The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of assessment method (essays vs. examinations) and instruction method (seminars vs. lectures) on student perceptions of the fairness of the assessment process. Department-specific combinations of these factors give a unique profile to the assessment process and to the way students interact with…

The design, delivery and assessment of a complete educational scheme, such as a degree programme or a professional qualification course, is a complex matter. Maintaining alignment between the stated aims of the curriculum and the scoring of student achievement is an overarching concern. The potential for drift across individual aspects of an…

Option weighting is an alternative to increasing test length as a means of improving the reliability of a test. The effects on test reliability of option weighting procedures were compared in two empirical studies using four independent sets of items. Biserial weights were found to be superior. (Author/CTM)

A new scoring procedure for multiple choice tests attempts to assess partial knowledge and to restrict guessing. It is a variant of Coombs' elimination scoring method, adapted for use with the carbon-shield answer sheets commonly used with answer-until-correct scoring. Examinees are directed to erase the carbon shields of choices they are certain…

Two multitrait-multimethod studies were conducted to investigate the effects of two scoring formulas. The study demonstrates that tests of divergent thinking lack discriminant validity when scored in the usual manner. A percentage formula did enhance discriminant validity when originality ratings were subjectively determined. (Author/CTM)

Binary, probability, and ordinal scoring procedures for multiple-choice items were examined. In two situations, it was found that both the probability and ordinal scoring systems were more reliable than the binary scoring method. (Author/CTM)

A set of Tests of Scientific Thinking were developed for possible use as criterion measures in research on creativity. Scores on the tests describe both quality and quantity of ideas produced in formulating hypotheses, evaluating proposals, solving methodological problems, and devising methods for measuring constructs. (Author/CTM)

The indices of item difficulty and discrimination, the coefficients of effective length, and the average item information for both single- and multiple-answer items using six different scoring formulas were computed and compared. These formulas vary in terms of the assignment of partial credit and the correction for guessing. (Author/BW)

The reported data provide a basis for evaluating the formula-scoring versus rights-scoring issue and for assessing the effects of directions on the reliability and parallelism of scores for sophisticated examinees taking professionally developed tests. Results support the invariance hypothesis rather than the differential effects hypothesis.…

The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Inventory (RSE) is a 10-item scale purporting to measure self-esteem using self-acceptance and self-worth statements. This analysis covers concerns about the degree to which the RSE items represent a particular content universe, the RSE's applicability, factor analytic methods used, and the RSE's reliability and validity.…

Corrected-for-guessing scores on multiple-choice tests depend upon the ability and willingness of examinees to guess when they have some basis for answering, and to avoid guessing when they have no basis. The present study determined the extent to which college students were able and willing to comply with formula-scoring directions. (Author/CTM)

Medical and dental students were administered two short confidence-scored tests on cellular and molecular biology. Increases in test reliability and predictive validity were found when test scores were adjusted for realism, but were not statistically significant. (Author/MH)

A follow-up study of two instruments for evaluating college writing was conducted. The experimental scale (E Scale) was developed in 1976 and revised for this study. The control scale (C Scale) was described in the literature in 1977. Ten English majors graded ten essays from diagnostic entrance exams. Both the E Scale and the C Scale were used,…

A 15-stage pyramidal test and a 40-item two-stage test were constructed and administered by computer to 111 college undergraduates. The two-stage test was found to utilize a smaller proportion of its potential score range than the pyramidal test. Score distributions for both tests were positively skewed but not significantly different from the…

The Broad-Range Tailored Test (BRTT) is a computerized adaptive test. Each testee responds to 25 items; at the conclusion of the test the computer calculates a verbal ability score for the individual. The test was designed to yield a verbal ability score from the fifth grade level to the graduate school level. Two forms of the BRTT were…