In operational testing, item response theory (IRT) models for dichotomous responses are popular for measuring a single latent construct [theta], such as cognitive ability in a content domain. Estimates of [theta], also called IRT scores or [theta hat], can be computed using estimators based on the likelihood function, such as maximum likelihood…

The forced-choice (FC) item formats used for noncognitive tests typically develop a set of response options that measure different traits and instruct respondents to make judgments among these options in terms of their preference to control the response biases that are commonly observed in normative tests. Diagnostic classification models (DCMs)…

In dichotomous item response theory (IRT) framework, the asymptotic standard error (ASE) is the most common statistic to evaluate the precision of various ability estimators. Easy-to-use ASE formulas are readily available; however, the accuracy of some of these formulas was recently questioned and new ASE formulas were derived from a general…

Studies have shown that language assessment literacy (LAL) is important for language teachers since they make important classroom decisions to improve student learning based on their assessment. However, some studies have shown that teachers need more knowledge and skills in assessment. Teachers also seem unconfident in assessing their students…

Small sample equating remains a largely unexplored area of research. This study attempts to fill in some of the research gaps via a large-scale, IRT-based simulation study that evaluates the performance of seven small-sample equating methods under various test characteristic and sampling conditions. The equating methods considered are typically…