To determine the factors that contribute to or compromise the effectiveness of multiscored items, this study combined analysis of statewide score data from the 1996 Maryland School Performance Assessment Program tests with systematic analyses of 60 activities providing measures of writing, language usage, or both, and one or more content areas.…

Explores three issues to consider regarding statewide standardized tests in higher education: (1) existing statewide testing programs differ markedly from one another in nature and objectives, and it's important to know specifically how and why; (2) a range of substantial implementation issues will be present; and (3) there are promising…

This paper provides information about Mississippi Subject Area Testing Program. The purpose of the exam is to: (1) Determine prospective high school graduates' mastery of the state curriculum; (2) Provide data to state policymakers on student attainment of state education goals to inform education policy decisions; (2) Increase alignment of local…

This document describes the breadth of the research that the ETS (Educational Testing Service) Research & Development division is conducting in 2010. This portfolio will be updated in early 2011 to reflect changes to existing projects and new projects that were added after this document was completed. The research described in this portfolio falls…

Psychometricians continue to introduce new approaches to setting cut scores for educational assessments in an attempt to improve on current methods. In this paper we describe the Item-Descriptor (ID) Matching method, a method based on IRT item mapping. In ID Matching, test content area experts match items (i.e., their judgments about the knowledge…

This study examined the validity of a single-item measure of HIV risk stage of change that HIV prevention contractors were required to collect by the California State Office of AIDS. The single-item measure was compared to the more conventional University of Rhode Island Change Assessment (URICA). Participants were members of Los Angeles…

Many approaches to standard-setting use item calibration and student score estimation results to structure panelists' tasks. However, this requires collecting standard-setting judgments after the item analysis results are available. The Scoring Guide Alignment approach collects standard-setting judgments during the scoring sessions from teachers…

Securing data on students' academic achievement is typically one of the most important and costly aspects of conducting education experiments. As state assessment programs have become practically universal and more uniform in terms of grades and subjects tested, the relative appeal of using state tests as a source of study outcome measures has…

This article is based on the perceptions of California State University administrators and provides a comparative study of the challenges and benefits resulting from the implementation of the teaching performance assessment requirement of SB 2042 standards 19-21 on the California State University (CSU) campuses. With 23 campuses and almost 450,000…

This article examines data from nine statewide administrations of the Idaho Comprehensive Literacy Assessment (ICLA) over three-years. The ICLA measures pre-service teachers' knowledge of research-based content and pedagogy related to reading instruction and assessment. The purpose of this article was first to examine pre-service candidates'…

Describes structure and operation of GCE Ordinary and Advanced Level examining boards. (RM)

THIS BIBLIOGRAPHY WAS PREPARED TO PROVIDE A SOURCE MANUAL ON TRAINING QUALITY CONTROL. REFERENCES ARE DIVIDED INTO FIVE CATEGORIES--(1) GENERAL PAPERS ON PROFICIENCY MEASUREMENT, ACHIEVEMENT TESTING, RATIONALES, AND BIBLIOGRAPHIES, (2) COMPLETE MANUALS FOR TESTING PROGRAMS OR PERFORMANCE TESTS, (3) STUDIES EVALUATING OR DESCRIBING TEST METHODS,…

While school systems most often use achievement test results for individual appraisals, increasing attention to program evaluation and accountability requires that test results be used for institutional appraisals as well. When institutional test results are desired--that is, results for schools or school districts--not all pupils need be tested.…

The author of the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking reviews uses and abuses of creativity tests, distinctions between intelligence and creativity (including racial factors and heritability issues), and methods of using the tests (such as therapy for test phobia and as an introduction to further training experiences). (CL)

This paper addresses issues of vertical equating for the Arkansas Comprehensive Testing, Assessment and Accountability Program (ACTAAP) assessments as they relate to school accountability and determination of Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) as required by the recent federal legislation, the No Child Left Behind Act. The paper first provides a brief…