Starting with a model for explaining comprehension and noncomprehension of verbal material in terms of a match/mismatch principle, this project developed a scale of language usage and explored hypotheses about how comprehension may become possible if a child does not now comprehend some particular oral or written text. Eight separate reports are…

This study examined how children of different ages process social information from dramatic television programs. Second and eighth graders were shown edited versions of a television program that differed in complexity and the difficulty of inferring causal connections between the scenes. In addition, the scenes in half of the showings were kept in…

This research was designed to determine whether the type of questions asked and the stimuli about which the questions were asked would have any measurable effect on the thought processes of second and fourth graders. Stimuli included a picture consisting of three illustrations, a listening stimulus composed of a story that was read to each…

The relationships between the characteristics of human tasks and the abilities required for task performance are investigated. The goal of the program is to generate principles which can be used to identify ability requirements from knowledge of the characteristics of a task and of variations in the conditions of task performance. Such knowledge…

Discussion centered on three sets of factors that may influence the variability observed in "concept identification" (concept formation and discrimination learning) studies: stimulus characteristics, incentives employed, and subject characteristics. Stimulus characteristics are described in terms of the number of dimensions…

An application of the two-paramenter logistic (Rasch) model to tailored testing is presented. The model is discussed along with the maximum likelihood estimation of the ability parameters given the response pattern and easiness parameter estimates for the items. The technique has been programmed for use with an interactive computer terminal. Use…

A flexilevel test is found to be inferior to a peaked conventional test for measuring examinees in the middle of the ability range, superior for examinees at the extremes. Throughout the entire range of ability, a flexilevel test is much superior to any conventional test that attempts to provide accurate measurement at both extremes. See also ED…

This paper reports on an experiment which attempted to: (1) empirically validate a hypothesized hierarchical sequence of three double classification tasks; (2) investigate transfer to an untrained Piagetian double classification task; and (3) assess the effects of overtraining a relatively easy task on the learning of a more difficult task, as…

Questions investigated in this study deal with relationships between map problem difficulty and students' acquired level of intellectual development, the effects of sequential mastery of map concepts, and the optimum age to introduce certain map concepts in the geography curriculum. In the main investigation, which covered varied selected,…

Under given conditions, conventional testing and computer-generated repeatable testing (CGRT) are equally effective for estimating examinee ability; CGRT is more effective for estimating the mean ability level of a group and less effective for estimating ability differences among individuals. These conclusion are drawn from domain-referenced test…

The use of a radio interview for teaching advanced listening comprehension is described, and ideas for classroom discussion are proposed. (MSE)

Spanish and English readability formulas were applied to sample passages from learning materials and textbooks used in bilingual classrooms in order to ascertain their analytic and predictive capabilities. Two main factors, word difficulty and sentence difficulty, accounted for most of the total variance in readability research using factor…

Drawing on research regarding a midwestern credit union, factors characterizing why and how credit unions and their members use credit union documents are discussed in regard to: characteristics of document availability; structure of interactions in which documents are used; attitudes and beliefs about the documents; and functions of documents.…

Intermediate-level English as a second language students were examined for levels of reading comprehension. Half of each group (experimental and control) received more complete versions of test passages than the other half, and the experimental group was taught appropriate cultural background information between tests. Background knowledge did…

This article discusses the application of the Golden Rule procedure to items of the Scholastic Aptitude Test. Using item response theory, the analyses indicate that the Golden Rule procedures are ineffective in detecting biased items and may undermine the reliability and validity of tests. (Author/JAZ)