This study used a series of simulations to answer questions about the efficacy of adaptive testing raised by empirical studies. The first study showed that for reasonable high entry points, parameters estimated from paper-and-pencil test protocols cross-validated remarkably well to groups actually tested at a computer terminal. This suggested that…

Responses to a sample test were simulated for examinees under free-response and multiple-choice formats. Test score sets were correlated with randomly generated sets of unit-normal measures. The extent of superiority of free response tests was sufficiently small so that other considerations might justifiably dictate format choice. (Author/DWH)

The comparison of item response theory models for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) was extended to an equating context as simulation trials were used to "equate the test to itself." Equating sample data were generated from administration of identical item sets. Equatings that used procedures based on each model (simple…

Since all commonly used latent trait models assume a unidimensional test, the applicability of the procedure to obviously multidimensional tests is questionable. This paper presents the results of the application of latent trait, traditional, and factor analyses to a series of actual and hypothetical tests that vary in factoral complexity.…

A design for test equating based on Item Response Theory is proposed and illustrated through a simulation study of about 1,000 primary students taking two examinations. This test-equating method allows decision makers in a standard setting exercise access to high quality information. (SLD)

Analysis of variance (ANOVA), a technique included in many introductory statistics courses, analyzes the relationship between a quantitative dependent variable and one or more independent qualitative variables. The nature of the relationship is expressed in a model with unknown parameters. Many textbooks emphasize the mechanics of the technique…

What pass for the study of international relations is often more an examination of foreign affairs, transnational interaction from ethnocentric perspectives. Many analysts accept the assumptions and values of their own political culture, then superimpose them on other nations. If another state does not act in accordance with those values, its…

This paper describes qualitative and quantitative research conducted with middle school students participating in a Future Cities Engineering course. Insights were sought regarding both affective and cognitive changes which transpired during the one-semester schedule of activities focused on modeling the infrastructure of a city built 150 years in…

The paper outlines a new paradigm and its underlying rationales for implementing networked learning environments that is emerging from new technologies such as multi-user platform, virtual worlds, virtual learning community, and intelligent agents. The proposed paradigm of the networked learning environments is described as inhabited virtual…

This paper presents the results of a study on the effects of using 3 simulators with 14 computer science majors enrolled in an undergraduate computer architecture course. Three ability groups (high, medium, and low) were formed based on the students' quality point averages for prior computer science courses. Analyses of data from a pretest, a…

The study compared cognitive achievement, attitude, and occupational awareness of students (varying in socioeconomic level) exposed to two different computer-based approaches (simulation and non-simulation) to the presentation of occupational information. (Author/MW)

This study examined how four commonly used test equating procedures (linear, equipercentile, Rasch Model, and three-parameter) would respond to situations in which the properties or the two tests being equated were different. Data for two tests plus an external anchor test were generated from a three parameter model in which mean test differences…

Sampling distributions for ten tests for comparing population variances in a two group design were generated for several combinations of equal and unequal sample sizes, population means, and group variances when distributional forms differed. The ten procedures included: (1) O'Brien's (OB); (2) O'Brien's with adjusted degrees of freedom; (3)…

This is a critical review of the analytical models developed by the U.S. Army to predict training device effectiveness. The Simulation Systems Technical Area of the U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences performed the research. Special consideration is given to a family of models known collectively as TRAINVICE. These…