Credentialing programs were surveyed to determine the procedures they use to set performance standards on multiple-choice and open-ended assessments. Implications of the various standard-setting approaches for the National Assessment of Educational Progress are discussed, and it is asserted that generalizing from standard-setting in professional…

Undergraduates completed a questionnaire after using the Immediate Feedback Assessment Technique (IFAT), a commercially available answer form for multiple-choice (MC) testing that can be used easily and conveniently with large classes. This simple new technique for MC testing provides immediate feedback for each item in an answer-until-correct…

With 104 advanced second language (L2) readers, this investigation seeks to construct a multicomponent model of interest and L2 reading. Sources of interest (SI) refer to variables that induce feelings of interest in a text. Perceived interest (PI) refers to the feeling of interest itself (Schraw, Bruning, & Svoboda, 1995). A factor analysis…

Simulation and real data studies are used to investigate the value of modeling multiple-choice distractors on item response theory linking. Using the characteristic curve linking procedure for Bock's (1972) nominal response model presented by Kim and Hanson (2002), all-category linking (i.e., a linking based on all category characteristic curves…

In this experimental study, 44 undergraduates completed five computer-based instructional lessons and either two multiplechoice tests or two fill-in-the-blank tests. Color-coded borders were displayed during the lesson, adjacent to the screen text and illustrations. In the experimental condition, corresponding border colors were shown at posttest.…

We used the following multiple-choice question after a series of lectures in cardiovascular physiology in the first year of an undergraduate medical curriculum (n = 66) to assess whether students had understood the neural regulation of cardiovascular function. In health, neural cardiovascular mechanisms are geared toward maintaining A) cardiac…

Parallel versions of a new multiple-choice word-recognition test were administered to 1019 and 590 Year-1 pupils respectively. The test format was based on a published test of Word Recognition and Phonic Skills and was intended to provide reliable diagnostic information. It was found that internally consistent measures of three types of word…

This study investigates the avoidance of English phrasal verbs by Chinese learners. Six groups of Chinese learners (intermediate and advanced; a total of 70) took one of 3 tests multiplechoice, translation, or recall, which included literal and figurative phrasal verbs, while 15 native speakers took the multiple-choice test. The results show that…

Two psychometric models are presented for evaluating the difficulty of the distractors in multiple-choice items. They are based on the criterion of rising distractor selection ratios, which facilitates interpretation of the subject and item parameters. Statistical inferential tools are developed in a Bayesian framework: modal a posteriori…

Assessment is an integral and vital part of teaching and learning, providing feedback on progress through the assessment period to both learners and teachers. However, if test items are flawed because of misconceptions held by the questions setter, then such test items are invalid as assessment tools. Moreover, such flawed items are also likely to…

Objective: Ego defense mechanism (EDM) recognition can offer a powerful and practical tool in clinical psychiatry. However, recognition skill learning can be difficult to assess and may account for the lack of formal EDM recognition training in residency courses. Method: This study hypothesized that mean test scores would increase significantly…

This study represents the first attempt to elucidate and detail the types of misconceptions high school students hold relating to basic concepts and topics of nuclear chemistry. A diagnostic multiple-choice test was administered to 157 tenth-grade students (15-16 years old) and the data were analyzed. The results show that high school students…

Many districts and schools across the U. S. have begun to develop and administer assessments to complement state testing systems and provide additional information to monitor curriculum, instruction and schools. In advance of this trend, the Jackson Public Schools (JPS) district has had a district benchmark testing system in place for many years.…

Adapting training methods to specific teacher traits to best facilitate the training effects for preservice teachers is an important, yet neglected, topic in aptitude-treatment interaction research. This study investigated interactions between four personal traits (CT-dispositions, thinking styles, CT-skills, and intrapersonal intelligence) and…

Alternatives to a solitary testing format can involve students working in teams to arrive at the correct answer. We compared two group assessment methods, cooperative and competitive, to a solitary testing approach. In most comparisons examining the undergraduate respondents' (N = 77) performance, the two group-testing methods were equivalent.…