Research studies using booklet classification were implemented by the American College Testing Program to investigate the linkage between the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Achievement Levels Descriptions and the cutpoints set to represent student performance with respect to the achievement levels. This paper describes the…

Adapting credentialing examinations for international uses involves translating tests for use in multiple languages. This paper explores methods for evaluating construct equivalence and item equivalence across different language versions of a test. These methods were applied to four different language versions (English, French, German, and…

This paper describes the experience of the Clemson University (South Carolina) faculty in choosing and administering a commercially available standardized test to assess general education at that institution. The paper emphasizes the importance of faculty involvement in the assessment of general education and its impact on the success of the…

An alternative to multiple-choice (MC) testing is suggested as it pertains to the field of radiologic technology education. General principles for writing MC questions are given and contrasted with a new type of MC question, the alternate-choice (AC) question, in which the answer choices are embedded in the question in a short form that resembles…

Traditional tests fall into two categories, both of which have several advantages and disadvantages that need to be considered when determining the type of test to use. Constructed-response tests, such as essay tests, ask students to construct their own responses. Thus, students are required not only to recall but to organize and often apply…

Writing teachers and educators can add to information from large-scale testing and teachers can strengthen classroom assessment by creating a tight fit between large-scale testing and classroom assessment. Across the years, large-scale testing programs have struggled with a difficult problem: how to evaluate student writing reliably and…

This paper clarifies important distinctions in item writing and item scoring and considers the implications of these distinctions for developing guidelines related to test construction for training teachers. The terminology used to describe and classify paper and pencil test questions frequently confuses two distinct features of questions:…

This study investigates the effects of increasing the test time to reduce the speededness of the verbal and quantitative experimental sections of the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) Aptitude Test. In December 1976, at approximately 550 domestic test centers, 20- and 30-minute versions of a verbal experimental test and of a quantitative…

Direct assessments of the accuracy with which raters can use a rating instrument are presented. This study demonstrated how surplus behavioral incidents scaled during the development of Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scales (BARS) can be used effectively in the evaluation of the newly developed scales. Construction of scenarios of hypothetical…

The IDEA Oral Language Proficiency Test (IPT II), an individually-administered measure of speaking and listening proficiency in English as a Second Language designed for secondary school students, is described and discussed. The test consists of 91 items and requires 5-25 minutes to administer. Raw scores are converted to one of seven proficiency…

A study of general student performance in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland undertaken in 1975 is described, and efforts toward developing a new system of school-leaving examinations are discussed. The study was designed to assess existing student evaluation instruments, create new evaluation techniques and instruments, promote cooperation…

Current issues in the literature on the testing of linguistic and communicative proficiency are reviewed and discussed in relation to reading comprehension testing. Several theoretical issues in language testing are discussed, including testing purposes and test validity. Areas of concern regarding methods of testing reading comprehension are then…

This module contains resource materials to help vocational education teachers construct effective written tests. (The materials supplement the videotape on "Written Test Construction.") Materials in the packet include guidelines for developing written tests in general and specific guidelines for the five major types of test items, brief…

This article presents the perspective that the quality of teacher-made, small classroom tests has not improved, and may have declined in recent years. This decline may be due to the fact that teachers have come to believe that the kinds of objective items used in national standardized tests are the only item types appropriate for classroom use.…

Three experiments were conducted in order to clarify the encoding/retrieval dilemma in older adult students; and the recognition/recall test issue was also explored. First, a mnemonic technique based on the "key word" method of Funk and Tarshis was used; secondly, a semantic processing task was tried; and lastly, a repetition task, based…