This study examined similarities and differences between blacks' and whites' responses to rarely endorsed Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) items, as well as those items responded to most differently by the ethnic groups. Our subjects, 882 normal black middle-class adults from Alabama, Michigan and North Carolina, were compared to…

The accuracy with which testees perceived the difficulty of ability-test items was investigated by administering two 41-item conventional tests on verbal ability. High- and low-ability groups responded to test items by choosing the correct alternative and then rating each item's difficulty relative to their levels of ability. Least-squares…

This study measures the stability of performance exhibited where different computer programing classes study the same material. By focusing standard measurement techniques on the item difficulty (the proportion of students answering an item correctly), it was determined that up to two-thirds of the reliable variance of a classroom test is held in…

A preliminary analysis of parent responses to questions related to factual information about the Virginia Beach 45-15 pilot elementary school program, where students attend classes 45 days and break 15 days year round, is provided. Specifically, the information component of the Virginia Beach 45-15 Pilot Project Questionnaire, which consists of…

To determine if Rasch Model procedures have any utility for equating pre-existing tests, data from the equating phase of the Anchor Test Study (ATS) were reanalyzed. This management report summarizes the work completed in the project, describes the differences in this project and that of the ATS, and presents recommendations and conclusions to the…

This report covers part of a project designed to develop and to make available to research workers markers for some of the temperament factors that have been established in the factor-analytic literature. An earlier report describes 28 such factors and defines several divisions of each factor, called subfactors, that appear in the literature to be…

The basic considerations that should be examined in performing an exploratory descriptive factor analysis of a communication concept are described in this paper. Factor analysis is a statistical technique designed to identify the fundamental, common elements within a pool of variables. For example, imagine asking students twenty questions all…

This research evaluated the total-time hypothesis for the learning of connected discourse--that in verbal learning "a fixed amount of time is necessary to learn a fixed amount of material regardless of the number of individual trials into which that time is divided." Learning material consisted of two sets of connected discourse for each of the…

Georg Rasch has developed a new one-parameter latent trait model to explain the performance of examinees on achievement tests. The model can be viewed as a special case of Birnbaum's two-parameter logistic model where all items are assumed to have equal discriminating power. Birnbaum's model permits items to vary in discriminating power. Both…

This project sought to develop a set of tests for the assessment of the basic literacy and occupational cognizance of pupils in those public elementary and secondary schools, including vocational schools, receiving services through Federally supported educational programs and projects. The assessment is to produce generalizable average scores for…

The concept of scaled achievement tests is discussed and a method of selecting those items of a test that form the most scalable (i.e., having the highest coefficient of reproducibility) subset is presented. Sometimes called a monotonic-deterministic model, this type of test assumes that the test items may be sequentially ordered. To determine the…

An attempt is made to explore the use of subjective probabilities in the analysis of item data, especially criterion-referenced item data. Two assumptions are implicit: (1) one wants to obtain a maximum amount of information with respect to an item using a minimum number of subjects; and (2) once the item is validated, it may well be administered…

Four applications of ordering theory analysis in the formative evaluation of an instructional program which is being developed for retarded children are described. Data from the pilot-testing of this program demonstrated two uses of ordering theory directly related to the formative evaluation of instruction: the testing of hypothesized…

Several criteria for assessing bias in educational tests are presented and discussed. These criteria were developed in accordance with basic notions of fairness, equality, and expanded life options for women. In terms of prescriptions for test developers, the criteria are: (1) tests should be constructed of items which contain either no sex…

An approach for clearer observation of differences when evaluating educational programs is presented. The standardized tests utilized in evaluating programs are designed to measure topics commonly taught and to maximize individual differences. This masks between-program differences and the unique aspects of different programs. Analysis of item…