The use by 31 reading specialists, compensatory education teachers, and secondary reading teachers of Angoff and Nedelsky methods for setting cutting scores for a high-school graduation test in reading comprehension was studied. The Angoff method provides a wider variety of information and yields estimates closer to actual p values. (TJH)

This study examined characteristics of multiple-choice reading comprehension tasks suspected of influencing their difficulty, through administration of the California Achievement Tests to 158 deaf college students. Problem components evaluated included manifest content, psychologically salient features, and processing demands. Variation in item…

This review provides an overview and definition of the concept of neurobehavior in human development. Two neurobehavioral assessments used by the authors in current fetal and infant research are discussed: the NICU Network Neurobehavioral Assessment Scale and the Fetal Neurobehavior Coding System. This review will present how the two assessments…

Concomitant with the many initiatives concerned with ICT curriculum integration are requirements for measurement of the student outcomes of that integration, in keeping with recent education priorities that emphasize outcomes and accountability. However researching and measuring the impact of ICT initiatives has been found to be a significant…

The purpose of this study was to provide initial results on the development and validation of the Career Futures Inventory (CFI), a new 25-item measure of positive career planning attitudes. Items were originated using the rational method. Results from an item analysis of scale homogeneity and exploratory factor analysis in a sample of 690…

This article is the second contribution to a research methods series dedicated to getting good results from survey research. In this series, "good results" is a stenographic term used to define surveys that yield accurate and meaningful information that decision makers can use with confidence when conducting program evaluation and policy…

The IRT (Item Response Theory) has been studied and applied in computer-based test for decades. However, almost of all these existing studies evaluated focus merely on test questions with text-based (or static text/graphic) type of presentation form illustrated exclusively. In this paper, we present our study on test questions using both…

Achieve launched this study to help inform the decisions states are making about high school assessments by providing greater insights into the world of college admissions and placement testing. Achieve analyzed more than 2,000 questions from college admissions and placement exams to determine how these tests compare to one another and how well…

Social support from intimate and confiding relationships has received a great deal of attention; however, the study of the community as a relevant source of support has been comparatively lacking. In this article, we present a multidimensional measure of community support (Perceived Community Support Questionnaire, PCSQ). Through exploratory and…

Using an abbreviated version of Levenson's (1981) locus of control scale, we examine change over time in the locus of control of displaced steelworkers. The first data collection occurred approximately six months after plant shutdown, the second occurred a year later. Utilizing a multidimensional measurement model, we test the major assumption…

The lack of support for mental health-related projects by private philanthropy, even among those that express an interest in mental health, is due in large part to the subjectivity of the grant review process. To address this problem, Whaley, Rodriguez, and Alexander developed the Grant Proposal Rating Form (GPRF) to make the grant review process…

This study investigated the reliability and structural validity of Elementary Reading Attitude Survey ([ERAS]; McKenna and Kear, 1990) scores in 575 academically talented students attending an academic summer program. Results indicated that ERAS Academic and Recreational scores had satisfactory internal consistency coefficients, and that…

Results are reported from 2 common measures of medical student attitudes toward older adults: Maxwell-Sullivan Attitude Survey (MSAS); and UCLA Geriatrics Attitude Survey (GAS), with students entering the University of South Carolina School of Medicine (USCSM) in the period 2000--2005. A reliability analysis incorporating item means, Cronbach's…

This article considers and illustrates a strategy to study effects of school context on differential item functioning (DIF) in large-scale assessment. The approach employs a hierarchical generalized linear modeling framework to (a) detect DIF, and (b) identify school-level correlates of the between-group differences in item performance. To…

Despite recent research indicating that 1 of the pivotal times for identifying pathways to early conduct problems is the toddler period, few family-based preventive interventions have been specifically designed to modify child disruptive behavior during this age period. This randomized trial tested the effectiveness of the Family Check-Up in…