The Anchor Test Study provides a method for translating a pupil's score on any one of eight widely used standardized reading tests for Grades 4, 5, and 6 to a corresponding score of any of the other seven tests, as well as furnishing new nationally representative norms for each of the eight tests. In addition, the Study presents new estimates of…

This primer is an introduction to item response theory (also called item characteristic curve theory, or latent trait theory) as it is used most commonly--for scoring multiple choice achievement or aptitude tests. Written for the testing practitioner with minimum training in statistics and psychometrics, it presents and illustrates the basic…

Concern was expressed for the possible effects of testing Elementary Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Title I students with norm-referenced tests that may be so difficult that many students will have scores in the chance range. The likelihood of such students obtaining equal scaled scores if they were tested with easier out-of-level tests was…

The utility of the biomedical model of adjusted statistics is demonstrated. The model is recommended for use by educational researchers to randomize subjects for a more accurate estimate of school programs' success or failure when compared across classrooms or other units. (Author/MH)

This study assessed how some key measurement issues were considered in the context of a specific integrated reading and writing assessments conducted at each of seven grade levels in the Riverside (California) Unified School District. Data are reported for the following parameters: (1) test reliability; (2) test validity; (3) scoring; (4) scaling;…

In June 1989, third, sixth, and ninth graders in Alberta (Canada) were administered standardized tests in English, Social Studies, and Science, respectively. This report presents results of these tests at each grade level and by gender, with comparative data from 1985. Data for 31,998 third graders (English), 29,918 sixth graders (social studies),…

A technical advisory committee assisted the Alabama State Department of Education in establishing passing scores and equating test forms of the Alabama High School Graduation Examination (AHSGE). The committee examined four methods of setting cutting scores: (1) Jensen's theoretical method--probability theory is used to set standards that are…

In this discussion of the use of achievement tests in evaluating Title I programs, matching content between test and curriculum is the main theme. The point is made that unless a test measures what is taught, it cannot be sensitive to whatever gains the instruction produces. Thus, if different instructional treatments have different objectives, it…

This partially annotated bibliography of journal articles, dissertations, convention papers, research reports, and a few books and unpublished manuscripts provides a comprehensive coverage of work on latent trait theory and practice. Documents are arranged alphabetically by author. The period covered ranges from the early 1950's to the present.…

Tools used in scaling proficiency scores from the Second International Assessment of Educational Progress (IAEP) are described. The second IAEP study, conducted in 1991, was an international comparative study of the mathematics and science skills of samples of 9- and 13-year-old students from 20 countries. This paper focuses on part of the second…

Data from Project Talent and the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 provided comparable data on changes between 1960 to 1972 in reading ability and other characteristics of high school seniors, college entrants, and Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) takers. Each group showed a decline in reading ability, but the drop for SAT…

Fourth, seventh, and ninth grade students in Elementary Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Title I programs were tested with the reading comprehension subtests of the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills, at each of two levels: on-level for each respective grade, and an easier out-of-level form. Approximately half of these students were found to be…

Development of The Assessment of Basic Competencies (ABC), a test battery based on the three-parameter logistic model, is described. Eleven dimensions of intellectual growth are measured, from the pre-kindergarten level through ninth grade. An educationally relevant skill domain is represented by each test. Unique properties of the test, based on…

The reading portion of the Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) was equated to the reading comprehension subtest of the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills (CTBS) using the Rasch Model. Both tests were administered to 366 low achieving fourth grade students. MEAP was treated as both a 95-item test and a 19-item (number of objectives…

Data from the Canadian Test of English for Scholars and Trainees (CanTEST) are compared to data from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) to establish CanTEST as a valid admissions tool for English-as-a-Second Language college applicants. Data are taken from four groups of examinees who took both tests. (eight references) (LR)