This paper reports a multi-method approach for examining the cognitive level of multiple-choice items used in a medical pathology course at a large midwestern medical school. Analysis of the standard item analysis data and think-out-loud reports of a sample of students completing a 66 item examination were used to test assumptions related to the…

This manual is designed to assist faculty members at the University of North Dakota (UND) in the construction, scoring, and analysis of their classroom tests. A computer program is described which will assist staff in test scoring and analysis. The program was developed by the author in the Office of Medical Education and Evaluation of the…

This Graduate Record Examination (GRE) study assesses: (1) the relative contribution of a vocabulary score (consisting of GRE General Test antonyms and analogies) and a reading comprehension score (consisting of GRE sentence completion and reading comprehension sets) to the prediction of self-reported undergraduate grade point average (GPA); and…

A series of studies was conducted to investigate the nature of children's goals and the role of goals in children's competence in peer relations. First, a conceptual framework was devised which consisted of eight goal types reflecting social-interpersonal and task-related achievement aspects of game playing: task mastery, approach-oriented…

Research partially supported by the UCLA Center for the Study of Evaluation of Instructional Programs.

Replicating a 1978 study of methods of setting cut-off scores in standardized tests for student placement, the Rasch model was used to estimate ability levels and item difficulty for use in determining the probability of course success. Community college students were administered the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Tests and items were…

A new method of analysis was used in the Michigan Educational Assessment Program to test minimum competencies in fourth grade reading achievement. This technique permitted a substantial decrease in testing time and costs. The original test consisted of 95 items measuring 19 objectives; mastery was indicated by correct responses to four out of the…

A comparative study of item analysis was conducted on the basis of race to determine whether alternative test construction or processing might increase the proportion of black enlisted personnel among those passing various military technical knowledge examinations. The study used data from six specialists at four grade levels and investigated item…

This paper presents the advantages of computer generated tests over traditional tests, outlines the procedures followed in developing a test of music fundamentals, and concludes with the results of a trial of the test. The test, which was developed and programmed in BASIC at Oregon State University, covers elements of notation, intervals and…

The authors argue that personnel who select standardized achievement tests have been led to believe that the major achievement test batteries differ very little in terms of the topics they test; but that the content covered by these major tests is different, and that such differences have consequences for instructional content. To test this…

This teacher's manual describes major ways in which the accompanying Item Bank can be used--that is, for achievement tests, diagnostic tests, the introduction of new topics, stimulus for class discussions, evaluation of curriculum and teaching methods, and as models for constructing multiple-choice questions. Rationale for the use of…

A structured, time-referenced, performance examination was designed as part of the certification procedure for Emergency Medical Technicians-Ambulance in an attempt to increase objectivity and standardization. This examination is based on a model developed by the University of Southern California, School of Medicine, Department of Emergency…

Five questionnaire forms containing 61 items specifying potential inservice topics for public school teachers were sent to a stratified random sample of Indiana public school administrators and curriculum supervisors. The five forms differed in that, for two forms, the items were ungrouped and appeared in different orders; and, for three forms,…

A study was conducted to develop a behaviorally anchored rating scale for the evaluation of college teaching that could be used in all academic areas and that would reduce leniency, central tendency, and other rater biases. The Smith-Kendall procedure was modified by having undergraduate subjects generate behavioral examples for specified levels…

Questions are addressed pertaining to the Language Assessment Battery (LAB), currently the only single battery that meets all of the state of Connecticut criteria for an instrument to determine which pupils must be offered bilingual education. Normed on an English dominant population, the primary purpose was to obtain its psychometric…