Discusses the advantages and disadvantages of test generation programs. Includes setting up, printing exams and "bells and whistles." Reviews eight computer packages for Apple and IBM personal computers. Compares features, costs, and usage. (CW)

Views teacher-made tests as a fundamental part of the educational process, defining instructional purposes, influencing what students study, and helping instructors gain perspective on their courses. Offers examples of test items that can perform these functions, while assessing knowledge and skills. (DMM)

Eight techniques for studying mathematics that can be taught during regular classroom instruction are presented and discussed with illustrations of their classroom use. (MNS)

Suggests open-ended study questions distributed early in the semester and later used on literature exams that will promote independent thinking and develop students' interpretive skills, while at the same time indicating whether the students have benefited fully from reading, lectures, and discussion. (HTH)

Reviews procedures followed in developing a set of science items for Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Geology content areas and examines the items' construct validity in relation to a specific technique of evaluation. Analysis supported the items' construct validity and viability for testing certain science skills at the secondary level. (ML)

Two studies examined second- through fifth-grade children's negative-item bias with responses to the Self Description Questionnaire and how it is related to cognitive development and reading achievement. Results showed that younger children and poorer readers responded less appropriately to negative items, thus biasing the interpretations of their…

Job relevance and adverse impact are major validity concerns relative to credentializing examinations. This article recommends that examination blueprints utilize a competency model based on: (1) job functions assigned; (2) level of expertise expected given the content and resources available; and (3) specific context and situation in which the…

Two matched forms of a 50 item grammar test were developed. Twenty items designed to be humorous were included in one form. Inclusion of humorous items did not affect grammar scores on matched humorous/nonhumorous items, nor on commmon post-treatment items. Inclusion did not affect results of anxiety measures. (Author/DWH)

This study added extraneous information and increased syntactical complexity to determine the relative importance of computational and reading abilities in solving arithmetic word problems. Analyzing tests of 200 sixth graders indicated the combined abilities accounted for 54 percent of the variance in solution accuracy. (BS)

Finds some evidence that out-of-level tests are more suitable and reliable for poor readers than are on-level tests. (FL)

This article presents a model that can be used by local school districts for reanalyzing standardized test results to obtain a more valid assessment of local learning objectives can be used to identify strengths/weaknesses of existing programs as well as individual students. (EGS)

The purpose of this study was to compare the relative robustness of the one-, two-, and modified two-parameter latent trait logistic models for the Iowa Tests of Educational Development. Results suggest that the modified two-parameter model may provide the best representation of the data. (Author/BW)

Using three different forms of a 61-item administrator/supervisor questionnaire, the effects of both order and grouping were examined in separate analyses. For low-inference type items, factor structures obtained from survey data appear to be affected by item order, and, to a lesser extent, by grouping items. (Author/PN)

Questions drawn from Britain's Open University's examinations illustrate the cognitive processes fundamental to making meaning from information, an important objective of education. It is concluded that education must encourage and assist students in drawing generalizations, distinguishing the particular from the general, and understanding the…

Investigated the validity of the assumption that arranging items in objective tests in order of increasing difficulty increases student motivation and produces more reliable tests. Results indicate that test reliability was largely independent of item sequence. (Author/JN)