In 1985, reading and mathematics achievement tests were administered to nearly 15,000 fourth and eighth graders in Alaska. Educators comprising the Interpretive Panel developed a minimum and a desired level of performance. Scores below the minimum indicated a weakness; scores above it, a strength, and scores between, satisfactory achievement. The…

This paper presents the dual approach to item bias detection employed in the Maryland Functional Testing Program (MFTP). Using instructional objectives mandated by the Maryland State Board of Education, the MFTP develops two levels of the Maryland Functional Reading Test (MFRT) and the Maryland Functional Mathematics Tests (MFMT). These…

A number of hypotheses were tested concerning elements of Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) items that might affect the performance of blacks and whites differently. These elements were characteristics common to several items that otherwise measured different concepts. Seven general hypotheses were tested in the form of sixteen specific…

The agreement between Mantel-Haenszel and Rasch procedures for identifying differential item functioning (DIF) on teacher certification tests was studied. Two specific research questions were addressed: (1) whether the Mantel-Haenszel and Rasch procedures identify the same items as functioning differently; and (2) how consistently each method…

This study explores the use of the modified caution index (MCI) for identifying judges whose patterns of recommendations suggest that their judgments might be based on incomplete information, flawed reasoning, or inattention to their standard-setting tasks. It also examines the effect on test standards and passing rates when the test standards of…

Greater knowledge about the practical application of Rasch technology can help in avoiding misapplications and confusions in testing programs. Equal interval curriculum-based scaling makes possible the following improvements in measuring basic skills achievement by enabling testing programs to: (1) individualize the difficulty level of…

The content characteristics of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) are examined from a communicative viewpoint, based on current theory in applied linguistics and language proficiency assessment. The study employed a four-part operational framework. The first component analyzed the communicative characteristics of a language…

This study uses the relationship marketing theory of commitment and trust as a framework to investigate the issue of student retention in business schools. Structural equation modeling was used to examine relationships specified by Morgan and Hunt's (1994) theory of relationship marketing. Students' commitment to the business schools were…

Appropriateness indexes (statistical formulas) for detecting suspiciously high or low scores on aptitude tests were presented, based on a simulation of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) with 3,000 simulated scores--2,800 normal and 200 suspicious. The traditional index--marginal probability--uses a model for the normal examinee's test-taking…

Four problems faced by the staff of the California Assessment Program (CAP) were solved by applying Rasch scaling techniques: (1) item cultural bias in the Entry Level Test (ELT) given to all first grade pupils; (2) nonlinear regression analysis of the third grade Reading Test scores; (3) comparison of school growth from grades two to three, using…

The Edmonton Grade III Achievement: 1956-1977 study is a comparison of achievement in reading, arithmetic, and language involving all of the third grade students in a large school system. Six basic skills tests which were administered to all of the Edmonton third grade students in 1956 were reprinted and administered to all of the third grade…

This amicus curiae was filed by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) in the case of the United States of America and North Carolina Association of Educators v. North Carolina, which involved the validity of North Carolina's use of the National Teacher Examinations (NTE). The NTE, a battery of achievement tests designed to measure the academic…

The Kentucky Education Assessment Program is an ongoing effort to gather information regarding progress toward attainment of the educational goals for Kentucky citizens. Major emphasis is on the determination of the actual level of pupil performance in relation to desired performance. In the eighth grade, relevant information was gathered in five…

The Multnomah (Oregon) County Intermediate Education District conducted a three year project to develop a computer-based test development resource for classroom teachers. It sought: 1) to identify instructional objectives for various curricula and grade levels; 2) to develop a pool of test items to measure attainment of objectives; 3) to design a…

The purpose of this project was to develop a non-verbal self-administering values inventory appropriate for children grades one to three. Children from five ethnic groups were administered a 60-item picture inventory designed to measure dimensions of value based on needs. Factor analyses of the resulting item inter-correlations for the total…