This article shows that student grades based on the difference on scores from one test to another are statistically unreliable and unfair to the better students. (MM)

Kelly's formula estimates sampling variance of correlation corrected for attenuation by using split-half reliabilities. In some cases, coefficient alpha estimate of reliability is preferable. A simulation study suggests a variation of Kelly's formula can be used appropriately with coefficient alpha. Kelly's formula is modified to accept…

Monte Carlo methods are used to explore the accuracy of a method for establishing confidence intervals for variance component estimates in generalizability studies. Previous research has shown that variance component estimation errors due to sampling are often larger than suspected. (Author/CM)

Some procedures for estimating internal consistency reliability may be superior mathematically to the more commonly used methods such as Coefficient Alpha. One problem is computational difficulty; the other is the possibility of overestimation due to capitalization on chance. (Author/CTM)

Innacurate sample data and uncertain estimates are defined as obstacles to assessing the suicide rate among college students. A standardization of research and reporting services is recommended. (JMF)

Item endorsement rates and reliability of the Smith Quick Measure of Achievement Motivation were studied. Concluded that the scale may have too little variance to discriminate college students on achievement motivation and that, for students, one item may be inappropriately keyed. (Author)

Huynh (1976) suggested a method of approximating the reliability coefficient of a mastery test. The present study examines the accuracy of Huynh's approximation and also describes a computationally simpler approximation which appears to be generally more accurate than the former. (Author/RL)

Some statistical considerations in applying survey sampling methods to small populations are explored. (DS)

This study was designed to assess the (score) construct-related validity of an instrument called the School-Wide Cultural Competence Observation Checklist (SCCOC). The instrument was developed to use as a tool in conducting culture audits as a means of assessing school-wide cultural competence, or how well a school's programs, policies, and…

In connection with the new SAT that was introduced in March 2005, research has been under way to investigate the feasibility of providing examinees with score reports that contain feedback on skills measured by the critical reading, mathematics, and writing sections of the test. The main purpose of this study was to estimate the reliability of the…

In item-response theory, if a latent-structure model has an ability variable, then elementary information theory may be employed to provide a criterion for evaluation of the information the test provides concerning ability. This criterion may be considered even in cases in which the latent-structure model is not valid, although interpretation of…

Three aspects of the usual approach to assessing local item dependency, Yen's "Q" (H. Huynh, H. Michaels, and S. Ferrara, 1995), deserve further investigation. Pearson correlation coefficients do not distribute normally when the coefficients are large, and thus cannot quantify the dependency well. In the second place, the accuracy of…

Controversy over the proper place of significance testing within scientific methodology has continued for some time. The suggestion that effect sizes are more important than whether results are significant is presented. Effect size can be defined as an estimate of how much of the dependent variable is accounted for by the independent variables.…

A number of different definitions and indices of reliability for mastery tests have recently been proposed in an attempt to cope with possible lack of score variability that attenuates traditional coefficients. One promising index that has been suggested is the proportion of students in a group that are consistently assigned to the same mastery…