Large-scale assessment results for schools, school boards/districts, and entire provinces or states are commonly reported as the percentage of students achieving a standard--that is, the percentage of students scoring above the cut score that defines the standard on the assessment scale. Recent research has shown that this method of reporting is…

Items on test score scales located at and below the Proficient cut score define the content area knowledge and skills required to achieve proficiency. Alternately, examinees who perform at the Proficient level on a test can be expected to be able to demonstrate that they have mastered most of the knowledge and skills represented by the items at…

Large data sets from a state reading assessment for third and fifth graders were analyzed to examine differential item functioning (DIF), differential distractor functioning (DDF), and differential omission frequency (DOF) between students with particular categories of disabilities (speech/language impairments, learning disabilities, and emotional…