Scores of high school students responding to the same biology cognitive preference test using both normative and ipsative procedures were compared. All subtests, whether ipsative or normative, had high alpha Cronbach coefficients. A number of similarities were found in the mean scores obtained by the two procedures, as well as moderate positive…

A two page checklist was developed to assist educators in predicting the success or failure of children in open classrooms. The checklist was based on the results of a survey of ninety-one open classroom teachers who were asked to list the characteristics of successful and unsuccessful children in open classrooms. Content validity was established…

The article reviews 36 studies conducted since 1967 which evaluated operant conditioning techniques to develop and improve self-help skills of mentally retarded persons. (Author)

The development, validation, and use of a multiple-choice test to assess physicians' knowledge of current approaches to diabetes management is outlined, and the test's current use among family practice and internal medicine physicians, residents, and medical students is described. (MSE)

News media reports about Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores and trends have drawn or suggested conclusions about the quality of schools, teachers, and colleges that are neither supported by evidence from the test itself nor consistent with its nature and purpose. (MSE)

Describes the development and preliminary validation of the Computer Attitudes Scale (CAS), which is designed to provide researchers and educators with a way of assessing some basic student attitudes about computer usage. (MBR)

Argues in defense of Rubin's CCAI, that Powell and Avila's study did not use adequate controls to assess the instrument's reliability. Asserts that their study simply discovered differences in communication competence among ethnic groups. (MS)

The proposed theory provides a basis for both measuring and correcting rater stringency error in some grossly incomplete rating data matrices. The theoretical model fits ratings made by faculty and resident physicians of student clinical performance in each of three junior year medical student cohorts better than alternative models. (Author)

The nature and quality of adolescents' (n=213) attachments to peers and parents were assessed. The relative influence on measures of self-esteem and life satisfaction of relations with peers and with parents was investigated in a hierarchical regression model. (Author/PN)

Describes the development of the Secondary Level English Proficiency (SLEP) Test specifications and the performance of each item type during administration of the test in other countries. Innovative formats such as multiple-choice cloze and multiple-choice dictation are discussed and described. In addition, the findings of a validity study…

This document is a summary of the findings of an extensive review by the Education Commission of the States (ECS) of empirical research on the effectiveness of current approaches to licensing and certifying teachers. The research review focused on eight questions (and several subquestions) that are of particular interest and concern to policy and…

Ensuring that language tests for adult English language learners are appropriate, valid, and reliable is a challenge. Performance-based assessments are complex to develop and implement. Yet, because the focus of assessment, both in the National Reporting System for Adult Education (NRS) descriptors and in the Department of Education's definition…

The reliability and factorial validity of the Computer Attitudes Scale (CAS) was assessed with college students in South Korea. The CAS was developed for use with high school students, but has been used in higher education in the United States. It is a Likert-type scale of 30 positive and negative statements about the use of computers, and is one…

The extensive computer simulation work done in developing the computer adaptive versions of the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) Board General Test and the College Board Admissions Testing Program (ATP) Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) is described in this report. Both the GRE General and SAT computer adaptive tests (CATs), which are fixed length…

This workbook is one of six professional development manuals prepared by experienced adult assessment staff to help new adult education (AE) instructors understand how to administer and interpret standardized tests and how such standardized tests can provide one basis for instructional placement and curriculum choices. It also provides information…