Three different differential item functioning (DIF) detection methods were used to examine the extent to which items in a mathematics performance assessment functioned differently for matched gender groups from a sample of 1,782 sixth and seventh graders. Implications of the finding that two items were potentially biased are discussed. (SLD)

Skill in reading diverse genres of scientific texts, including media reports, is an important aspect of scientific literacy that some experts argue should be included in the science curriculum. To understand current and potential uses of media reports in classrooms, we conducted research in three areas. First, we examined major science education…

Technology today offers many new opportunities for innovation in educational assessment through rich new assessment tasks and potentially powerful scoring, reporting and real-time feedback mechanisms. One potential limitation for realizing the benefits of computer-based assessment in both instructional assessment and large scale testing comes in…

The aim of this study was to develop a means of tracking the reading performance of low-progress readers on a weekly basis, so as to inform instructional decision-making. A representative sample of 261 primary school children from Years 1 to 5 were tested on 21 different text passages taken from a developing passage reading test, the Wheldall…

In this technical report, we describe the development and piloting of a series of mathematics progress monitoring measures intended for use with students in grades kindergarten through eighth grade. These measures, available as part of easyCBM[TM], an online progress monitoring assessment system, were developed in 2007 and 2008 and administered to…

The purpose of the study was to investigate whether selected test and item characteristics in the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) are associated with unexpected differential item functioning (DIF) for males and females and for majority and minority group members (i.e., White performance compared with Black, Asian American, Hispanic American, and…

This packet contains a textbook, an instructor's guide, and a student workbook for a course on conducting financial investigations to detect and solve crimes. The topics covered in the 11 chapters of the textbook and the ancillaries are the following: (1) why financial investigation?; (2) laws related to financial crimes; (3) evidence; (4) sources…

Item response theory (IRT) has been used extensively to study differential item functioning (dif) and to identify potentially biased items. The use of IRT for diagnostic purposes is less prevalent and has received comparatively less attention. This study addressed differential objective function (dof) to identify potentially biased content units.…

Analogy items from the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) were evaluated for differential performance by black and white examinees. Black and white examinees were first matched for overall SAT-V scores prior to conducting item analyses. A content and psycholinguistic analysis of 220 disclosed SAT analogy items from 11 test forms was performed.…

The Inventario de Comportamiento de Estudio (ICE), a Spanish translation of the Study Behavior Inventory (SBI) was developed and tested using a group of 594 undergraduate students from randomly selected classes at a private comprehensive university in Mexico. Both instruments were designed to assess the study behaviors of students in institutions…

Between April 1985 and January 1988, the Educational Testing Service evaluated Al Manaahil (The Sources), a television series in reading for Arab children. The series, produced and broadcast in Jordan, contained 65 half-hour shows in Modern Standard Arabic for children in grades 1 through 4. More than 5,000 children in Jordan, Morocco, and Tunisia…

The verbal item types of the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) were studied to explore possible reasons for any differences found in subgroup performance and validity. Statistical differences among item types in active forms of the GRE verbal measure were documented; experimental subtests of matching statistical characteristics for the item types…

This booklet contains the practice tests for the Sixth-grade Ohio Proficiency Tests. Student work on these practice tests helps the teacher evaluate how well the student understands the subjects of writing, reading, mathematics, citizenship, and science. The writing test consists of two writing tasks based on one stimulus passage, and the reading,…

The research reported in this paper was conducted to gain information to guide the selection of standard setting procedures for use with polytomous items to set achievement levels on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) assessments in U.S. History and geography. Standard-setting procedures were evaluated to determine the relative…

The ways in which assessment materials developed for the Speaking and Listening strand of the Australian English Profile have helped refine the continuum of skill growth are explored. In Australia, profiles map the progress of learning during compulsory schooling. Each profile is divided into strands representing critical areas of a learning…