Two of the most popular methods for obtaining equal-interval scales for educational measurement are discussed: Thurstone's method and Item Response Theory (IRT). Between-grade growth on these scales is compared; while unstandardized differences show different trends for the two scales, standardized differences that take standard deviations into…

It has often been argued that all techniques of standard setting are arbitrary and likely to yield different results for different techniques or persons. This paper deals with a related but hitherto ignored aspect of standard setting, namely, the possibility that Angoff or Nedelsky judges misspecify the probabilities of the borderline student's…

This paper points out that there are certain generalizations about directions for guessing and methods of scoring that require that data be derived from random groups design. It supports the viewpoint that it is neither sufficient nor appropriate to make such generalizations on the basis of an analysis of scores obtained from the answer sheets of…

The second of three sequels to the booklet "Student Assessment," this booklet begins by describing and giving examples of three different forms that short-answer questions can take: (1) completion items; (2) unique-answer questions; and (3) open short-answer questions. Guidelines are then provided for deciding which type of question to…

The transcript of a six-part National Public Radio broadcast on standardized testing is presented. The first part focuses on the reasons tests are administered; these reasons are discussed by proponents and opponents of testing. Part Two contains a discussion of the possible bias of tests, and their validity. The third part discusses the…

This literature review summarizes what is currently known about the agreement among six measures of writing skills. Three of these methods involve the application of human judgment in scoring or rating a piece of writing: holistic, analytical, and primary trait scoring. Two methods involve anatomical or taxonomic analysis of a piece of writing:…

Differential test performance by undergraduate males and females enrolled in a developmental educational psychology course (n=167) was reported on a quantitative examination as a function of item arrangement. Males were expected to perform better than females on tests whose items arranged easy to hard. Plake and Ansorge (1982) speculated this may…

The Printing Performance School Readiness Test is an empirically derived instrument designed to aid in the early identification of preschool children who are at risk for school failure. The test is based on the outcome of a research program dealing with various aspects of children's printing that involved over 400 normal, non-repeating, native…

Evaluated the use of the T-unit in the scoring of spoken and written work by children learning a second language. (RK)

The 1966 SVIB scoring keys were investigated and found to contain an average of 214 fewer items per occupational scale than the 1938 scoring keys. The shorter scales are less reliable than the longer scales on the 1966 SVIB. (Author)

Reviews the 1974 Standards, an updating serving as a guide to test making and publishing, and training of persons for these endeavors. (DEP)

One of a series of reports on the International Project for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (in Mathmatics).

Alternative group judgment approaches to setting minimum competency standards were compared. Replication of results was possible for eight different tests (reading and mathematics, across four grade levels). The Kansas Competency Based Tests in reading and mathematics were administered statewide to students in grades two, four, six, and eight.…

A mastery test is frequently described as follows: an examinee responds to n dichotomously scored test items. Depending upon the examinee's observed (number correct) score, a mastery decision is made and the examinee is advanced to the next level of instruction. Otherwise, a nonmastery decision is made and the examinee is given remedial work. This…