This study investigated the role of item formats in the performance of 206 nonnative speakers of English on expressive skills (i.e., speaking and writing). Test scores were drawn from the field test of the "Pearson Test of English Academic" for Chinese, French, Hebrew, and Korean native speakers. Four item formats, including…

Changing the order of items between alternate test forms to prevent copying and to enhance test security is a common practice in achievement testing. However, these changes in item order may affect item and test characteristics. Several procedures have been proposed for studying these item-order effects. The present study explores the use of…

The Assessment of Language Competence (ALC) certificates is an annual, international testing program developed by the Australian Council for Educational Research to test the listening and reading comprehension skills of lower to middle year levels of secondary school. The tests are developed for three levels in French, German, Italian and…

When a test is adapted from a source language (SL) into a target language (TL), the two forms are usually not psychometrically equivalent. If linking between test forms is necessary, those items that have had their psychometric characteristics altered by the translation (differential item functioning [DIF] items) should be eliminated from the…

Disentangled sources of differential item functioning (DIF) in a multilanguage assessment for which multiple factors were expected to be causing DIF. Data for the Third International Mathematics and Science study for four countries and two languages (3,000 to 11,000 cases in each comparison group) reveal amounts and sources of DIF. (SLD)

The manual is designed to help Peace Corps language teachers design simple evaluation procedures that will: (1) help them select appropriate classroom activities; (2) encourage students to self-monitor their progress and take responsibility for learning; and (3) give insight into student aptitudes. An introductory chapter examines the relationship…

This guide to the ninth-grade French test for Alberta students describes the testing program, provides examples of the type of test to be administered in June 1990, and includes an answer key. Information about the testing program includes general objectives, an overview of the program type, students exempted from the test, testing for students…

Pronunciation is regarded as a valuable subskill in foreign language teaching and testing. Its quality is commonly assessed in a global way by having examinees read aloud. An atomistic test is a more systematic and explicit approach. Such a test would consist of about 40 items, use recorded performances, and draw on an inventory of pronunciation…

A bulletin concerning Alberta's Grade 6 French language achievement test to be administered in June 1988 provides specific information about the test's design, items, and scoring. It begins with general information about the province's achievement test program in English and goes on to describe and illustrate the French language arts achievement…

The usefulness of three item response theory-based methods and the Mantel Haenszel technique in evaluating the measurement equivalence of translated assessment instruments was demonstrated in a study involving 2,000 French-speaking Canadian adults who took a French test translation and 2,000 English-speaking adults who took the English original.…

Intended to help prepare teachers and students for the January 1987 diploma exams, this bulletin presents useful information about the design, parts and scoring of French language and literature tests by describing and including scoring guides and sample questions. A schedule of administration and scoring dates is included in the bulletin. This…

The system of standardized second language tests administered to Swedish junior and senior high school students is described. The tests are used to give teachers an idea of the performance levels of their entire classes, not individual students, for comparison with national norms. They are administered more than a year before the students leave…

A study investigated the appropriate use of item types for testing reading at various levels of proficiency. It was specifically concerned with item types found in the standardized group-administered Defense Language Proficiency Tests. The item formats investigated were signs in the target language, identification of underlined information,…