TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) is a long-standing international assessment of mathematics and science at the fourth and eighth grades that has been collecting trend data every four years since 1995. About 70 countries use TIMSS trend data for monitoring the effectiveness of their education systems in a global…

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), requires state education agencies to establish and implement standardized, statewide entrance and exit procedures for English learners (ELs). WIDA provides the English language proficiency placement and annual assessments administered in…

This open access book presents original research on effective and equitable teacher practice in mathematics and science education across Nordic countries. It focuses on three key aspects of teacher practice: what teachers teach, how teachers teach, and how teachers assess their students. To provide a comprehensive understanding of teacher…

Objective: This study aimed to develop a brief and valid measure of family resilience for use in research with military families. Method: A population-based sample of military spouses (N = 16,379) completed assessments of family resilience and validation constructs. Participants were randomized into two subsamples. Subsample 1 was used in a factor…

While in recent years, the introduction of English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) courses has been increasing in Taiwanese and Vietnamese universities, use of EMI courses is still in an early phase, and their effectiveness remains under-explored in both territories. This study aims to develop an EMI effectiveness scale and apply…

Advancement of testing of mathematical problem-solving skills calls for open-ended, realistic tasks particularly susceptible to bias, compromising the score validity and fairness of tests. Informed by universal design principles, this study framed 360 prototype items developed for the "Problem-solving Measures Grades 6-8 Computer Adaptive…

Designing an effective K-12 alternate English language proficiency assessment (ELP) for English learners with significant cognitive disabilities (ELSCDs) is a substantial undertaking, particularly given the absence of design models for such an assessment and limited empirical research to guide test design teams. These challenges emphasized the…

With this article I explore the relationship between core academic language skills (CALS) -- a construct representing a set of high-utility language skills needed to manage the linguistic features prevalent in academic texts across content areas -- and schooling outcomes. There has long been an understanding that there is a distinction between…

Years of teaching experience have long been taken as an important indicator of teacher and school quality in primary and secondary schools. However, research on the effects of teacher years of experience on student outcomes has shown mixed results. To investigate the source of variation causing these mixed results, this study examined a broad…

The study investigates the effect of the perception of text and task difficulty on adults' performance in reading tests in L1 and L2. The relationship between the following variables is studied: (a) readers' perception of text and task difficulty in L1 and L2 measured in a self-reported post-task questionnaire, (b) the number of correct answers to…

Summative assessments measure students' mastery of grade-level academic standards and skills in specific content areas after learning. State summative assessment systems provide students and families, school and district leaders, and state policymakers with valuable data to help understand student progress and school quality. This Policy Guide…

The study examined the relationship between children's explicit knowledge and awareness of diglossia (EKAD) and learning Arabic in school. Additionally, this study addresses the interrelationships between EKAD and oral comprehension, lexical, phonological, and morphosyntactic awareness upon the transition to reading to learn. Thirty typicaly…

Automatic multiple choice question (MCQ) generation from a text is a popular research area. MCQs are widely accepted for large-scale assessment in various domains and applications. However, manual generation of MCQs is expensive and time-consuming. Therefore, researchers have been attracted toward automatic MCQ generation since the late 90's.…

Although both content alignment and standard-setting procedures rely on content-expert panel judgements, only the latter employs discussion among panel members. This study employed a modified form of the Webb methodology to examine content alignment for twelve tests administered as part of the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS).…

Many prominent intelligence tests (e.g., Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fifth Edition [WISC-V] and Reynolds Intellectual Abilities Scale, Second Edition [RIAS-2]) offer methods for computing subtest- and composite-level difference scores. This study uses data provided in the technical manual of the WISC-V and RIAS-2 to calculate…