An overview of the development of a computerized version of the Differential Aptitude Tests (DAT) is presented. It describes the previously existing printed version of the DAT, design of the computerized adaptive edition, calibration of the test items for use in the computerized version, and two field studies that compared the Adaptive and…

The external examiner approach to assessment can address concerns that American educational standards are low, curricular coherence is lacking, and college students are learning insufficiently. The discussion: (1) contrasts the conditions in British and American higher education that make the British model inappropriate for the United States; (2)…

A study was conducted to determine if a teacher-constructed cloze procedure correlated significantly with two standardized tests of reading achievement, thereby testing G.D. Spache's claim that most teachers are unable to design valid and reliable assessment materials. Subjects were 60 fourth and sixth grade students who were administered the…

The purpose of this project was to construct a valid and reliable noncurriculum specific measure of integrated science process skills intended for use with middle school students. The major efforts in test development were focused on the refinements and modifications of the set of objectives and test items assessed by the existing Middle Grades…

Parallel studies at universities in Israel, Finland, Canada, and the United States used a "selected deletion gap-filling test," a variation on the cloze procedure designed to measure reading comprehension by testing the reader's familiarity with cohesive links and grasp of text coherence. The test design responded to the growing demand for a more…

A panel of classroom teachers and a Department of Education inspector respond to questions from participants in a conference on methodological advances in modern language teaching held in Ireland. The questions and answers address the following topics: (1) the usefulness and selection of cloze tests; (2) maintenance of high written language…

This paper: (1) reviews the development and implementation of a test designed to assess the competencies of public high school students in Atlanta, Georgia, preceding their graduation; and (2) presents the results of indicator cluster correlations between the new "Basic Skills Tests" and other reading and mathematics basal tests…

A French-English guide to French diagnostic reading tests for French immersion classes, grades one through three, is presented. The "tests diagnostiques de lecture" are designed to indicate strengths and weaknesses in silent reading performance in French for early French immersion pupils in Canada and to integrate this information into…

In the late 1970s, the Department of Defense requested that the reference population for the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) be changed and updated to reflect the current youth population. Analyses of new data collected in 1980 indicated that speeded subtest scores of the new sample were atypically low and that the sample might…

Validation of an Air Force vocational interest inventory in the enlisted force was conducted to develop improved job placement techniques with a view toward practical application of results during initial counseling and job placement of enlisted personnel. The Vocational Interest-Career Examination (VOICE) was administered to 18,000 recruits…

Discussions of any test must focus on reliability, content validity, and interpretation of results. In this critique of On Further Examination--the report of the Advisory Panel on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) Score Decline--the National Education Association (NEA) finds no fault with the reliability of the SAT. Its content validity, however,…

The content and utility of two models of reading comprehension tests, the basic skills assessment model and the multiple choice cloze (MCC) model, are discussed. The basic reading competency model assesses the ability to read or infer "basic" meanings from a range of written or symbolic communication, as is necessary for daily living in…

Student evaluations of teacher effectiveness have been accepted by instructors as helpful indicators of performance, but their validity and use in tenure and promotion decisions has been questioned by faculty. Students and instructors in 207 social science courses completed evaluations of instructional effectiveness at the conclusion of the…

Categorizing Teacher Behavior, developed to measure acquisition of concepts portrayed in the Concepts and Patterns in Teacher-Pupil Interaction film series, measures the ability to identify and categorize instances of the specificed concepts as they are portrayed in reasonably complex filmed classroom interactions. The film series itself is based…

Content validity involves a judgment that all knowledges, skills, abilities, and other worker characteristics (KSAOs) needed for successful job performance (or a specified portion, the job content domain), have been adequately sampled by the tests used for employee selection and promotion decision making. The model outlines the procedure for…