Results of 96 theoretical/empirical studies were reviewed to see if they support a taxonomy of 43 rules for writing multiple-choice test items. The taxonomy is the result of an analysis of 46 textbooks dealing with multiple-choice item writing. For nearly half of the rules, no research was found. (SLD)

New developments in the use of automatically scorable constructed response item types for large-scale assessment are reviewed for five domains: (1) mathematical reasoning; (2) algebra problem solving; (3) computer science; (4) architecture; and (5) natural language. Ways in which these technologies are likely to shape testing are considered. (SLD)