A graphical-decision rule for studying an item's behavior and admitting items onto a test form is proposed. The tool--the isthmus of acceptance--ameliorates some parameter stability problems common to binary item response theory models by using a functional representation of item performance, and it is tuned to match current standards. (TJH)

Development of the Learning Strategies Survey is described, and two related studies involving 1,091 college students (354 males and 737 females) are presented to demonstrate use of this survey to predict learning from expository text. Factor analysis yielded two stable factors of high internal reliability and acceptable test-retest reliability.…

A key part of President Bush's America 2000 strategy for achieving national education goals involves developing national standards for five core subjects and a new voluntary nationwide examination system. The New Standards Project envisions a new generation of student assessments that require performance tasks instead of "multiple guess"…

Summarizes article written in 1972 which concluded that most counselors were not using standardized tests well, because of intrinsic limitations of the tests and insufficient technical competence among counselors. Discusses methods to remedy situation that could be taken by both test developers and counselors. (NB)

A method of automatically selecting items for inclusion in a test with constraints on item content and statistical properties was applied to real data. Tests constructed manually from the same data and constraints were compared to tests constructed automatically. Results show areas in which automated assembly can improve test construction. (SLD)

A new computerized mastery test is described that builds on the Lewis and Sheehan procedure (sequential testlets) (1990), but uses fuzzy set decision theory to determine stopping rules and the Rasch model to calibrate items and estimate abilities. Differences between fuzzy set and Bayesian methods are illustrated through an example. (SLD)

The Adolescent Health Concerns Inventory assesses youth concerns and teacher and parent beliefs about youth concerns in such areas as substance abuse, environment, sexuality, safety, nutrition, social and emotional health, relationships, and the future. Tests on a sample of 419 high school students established its content and construct validity.…

Responses from 52 of 174 business faculty and 61 of 203 business practitioners rated important ethical concerns on a Kohlberg-influenced scale. A high degree of consistency between the two samples was found. Environmental, employment, and corporate/individual integrity issues ranked highest. (SK)

Explains computerized adaptive testing (CAT) and its basis in item response theory. Describes a CAT program in pharmacology. (SK)

Results of 3 studies, involving 80 adult employees, 6,810 defense contractor employees, and 88 graduate students, support the reliability and validity of a new measure of global work autonomy, the Global Work Autonomy Scale (B. Ashforth and A. Saks, 1995). (SLD)

The relations between Angoff ratings (minimum passing levels) and the actual "p" values for borderline examinees were studied with 115 examinees taking the Certified Financial Planner examination. Findings do not suggest that the Angoff judges' task is nearly impossible, but they do suggest the need to improve standard-setting…

How distractors in a test item function differentially is discussed. Also discussed are methods to identify distractor bias, including the Pearson chi square, likelihood-ratio chi square, and the Neyman weighted-least squares chi square tests. Problems from a physics test illustrate possible causes of distractor bias. (SLD)

Highlights the theoretical differences between the approaches of R. Likert (1932) and L. Thurstone (1928) to attitude measurement. Uses real and simulated data on attitudes toward abortion to illustrate that attitude researchers should pay more attention to the empirical-response characteristics of items on a Likert attitude questionnaire. (SLD)

Constructed the Utrecht Early Mathematical Competence Scales to assess the development of mathematical competence in children ages 4 to 7 years using responses from 823 children. Results from the completed 80-item test show considerable differences in mathematical competence at each grade and age level. (SLD)

Study 1 (278 employed undergraduates) identified subscales for Perceptions of Career Management Practices Scale. Results of study 2 (305 working students, 95 nonstudents) were used to revise the scale, which proved to be a useful measure of employee perceptions of training and development, job assignments, and career counseling/mentoring. (SK)