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…

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.…

This study investigated the interaction between different cultural groups and item type, and the ensuing effect on construct validity for a psychological inventory, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI, Form G). The authors analyzed 94 items from 2 Chinese-translated versions of the MBTI (Form G) for factorial differences among groups of…

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…

This paper undertakes a review of the literature on writing cognition, writing instruction, and writing assessment with the goal of developing a framework and competency model for a new approach to writing assessment. The model developed is part of the Cognitively Based Assessments of, for, and as Learning (CBAL) initiative, an ongoing research…

Large scale testing in English affects second-language students not only greatly but also differently than first-language learners. The research literature reports that confounding factors in such large-scale testing such as varying test formats may differentially affect the performance of students from diverse backgrounds. An investigation of…

This article presents an analysis of Ordinate Corporation's PhonePass Spoken English Test-10. The company promotes this product as being a useful assessment tool for screening job candidates' ability in spoken English. In the real-life domain of the work environment, one of the primary target language use tasks involves extended production…

This study explored the differential performances of mathematics test items used to test secondary school girls and boys in the national examination. The main purpose was to find out whether type of items is the reason for girls' overachievement in the Malaysian mathematics national examination. To investigate seven types of items, Differential…

Prediction of the difficulty (equated delta) of a large sample (n=213) of reading comprehension items from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) was studied using main idea, inference, and supporting statement items. A related purpose was to examine whether text and text-related variables play a significant role in predicting item…

Issues concerning the cost and feasibility of using Formulating Hypotheses (FH) test item types for the Graduate Record Examinations have slowed research into their use. This project focused on two major issues that need to be addressed in considering FH items for operational use: the costs of scoring and the assignment of scores along a range of…

The Board of Registry (BOR) certifies medical technologists and other laboratory personnel. The BOR has studied adaptive testing for over 6 years and now administers all 17 BOR certification examinations using computerized adaptive testing (CAT). This paper presents an overview of the major research efforts from 1989 to the present related to test…

A series of computer simulations was run to measure the relationship between testlet validity and the factors of item pool size and testlet length for both adaptive and linearly constructed testlets. Results confirmed the generality of earlier empirical findings of H. Wainer and others (1991) that making a testlet adaptive yields only marginal…

The basic equations of item response theory provide a foundation for inferring examinees' abilities and items' operating characteristics from observed responses. In practice, though, examinees will usually not have provided a response to every available item--for reasons that may or may not have been intended by the test administrator, and that…

This booklet presents the Reading Framework for the 1992, 1994, and 1998 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Developed through a national consensus process as part of an effort to move assessment forward, the framework presented in the booklet is more consistent with contemporary knowledge about reading and more relevant to the…

The objective of this study was to determine the degree to which recommendations for passing scores, calculated on the basis of a traditional standard-setting methodology, might be affected by the mode (paper versus computer-screen prints) in which test items were presented to standard setting panelists. Results were based on the judgments of 31…