Missing data is a regular issue that researchers and practitioners must consider for treatment. Commonly, cases for which data is missing are excluded from inclusion in larger data sets. However, this is not the only option and could artificially alter the sample. Other options are available for imputing missing data. Expanding on work previously…

This essay describes Rasch analysis psychometric techniques and how such techniques can be used by life sciences education researchers to guide the development and use of surveys and tests. Specifically, Rasch techniques can be used to document and evaluate the measurement functioning of such instruments. Rasch techniques also allow researchers to…

TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) is a long-standing international assessment of mathematics and science at the fourth and eighth grades that has been collecting trend data every four years since 1995. About 70 countries use TIMSS trend data for monitoring the effectiveness of their education systems in a global…

Item response models typically assume that the item characteristic (step) curves follow a logistic or normal cumulative distribution function, which are strictly monotone functions of person test ability. Such assumptions can be overly-restrictive for real item response data. We propose a simple and more flexible Bayesian nonparametric IRT model…

An in-class activity is described that can be used not only to motivate hypothesis testing, but also to understand and compute the p-value and power in a statistical test. (Contains 3 figures.)

Twelfth-grade students in Ohio who have passed all the sections of the ninth-grade proficiency tests take the twelfth-grade tests. Beginning in 1995-96, these tests will include science, although science will not become a factor in earning a diploma until the year 2000. This fact sheet provides information about the Twelfth-grade Proficiency Test…

A new type of multiple-choice test was developed and used in the teaching and assessment of knowledge of medical biology at a university in Hungary. The test includes experimental data and requires students to interpret data and to draw conclusions from results. A description of the test, experiences with the test, and one test are included. (RH)

Since many of the important energy-transferring pathways involve synthesis or degradation of biological macromolecules, observations of the enzymes responsible for starch breakdown provide a useful case study. Provides a short, one-step assay for the enzymes amylase and amyloglucosidase. Topics covered include goals, preparation, assay procedure,…

This report, submitted to the U.S. Department of Education, contains summary details of Delaware students' growth in the areas of reading, mathematics, writing, science and social studies. The results reported herein are part of a long-term effort to gather data on Delaware students' educational progress and use the data to inform decisions about…

Recent international studies note that countries whose students perform well on international science assessments report the need to change science education. Some countries use assessments for diagnostic purposes to assist teachers in addressing their students' needs. However, in the United States, standards-based reform has focused the national…

Argues that data analysis problems can be used successfully in large introductory microbiology courses, even when exams consist entirely of multiple-choice questions and out-of-class contact with the instructor is limited. Discusses course organization, problem structure, student performance and response, advantages of using data analysis…

In the spring of 1990, over 9,000 4th-, 8th- and 12th-grade students (only 6 percent of all students in Massachusetts) were assessed using open-ended mathematical, scientific, social studies, and reading concepts. Beginning with the Massachusetts Educational Assessment Program for 1992, open-ended questions will be administered to all students and…