Two methods for estimating measures of pass-fail reliability are derived, by which both theta and kappa may be estimated from a single test administration. The methods require only a single test administration and are computationally simple. Both are based on the Spearman-Brown formula for estimating stepped-up reliability. The non-distributional…

Several critical questions are raised by the proliferation of communications internships, yet the question of grading and evaluating internships is one that can be answered by examining the Media Program at Loyola College in Maryland. Although the communications curriculum was not fully developed until the 1986-87 academic year, enrollments in the…

The influence of atmospheric conditions and the day of the week on school children's behavior was investigated by undergraduates. The college students were told either that their participation in the research was compulsory and would be graded, or that their participation was voluntary and ungraded. Fifty teachers observed their pupils' behavior…

Advocates greater utilization of measurement methodologies in the speech communication classroom. (CH)

Presents a systematic method of converting raw exam scores of performance into letter grades. The method combines the best techniques of normative, statistical, and criterion-referenced systems and, if used by the entire faculty, guarantees consistent and uniform marking procedures. (Author/DN)

A six-year longitudinal examination of university faculty compliance with departmental grading and publishing practices yielded three significant findings: (1) faculty increased their publications; (2) the increase was significantly greater at the associate professor level than at the assistant professor level; and (3) there appears a significant…

Investigates the effect of initial blocks of either very good or poor essay question responses on the grades assigned to subsequent essay responses. (Author/DEP)

The standard error of measurement (SEM) is a measure of the inconsistency in the scores of a particular group of test-takers. It is largest for test-takers with scores ranging in the 50 percent correct bracket; with nearly perfect scores, it is smaller. On tests used to make pass/fail decisions, the test-takers' scores tend to cluster in the range…

TO ISOLATE FACTORS RELATED TO EARLY SCHOOL LEAVING, DATA WAS OBTAINED ON ALL TWELFTH, EIGHTH, AND FOURTH GRADE STUDENTS IN THE SPOKANE PUBLIC SCHOOLS. ANALYZED WERE--(1) PERSONAL VARIABLES WITHIN THE SCHOOL SITUATION IN THE TWELFTH GRADE, (2) FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH DROPOUTS IN THE EIGHTH GRADE, AND (3) CHARACTERISTICS OF FOURTH GRADE PUPILS IN…

This paper presents a model for evaluating student writing, that emphasizes the interplay between the paper and the evaluator. Past studies of composition evaluation have tended to focus on the paper or on the rater, but not both. The paper concludes that further experimental research on the evaluation process must be designed to examine the…

THE BOOKLET CONSISTS OF 14 IMPROMPTU THEMES WRITTEN IN 50 MINUTES BY FRESHMEN AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN, MADISON. TEACHERS' COMMENTS ARE INCLUDED FOR EACH THEME, AND A BRIEF HEADNOTE TO EACH GROUP OF THEMES EXPLAINS WHY THEY WERE RANKED "UNSATISFACTORY QUALITY,""MIDDLE QUALITY," OR "SUPERIOR QUALITY." THE…

The relationship between individualized instruction (II) and letter grades is an issue of considerable debate. Ultimately, II and the letter grade system are incompatible. Grading has been a traditional form for ranking or comparing students with respect to performance criteria. The scale typically has been A to F, whereas with individualized…

Dissatisfied both with lecturing to 125 students three times a week and with the idea of having teaching assistants conduct seminars, the author devised a new method of handling his class. With administration consent, he arranged to lecture to the whole class (by then, 275 students) twice a week and to conduct 11 seminars of 25 students each.…

The purposes of this study were to examine the relationship of students' and instructors' evaluations, to discover which elements of evaluation seem to best predict the grade awarded by each group, and to compare the dimensions of evaluative judgments for students and instructors. College students enrolled in a public speaking course at Indiana…