A modification of Hoyt's analysis of variance model for test analysis was proposed by Lu. A difficulty that may be encountered in using Lu's modification is examined, and a solution is proposed. (JKS)

A method of investigating for possible bias in test items is proposed that uses analysis of variance for item data based on groups that have been selected to have identical test score distributions. The item data used are arcsin transformations of item difficulties. The methodological procedure has the following advantages: (1) The arcsin…

Because no previous study was found in which both blank position in the item stem and positional placement of the correct response were studied simultaneously, it was decided to investigate the influence of these two factors, alone and in combination, on the difficulty level of verbal analogy items. (Authors)

The agreement between the Educational Testing Service (ETS) and the Golden Rule Insurance Company of Illinois is interpreted as setting the general principles on which items must be selected to be included in a licensure test. These principles put a limit to the difficulty level of any item, and they also limit the size of the difference in…

The comparative effects of various sequences of test items were examined for over 900 graduate students enrolled in an educational research course at The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa. experiment, which was conducted a total of four times using four separate tests, presented three different arrangements of 50 multiple-choice items: (1)…

A multiple choice achievement test was constructed in which both cognitive level and degree of abstractness were controlled. Subjects were 75 students from a major university in the Southwest. A group of 13 judges, also university students, classified the concepts for degree of abstractness. Results indicated that both cognitive level and degree…

A variety of terms related to test bias or test fairness have been used in a variety of ways, but in this document the "fair use of tests" is defined as equitable selection procedures by means of intact tests, and "test item bias" refers to the study of separate items with respect to the tests of which they are a part. Seven…

Birnbaum's three-parameter logistic item response model was used to study guessing behavior of low ability examinees on the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) General Test, Verbal Measure. GRE scoring procedures had recently changed, from a scoring formula which corrected for guessing, to number-right scoring. The three-parameter theory was used…