For students of English as a Foreign Language (EFL), reading exercises are critical not only for developing strong reading comprehension, but also for developing listening, speaking, and writing skills. Prior research suggests that social, collaborative learning environments are best suited for improving language ability. However, opportunities…

No empirical studies exist comparing the effectiveness of the two prevalent foreign language methodologies, Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) and Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling (TPRS), at helping students achieve second language acquisition. In turn, the purpose of this quantitative, quasi-experimental study was to…

This dissertation reports development and validation studies of a Web-based standardized test of Japanese as a foreign language (JFL), designed to measure learners' off-line grammatical and pragmatic knowledge in multiple-choice format. Targeting Japanese majors in the U.S. universities and colleges, the test is designed to explore possible…

Most of the emphasis on mining online assessment logs has been to identify content-specific errors. However, the pattern of general "consistency" is domain independent, strongly related to performance, and can itself be a target of educational data mining. We demonstrate that simple consistency indicators are related to student outcomes,…

The purpose of this study was to examine individual differences in attitudes toward Audience Response Systems (ARSs) in secondary school classrooms. Specifically, the impact of gender, grade, subject area, computer comfort level, participation level, and type of use were examined in 659 students. Males had significantly more positive attitudes…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to describe how and why Texas A&M University at Qatar (TAMUQ) has developed a system aiming to effectively place students in freshman and developmental English programs. The placement system includes: triangulating data from external test scores, with scores from a panel-marked hand-written essay (HWE),…

This study explores the efforts at Brigham Young University to improve preservice candidates' technology integration using the Teacher Work Sample (TWS) as an assessment tool. Baseline data that was analyzed from 95 TWSs indicated that students were predominantly using technology for productivity and information presentation purposes even though…

Appropriate classroom assessment now tends to utilize formative measures with greater frequency, especially in the early grades and with learner groups at risk of not passing state-mandated standardized tests. Within the authentic context of an action research project, teacher candidates were given handheld computers equipped with data-collection…

Directions are given for scoring typing tests taken on a typewriter or on a computer using special software. The speed score (gross words per minute) is obtained by determining the total number of strokes typed, and dividing by 25. The accuracy score is obtained by comparing the examinee's test paper to the appropriate scoring key and counting the…

Approaches for norming skewed test score distributions are reviewed, and an analytical approach is proposed for norming the Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC). Methods used in constructing norms for several well-known personality instruments that are reviewed include: (1) linear T-scores transformation in the Minnesota Multiphasic…

An adaptive test can usually match or exceed the measurement precision of conventional tests several times its length. This increased efficiency is not without costs, however, as the models underlying adaptive testing make strong assumptions about examinees and items. Most troublesome is the assumption that item pools are unidimensional. Truly…

This document is a guide for computer enhanced counseling program development. An introductory overview on counselors and computers focuses on the use of microcomputers, the use of computers in test scoring and recordkeeping, and computer-assisted career guidance systems. Other chapters include the following: (1) Becoming a Computer Literate…

This brief overview notes that an adaptive test differs from standardized achievement tests in that it does not consist of a certain set of items that are administered to a group of examinees. Instead, the test is individualized for each examinee. The items administered to the examinee are selected from a large pool of items on the basis of the…

Possible threats and promises perceived by counselors when computers are introduced into the counseling field are examined in this fact sheet. Computer-assisted counseling and computer-managed counseling are discussed. A seven-step model for designing a "hi-tech" counseling program is presented. (NB)

To ensure that the essential job-related reading materials for nonrated United States Navy personnel were not beyond their reading capabilities, a study was undertaken to determine the readability levels of a representative sample of essential Navy job-related materials. The criteria for selecting material were that it be narrative text and that…