A comparison of the relative ordering power of separate and grouped-items true-false tests indicated that neither type of test was uniformly superior to the other across all levels of knowledge of examinees. Grouped-item tests were found superior for examinees with low levels of knowledge. (Author/CTM)

Presents data indicating that a large number of multiple-choice problems gives a reasonable correlation with hand-graded problems. (SK)

Reports on a testing experiment (at the university level) dealing with the construction and validation of a university entrance test in Romance languages. Discusses the subtest "vocabulary," as to problems of validation--specifically, a self-rating test and an association-speed test. (IFS/WGA)

One reliable way to measure student writing ability is to gather and evaluate a series of writing samples or essays over a period of time. The use of multiple-choice tests in combination with essay assignments can be the most educationally sound solution to the administrative problems involved in college course placements. (Editor/LBH)

Nineteen multiple-choice nursing tests containing 673 items were analyzed for test wiseness, irrelevant difficulty in stem or option, linguistic/structural bias, or cultural bias. Twenty-eight types of flaws occurred at least 10 times each. (Contains 28 references.) (SK)

Investigates how second language intake was affected both by awareness and by the conditions under which a problem-solving task was performed. Spanish conditional sentences were presented to learners through five different degrees of explicitness. Intake was measured through a multiple-choice recognition test administered immediately after the…

The effect on examinee performance of the rule that multiple-choice (MC) test items require the acceptance of 1 choice was examined for 106 dental students presented with choices in MC and multiple true-false formats. MC items force examinees to select one choice, which causes artificial acceptance of correct/incorrect choices. (SLD)

Examines the effects of headings and adjunct questions embedded in expository text on the delayed multiple-choice test performance of college students. Finds that headings may promote the organization of passage information so as to increase its general availability, while the overall effect of adjunct questions was not significant. (MM)

Results of a study that assessed the effect of requiring students to wait for a short time interval before responding to computer-generated multiple choice test items support the notion that moderate delays enhance user performance on cognitive tasks. Three conditions of computer lockout were examined in a university psychology course. (12…

Analysis of advanced English-as-a-second-language students' responses to proficiency tests and conversational cloze tests after a six-month residency in England revealed that, while written multiple-choice tests clearly showed linguistic improvement, the oral cloze tests separated out subjects more effectively. (Author/CB)

Performances of 75 college students, matched for total study time, who wrote 1, 2, or no summaries while studying a text for recall were compared. Results support the hypothesis that less frequent summarizing (only 1) produces better performance. The effect can be obtained for recognition as well as recall. (SLD)

Findings from a study with approximately 200 first-year University of Calgary (Canada) nursing students provide evidence that the use of negation (e.g., not, except) should be limited in stems of multiple-choice test items and that a single-response negatively worded item should be converted to a multiple-response positively worded item. (SLD)

Interviews were conducted with 104 students in masters' level classes to determine their reasons for changing test answers. Subjects previously had been instructed in answer-changing strategies. Most changes were for thought out reasons; few were because of clerical errors. Reconsideration of test items is probably underestimated in…

Because assessment instruments of the future may well be composed of a combination of types of questions, a way to combine those scores effectively is discussed. Two new graphic tools are presented that show that it may not be practical to equalize the reliability of different components. (SLD)

Relationships between three approaches to learning (surface, deep, and achieving), prior knowledge of subject area, and performance on a multiple-choice test following a unit in basic psychology were investigated with 105 college freshmen. Approaches to learning were unrelated to test performance. Prior knowledge did not relate to a deep approach…