The known interval scale, referred to as the 7.8 scale, has been criticized as an invalid measuring instrument in the form of an attitude scale. It is the purpose of this paper to demonstrate that this scale can produce spuriously inflated correlation coefficients, high reliability, and false significance on statistical tests. The case will be…

This study investigates the underlying constructs of two instruments which purport to measure the locus of control of reinforcement variable. Instruments used were the IAR and the Career Development Responsibility Scale (CDR). Principal components analyses were computed separately for each instrument from the intercorrelation matrix of the items…

The problem of using a domain-referenced system of achievement tests is discussed as it relates to the design of instruction. Testing problems are discussed from the point of view that the teacher, pupil, and/or automation needs certain kinds of information in order to make instructional decisions that are adaptive to the individual learner. The…

The purpose of this paper is to acquaint the reader with the topic of test-wiseness. The first section of this paper presents a series of multiple-choice items. The reader is asked to respond to them and is encouraged to read carefully the remainder of this paper for techniques which could improve test-taking performance. The next section defines…

The variable of permissiveness developed and measured by Ira Reiss in the form of a Guttman scale of premarital sexual permissiveness was subjected to critical analysis. Both conceptual analysis and testing of questions regarding methodology and interpretation of the scale were used. Several questions were raised about the Reiss scale including:…

That teachers should be held accountable for conducting the best possible instructional processes, not for guaranteeing learning, is the view of the National Education Association (NEA). Because of the inadequate nature of tests of student achievement, the diverse nature of student populations, and the various conditions affecting learning, the…

During early attempts to interpret factors represented in scores on the Gumpgookies test, an instrument designed to tap motivation to achieve in young children, the factors identified by ordinary factor-analytic techniques were found to be confounded by the subjects' response sets. This paper proposes a method for defining objectively irrelevant…

Freshmen (N=202) took two batteries of aptitude tests 10 months apart. Six pairs of tests were studied. Two pairs were identical, two were parallel, and two were completely different. This design made it possible to separate three components of practice: (a) general test sophistication, (b) specific practice effect, and (c) item familiarization.…

Knowing questions in advance enabled students to structure their study process and to devote more time and effort to learning content. Student responses to this method of testing, test scores, and comparison with results from other methods showed that a high level of learning was achieved. (Author/MS)

The current controversy over standardized tests is not an effort to abandon assessment, rather it is an effort to develop assessment procedures that are more in keeping with a new set of educational and social assumptions. (Author/IRT)

The author reviews the advantages and disadvantages of standardized reading tests, with special reference to the new national reading tests designed by the Assessment of Performance Unit of the Department of Education and Science. (SJL)

In taking standardized tests, children are placed in a position over which they have no control, are directed to perform illogical tasks, and are told to act as if everything were perfectly logical. It is hard to overstate the negative impact of testing on young children. (Author/MJB)

Humanistic psychologists tend to describe psychodiagnostic assessment as nonhumanistic. They argue that assessment is reductionistic and artificial, ignores the examiner-patient relationship, judges people, and is overly intellectual. These concerns are then addressed from a pro-assessment perspective. (EVH)

Describes a school board's decision to employ a standardized reading proficiency test despite the fact that the test was proven to be passage independent and thus did not measure reading comprehension. (DD)

After analyzing four methods of selecting distractor items for multiple-choice tests, the authors recommend that classroom teachers use their own judgment in choosing test items. (Ed.)