequence, field testing, instructor…

Attention deficits and attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (AD-HD) are regarded as relatively common disorders among school-age children, but the literature reveals several confounding factors with the standard assessment techniques for the disorder. Using a structured thematic apperception technique (the TEMAS Apperception Test of G.…

Two techniques for detecting differential item functioning (DIF) of test items are compared: (1) item response theory (IRT), using the three-parameter model; and (2) Mantel-Haenszel chi square techniques (MHCS). The steps necessary for identifying differentially functioning items are identified for both approaches. Using data from the 1988…

A study investigated the alternate forms reliability of the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) Forms 8, 9, 10, and 11. Usable data were obtained from 62,938 armed services applicants who took the ASVAB in January and February 1983. Results showed that the parallel forms reliability coefficients between ASVAB Form 8a and the…

No issue in schools and communities today commands the concern and urgency of the U.S. public as much as the dangers of alcohol and other drug (AOD) use among youth. This guide therefore provides descriptive information on the variety of surveys of student alcohol and other drug use currently available, and delineates the issues involved in…

The Ohio Vocational Achievement Tests are specially designed instruments for use by teachers, supervisors, and administrators to evaluate and diagnose vocational achievement for improving instruction in secondary vocational programs at the 11th and 12th grade levels. This guide explains the Ohio Vocational Achievement Tests and how they are used.…

Order Analysis is a multidimensional scaling (MDS) technique for determining order among items. This paper reviews articles by different authors describing various components of ordering theory. A common nomenclature is constructed to link together the various ideas and is applied to a fairly simple set of data. Topics discussed include a more…

This report presents the rationale, development, and standardization of the Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Form O. The test is used to select individuals for officer commissioning programs, and candidates for pilot and navigator training. Form O contains 380 items organized in 16 subtests. All items are administered in a single test…

Developed as part of a research program directed at obtaining reliable persuasive effects, the two sets of persuasive messages provided in this report--consumer messages and sociopolitical messages--discuss fictitious brands of consumer products and various sociopolitical issues. The consumer messages were developed for the following 12 products:…

This research compares the Snyder (1974) and Lennox and Wolfe (1982) self-monitoring scales. The data indicate that the Snyder scale is multidimensional. The factors of the Snyder scale correlate dissimilarly with important characteristics of self-monitors. Only the other-directedness factor is significantly related to behavioral cross situational…

The question of dividing language proficiency into components was explored by determining which of three models best fit the experimental data: a model postulating numerous specific sources of variance (the extreme divisible model), one postulating a single, large source of variance (the unitary model), or one postulating a large general factor…

A study of the reliability of the proficiency ratings scale and techniques used by three federal government agencies--the Central Intelligence Agency, the Defense Language Institute, and the Foreign Service Institute (FSI)--to test employees' oral language proficiency in French and German had two randomly selected two-person teams of testers from…

One hundred and five English undergraduate college students at two colleges in England completed the Holland Vocational Preference Inventory (VPI), the Barron Ego Strength Scale, the Adult Nowicki-Strickland Internal-External Control Scale, and the Occupational Values Q Sort. Congruent students were identified by matching their reading (major)…

Much more research has been done on the effectiveness of therapeutic techniques than on the client characteristics which mediate the effectiveness of these techniques. Research on client characteristics has concentrated on demographic variables rather than psychological characteristics such as client reactance. The Therapeutic Reactance Scale was…