Interteaching is a behavioral teaching method that has been empirically shown to increase student learning outcomes. The present study investigated the effect of combining interteaching with cumulative versus noncumulative exams in two sections of an online asynchronous class. Interteaching was used in both sections of the course. The…

Cognitive psychologists have found that taking practice tests improves students' learning, and some claim that tests that require recall are more effective than those that require recognition. This study examined whether recognition (i.e., multiple-choice) quizzes were as effective as cued-recall (i.e., fill-in-the-blank) quizzes for improving…

This classroom experiment investigates the effects of adding representational pictures to multiple-choice and constructed-response test items to understand the role of the response format for the multimedia effect in testing. Participants were 575 fifth- and sixth-graders who answered 28 science test items--seven items in each of four experimental…

The Discrete Option Multiple Choice (DOMC) item format was introduced by Foster and Miller (2009) with the intent of improving the security of test content. However, by changing the amount and order of the content presented, the test taking experience varies by test taker, thereby introducing potential fairness issues. In this paper we…

Many studies have demonstrated that testing students on to-be-learned materials can be an effective learning activity. However, past studies have also shown that some practice test formats are more effective than others. Open-ended recall or short answer practice tests may be effective because the questions prompt deeper processing as students…

The purpose of our study was to examine the issue of answer changing in relation to students' abilities to monitor their behaviour accurately while responding to multiple-choice tests. The data for this study were obtained from the final examination administered to students in an educational psychology course. The results of the study indicate…

Testing has been shown to enhance retention of learned information beyond simple studying, a phenomena known as test-enhanced learning (TEL). Research has shown that TEL effects are greater for tests that require the production of responses [e.g., short-answer questions (SAQs)] relative to tests that require the recognition of correct answers…

Dueck recounts how, as a high school history teacher, he began to allow students to retake all or part of their end-of-unit tests. Influenced by the work of Rick Stiggins, Dueck prepared students for tests better by focusing on three questions Stiggins says students should be able to answer for themselves: Where am I going in this unit?, Where am…

In view of the perceived difficulty of organic chemistry unit for high schools students, this study examined the usefulness of concept mapping as a testing device to assess students' difficulty in the select areas. Since many tests used for identifying students misconceptions and difficulties in school subjects are observed to favour one or the…

This article investigates a version of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) listening test for evidence of differential item functioning (DIF) based on gender, nationality, age, and degree of previous exposure to the test. Overall, the listening construct was found to be underrepresented, which is probably an important cause…

Education policy in the U.S. in the last two decades has emphasized large-scale assessment of students, with growing consequences for schools, teachers, and students. Given the high stakes of such tests, it is important to understand the relationships between students' answers to test items and their knowledge and skills in the tested content…

Speech act theory-based, second language pragmatics testing (SLPT) raises test-validation issues owing to a lack of correspondence with empirical conversational data. On the assumption that conversation analysis (CA) provides a more accurate account of language use, it is suggested that CA serve as a more empirically valid basis for SLPT…

Multiple-choice items are a mainstay of achievement testing. The need to adequately cover the content domain to certify achievement proficiency by producing meaningful precise scores requires many high-quality items. More 3-option items can be administered than 4- or 5-option items per testing time while improving content coverage, without…

The present study provides an overview of the impact of standardized EFL tests on EFL education in Korea. To achieve this goal, the paper (1) presents the status quo of EFL testing in the Korean context, (2) explores the nature of the EFL tests prevalent in the EFL testing market, and (3) investigates the overwhelming washback effects of EFL tests…

Six scoring methods for assigning weights to right or wrong responses according to various instructions given to test takers are analyzed with respect to expected change scores and the effect of various levels of information and misinformation. Three of the methods provide feedback to the test taker. (Author/CTM)