Section Pre-Equating (SPE) is a method used to equate test forms that consist of multiple separately timed sections. SPE does not require examinees to take two complete forms of the test. Instead, all of the old form and one or two sections of the new form are administered to each examinee, and missing data techniques are employed to estimate the…

This paper addresses questions of whether positively- and negatively-worded items measure the same construct and whether the rating scale categories "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree" are used in the same way for both types of items. Item response theory (IRT), specifically the Andrich Rating Scale Model (B. Wright and G.…

A common procedure for obtaining multiple readings (ratings) for a constructed response item, especially in high-stakes tests, is to have two readers read the papers independently, with a third reading if the results differ by more than one point. This necessitates a scoring rule that specifies how the ratings will be aggregated into a single item…

This preview of the Tests of General Educational Development (GED) to be introduced in 1988 begins with a brief background of the review process that will result in the GED Test. An overview of committee recommendations then highlights five themes of Test Specifications Committee panel reports: the tests should (1) demand more highly developed…

The purpose of this study was to apply the tenets of social exchange theory in developing cover letters for mailed surveys. A survey questionnaire designed to measure teachers' attitudes toward tests was mailed to 1200 Kansas teachers. Cover letters were written to create variation in perceived cost (time needed to complete the questionnaire) and…

The study investigated the effect of "item density" on item difficulty in passage-related language tests. Item density refers to the number and frequency of items in relation to clear text. The format used was a passage with underlinings to signal the language situations out of which the items were constructed. American College Testing…

The Ralph Nader report on the Educational Testing Service (ETS), entitled The Reign of ETS, the Corporation That Makes Up Minds, explicitly and implicitly raises serious issues concerning the testing enterprise. Major themes include the role of testing in the educational selection system, the validity of existing tests, and the corporate power of…

Two variables directly related to understanding and improving notetaking practices and instructional strategies were investigated. The first variable investigated was the different levels of pretraining: pretraining vs. no pretraining; and the second was the influence of three types of test mode expectations: multiple choice, essay, or…

Provides recommendations to aid teachers (elementary and secondary) in planning tests, constructing item types (essay, short answer, true-false, or other alternate response, matching, multiple-choice), administering tests, scoring tests, analyzing tests, and using test results. (KH)

Discusses, for the benefit of research workers and other test users, the ongoing controversy concerning the relative merits of conventional test theory and Rasch scaling in the construction of reading tests. Concludes that a great deal of further research is required to see whether these approaches are educationally valid. (JD)

Either positive or negative test instructions and two item types (attitude or personality) were administered to undergraduates. Students were more likely to respond true when receiving positive instructions. Students receiving attitude test instructions were not more likely to respond true than students receiving personality test instructions.…

The microcomputer version of the Ohio Vocational Interest Survey (OVIS II) differs from the machine-scored version in its ability to incorporate data from the OVIS II:Career Planner in its printed report. It differs from the hand-scored version in its ability to include data from the OVIS II:Work Characteristic Analysis in its printed report.…

Performances of 64 sixth-grade readers on a traditional and three alternative types of cloze tests were compared. Results confirm and extend the findings of earlier studies investigating cloze alternatives. Advantages of the alternate forms are discussed. (Author/MT)

Take-home examinations were compared with in-class examinations to determine which was a more effective learning vehicle. Results suggest that in-class examinations produce a greater amount of study and learning by college students. (Author/DF)

Suggestions for software design in computer managed testing (CMT) cover instructions to testees, their physical format, provision of practice items, and time limit information; test item presentation, physical format, discussion of task demands, review capabilities, and rate of presentation; pedagogically helpful utilities; typefonts; vocabulary;…