The popular view that children have an advantage in learning a second language has considerable support in research, although it is not uncontested. One approach proposes that the child possesses a unique capacity for language that the adult no longer has. Another view argues that the child's brain is more flexible. A third approach assumes that…

A primary goal of this study was to determine the extent to which item difficulty was related to item position and, if a significant relationship was found, to suggest adjustments to predicted item difficulty that reflect differences in item position. Item response data from the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) were analyzed. A data set was…

Are young children able to become competent in two languages simultaneously? In an attempt to answer this question, Singaporean Chinese, Malay, and Indian children of 3.5 through 6 years of age who attended six different types of preschool centers were grouped into age bands separated by an interval of 6 months and were given four English tests…

First-year algebra high school students of various ability levels were presented lessons concerning the application of geometry theorems. The lessons varied in terms of the complexity of the examples that were shown. After the lessons, students completed a questionnaire concerning their perceptions of the lessons, and then they were tested over…

The purpose of this paper is to examine the theories and research concerning social comparison and goal setting processes in education and to discuss implications for educational practice and future research. Social comparison and goal setting are important contextual influences on children's task motivation, self-evaluations of capability, and…

Even though several national testing firms have developed measures to evaluate the effectiveness of baccalaureate education, there continues to be a general reluctance on the part of faculty in colleges and universities to accept these measures as criteria on which to evaluate educational programs. Some of the resistance appears to lie in the lack…

The development of the emerging technology of item writing was motivated in part by the desire to reduce potential subjectivity and bias between different item writers who attempt to construct parallel achievement tests. The present study contrasts four test forms constructed by the combined efforts of six item writers using four methods of item…

With some procedural differences, this study replicated an early study designed to develop algorithms for converting scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) with those on the Prueba de Aptitud Academica (PAA) scale and vice versa. The study involved selection of test items equally appropriate and useful for English- and Spanish-speaking…

A literature review was conducted to determine the current state of knowledge concerning the effects of computer administration of standardized educational and psychological tests on the psychometric properties of these instruments. Students were grouped according to a number of factors relevant to the administration of tests by computer. Based on…

The foreign languages segment of Arkansas' statewide curriculum guide outlines instructional objectives for French I and II and Spanish I and II in the four language skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) and culture. The guide does not recommend any specific material or method, but emphasizes skills and learning objectives to produce…

The role of questioning techniques in the classroom is discussed, with particular emphasis on the cyclical nature of teacher-student dialogues. Excerpts from transcripts of actual dialogues are also analyzed. According to the model, based on Piaget's theory of cognitive development, the questioning strategies are designed to enhance the student's…

Readability formulas have varied uses. In education they are used to match children's reading ability to the difficulty level of material, select stories and books for classroom use and for individual students' particular needs, select textbooks and other reading materials, aid educational research, and check reading materials of newly literate…

A study investigated the use of reading proficiency scales developed by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL), Educational Testing Service (ETS), and Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) for meaningful rank-ordering and assigning levels of second language competence to reading passages. In a proficiency test writing…

The guide to courseware for computer-assisted instruction and computer-managed instruction in bilingual education, English as a second language, and second language instruction contains entries from the National Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education's database and selected courseware for the related areas of special education, vocational…

A task force of opticians and educators in British Columbia was assembled to determine the knowledge and skills required of dispensing opticians and contact lens specialists. The ideas generated by the task force were analyzed and distilled into the standardized tasks listed in this document, using Krathwohl's taxonomy. The document contains 36…