In investigations of unusual testing behavior, a common question is whether a specific pattern of responses occurs unusually often within a group of examinees. In many current tests, modern communication techniques can permit quite large numbers of examinees to share keys, or common response patterns, to the entire test. To address this issue,…

Retrieving studied materials often enhances subsequent learning of new materials (Pastötter & Bäuml, 2014). However, retrieval has also been shown to impair new learning (Finn & Roediger, 2013). In this article, we attempted to determine when retrieval enhances and when it impairs new learning. We argue that testing impairs new learning…

This study is an a priori demonstration of the applicability of multiple matrix sampling techniques to the practical research problem of parameter estimation. Three tests were administered to two separate but parallel populations, with one receiving item samples and the other receiving full tests. Special efforts were made to minimize the context…

A suggested technique for analyzing distributions of test scores compares distributions of scores made by groups of pupils on standard tests with distributions made by other groups of students on the same tests. By identifying the percents of student scores which must be shifted to an adjacent cell (interval) to make the two distributions exactly…

Because test scores are ordinal not cordinal attributes, the average test score often is a misleading way to summarize the scores of a group of individuals. Similarly, correlation coefficients may be misleading summary measures of association between test scores. Proper, readily interpretable, summary statistics are developed from a theory of…

Two independent studies were conducted to investigate possible differences in General Aptitude Test Battery (GATB) aptitude M resulting from the use of different test equipment (wooden vs. plastic apparatus.) As part of a ten-year longitudinal study of Vocational Development being conducted in the Department of Vocational Education at The…

Tests of achievement in economics have a variety of uses. Their principal role is to evaluate how successful students have been in learning economics on a particular course, either overall or in particular aspects of economics. They may also serve to provide evidence about the efficacy of specific teaching materials and/or strategies. Finally,…

The purpose of this investigation was to establish the effects of repeaters on test equating. Since consideration was not given to repeaters in test equating, such as in the derivation of equations by Angoff (1971), the hypothetical effect needed to be established. A case study was examined which showed results on a test as expected; overall mean…

This study was an attempt to examine certain variables which apply to test-wiseness factors in assessing preschool and primary grade children. The study identified specific abilities which appear to be prerequisite for taking standardized tests, and to design curricular materials to facilitate the development of these abilities. It was found that…

A standardized achievement testing program was begun in Alum Rock, California in the fall of 1972 as part of an evaluation of an Educational Voucher Demonstration. During each of the first three years of the demonstration both the form of test administration and the particular level of the standardized achievement test that a student is assigned…

Responses on both the state and trait scales of the State-Trait Anxiety (STAI) Inventory were examined under two conditions. The first condition presented a simulated real-life situation containing competitive and evaluative cues without directly suggesting faking and asked subjects to complete the STAI. After an intervening task, the STAI was…

Questions are raised about the time within a test administration period that may be available for review for those candidates who have time enough, or more than enough, to finish. The assumption is proposed that rate of work may be normally distributed. The rate of work for those who have finished a test cannot be determined from their answer…

In order to screen out items which may be biased against some ethnic group prior to the final selection of items in test construction, a statistical technique for assessing item bias was developed. Based on a theoretical formulation of R. B. Darlington, the method compares the performance of individuals who belong to different ethnic groups, but…

A discussion of selected applications of new tests developed within the context of a large-scale curriculum for educable mentally retarded (EMR) children, the Social Learning Curriculum (SLC), is presented in this paper which investigates three types of reliability that need to be demonstrated in order to provide a basis of these applications. The…