Many community colleges have a need for a mathematics placement test which tests achievement for initial placement in the different levels of mathematics classes. Merrit College investigated this need by examining the scores of all the entering students who did not complete the mathematics section of the School and College Ability Test which they…

This paper presents an algorithm for determining the number of items to measure each objective in a criterion-referenced test when testing time is fixed and when the objectives vary in their levels of importance, reliability, and validity. Results of four special applications of the algorithm are presented. (BS)

This report describes trends related to accommodations in testing for the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) and summarizes the performance of accommodated LSAT takers for the 1993-1994 through 1997-1998 testing years. Data show that the number of requests for accommodated testing increased steadily from the 1994-1995 through 1996-1997 LSAT testing…

Study to determine whether potential bias exists in the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) which fee-free center candidates do not complete in the time available in as large a proportion as regular center candidates. (MB)

A sample of the literature on test speededness is reviewed; methods of assessing speededness are presented and criticized; the assumptions that underlie these methods are questioned, and alternate, multiple-administration methods are suggested. The importance of the effect of time limits is discussed. (Author/CTM)

Four forms of an achievement test were administered to fourth graders using two item orders and two response locations. While performance differences were noted between sexes in speed tests, handedness was not a significant factor; easy-to-difficult question order produced higher scores. (JD)

The article presents results from a comparative analysis of data from tests administered to first- and second-year shorthand students learning three different systems (Century 21, Forkner, and Gregg) in Minneapolis-St. Paul (Minnesota) area high schools. Findings indicate that different shorthand systems should be available for different students.…

Examines the emotional responses of three individuals to timed mathematics skills-tests. Uses a non-Newtonian view of time to interpret the individual reactions. Draws on Mandler's insights into the nature of emotional responses. Examines the implications of these emotional responses for equitable assessment practices. (Author/KHR)

A learning style inventory and keyboarding pre/posttest administered to 48 fourth graders showed persistence to be the only learning style factor related to achievement. Pretest score was related to final achievement, indicating that natural kinesthetic ability may affect keyboarding speed. (SK)

Elementary school children's evaluations of peer tutoring were compared with their evaluations of the traditional practice of solitary work on tests to determine their conceptions of fair practices in testing and learning situations. Findings support the conclusion that children's understanding of different types of situations is reflected in…

Five experiments involving a total of 268 college students indicate that people are especially likely to overinfer quantity or probability from numerosity when they are asked to make inherently difficult judgments, when they are asked to render judgments while performing a concurrent task, and when they are forced to make rapid judgments. (SLD)

Although recent educational reforms have called for different types of assessments with more relaxed time requirements, the revised Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) allows less than one minute per verbal and math problem. According to an SAT tutor who took the new exam along with his students, the new test is unnecessarily tricky and should…

Prelingual deafness and developmental dyslexia have confounding developmental effects on reading acquisition. Therefore, standard reading assessment methods for diagnosing dyslexia in hearing people are ineffective for use with deaf people. Recently, Samar, Parasnis, and Berent (2002) reported visual evoked potential evidence that deaf poor…

An ABAB withdrawal design was used to investigate the effects of explicit timing on accurate oral reading rate of sight word phrases of four elementary students demonstrating difficulty with reading. During baseline the students were exposed to flash cards with sight word phrases and asked to read them out loud and were not made aware that they…