The general purposes of this study were to investigate the factorial validity of the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills (CTBS), Reading Comprehension subtest, and to study the item difficulties in order to determine areas of strengths and weaknesses of sixth and seventh grade Elementary Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Title I students. A sample of…

This guide is organized into five chapters; (1) an approach to testing--decisions made from test results, types of achievement tests, types and levels of objectives, and test validity, reliability, and practicality; (2) classroom test construction--planning, item banks, item writing, assembly, administration, and scoring; (3) test analysis-item…

In recognition of the trend toward functional illiteracy, this study developed and evaluated a criterion-referenced functional literacy test for use in diagnosis and evaluation of Miami-Dade Community College English students. The instrument was pilot-tested on 135 composition students in the fall of 1976, then revised after item analysis and…

A test was developed to assess personal self-concept values of preprimary and primary aged children. If large scale preschool programs are to be justified, effects in the areas of intellectual growth, achievement performance, and personal-social growth must be observable in children several years after preschool experience and must be measurable…

The purpose of this research was to determine to what extent young lower class Negro children's actual achievements in the middle class school setting are influenced by maternal behavior and attitudes. Ninety Negro children, from 53 to 66 months of age, plus their mothers, were selected as the research sample. Interviews were conducted with the…

This report examines how selection fairness is influenced by the characteristics of a selection instrument in terms of its distribution of item difficulties, level of item discrimination, degree of item bias, and testing strategy. Computer simulation was used in the administration of either a conventional or Bayesian adaptive ability test to a…

The development of a technique for a computer-based content analysis of interview data is described. A preliminary version of ANACONDA (ANAlysis of CONcepts by DAta-processing) is presented, and empirical results are shown from the application of the technique by independent coders to test material. Proposed modifications and extensions of the…

Over 14,000 high school seniors were studied with respect to sociocultural differences on cognitive test item responses. Six different cognitive tests and ten different groups were analyzed. The tests were: vocabulary, picture-number, reading, letter-groups, mathematics, and mosaic comparisons. The groups were: American Indians, blacks,…

The report was aimed at determining (1) the degree to which recommendations made at three statewide articulation institutes for administrators and vocational teachers from the Department of Education (D.O.E.) and the community colleges have been implemented, and (2) the relative effectiveness of those recommendations in relation to the current…

Founded on a systems model of political processes and a review of studies relating values to political controls, 90 value items were administered to "mainstream" and "eddy" (dissenting) groups, including moderate and radical students, Rotarians, member of the New Democratic Coalition, Navy enlisted men, and Navy brig prisoners for the purpose of…

Reading specialists have often expressed dissatisfaction with standardized reading tests, especially tests of rate. In this study, norm-referenced survey tests were constructed for measuring reading comprehension and rate of fifth and seventh grade students. Three alternate forms were developed from item analyses with a trial sample of 88 fifth…

Some stochastic approximation procedures are considered in relation to the problem of choosing a sequence of test questions to accurately estimate a given examinee's standing on a psychological dimension. Illustrations are given evaluating certain procedures in a specific context. (Author/CK)

The plan calls for a six stage development process. Stages one and two represent a needs assessment for testing, in which the target population and general subject areas to be assessed are determined. The remaining four stages are performed for each test developed. They include: item pool development, item filtering at the technical and lay…

This paper considers the question of bias in group administered academic achievement tests, bias which is inherent in the instruments themselves. A body of data on the test of performance of three disadvantaged minority groups--northern, urban black; southern, rural black; and, southwestern, Mexican-Americans--as tryout samples in contrast to…

The object of this study, conducted in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, School District, was to examine whether or not the urban elementary school administrator's assessment of the community's ability to reward or punish is a significant factor in his perception of his own role performance, his leadership style, and his work with the community and…