This investigation of 360 tests administered in English, mathematics, science, and social studies classes in grades 7 and 10 found that the most frequent question type was multiple choice, which poses particular problems for students with mild handicaps. The majority of questions were at the knowledge level, either recognition or production.…

The relationship between 15 emotional indicators on the Bender Gestalt Test and the acting out behavior of 93 children, ages 5 to 12, as rated by their teachers, was investigated. Use of the Bender as a projective measure was seriously questioned. The ten-item behavioral rating scale is appended. (MH)

The media has recently exposed that grade inflation is a concern for higher education in North America. Grade inflation may be due to consumerism by universities that now compete for students. Keeping students happy (and paying) may have been emphasized more than learning. We review the literature on faculty evaluation and present a model that…

Reports on a study designed to determine whether or not biology students were being disadvantaged by taking computer tests instead of written paper forms of the same tests. Results indicated that mean scores on computer-administered and written forms of the same test were approximately equivalent. (TW)

A study assessed the impact of a teacher-training workshop at Israel's Ben Gurion University's medical school which focused on classroom interaction. Results of the workshop indicated verbal teacher-student interactions significantly outnumbered individual statements; interactions increased, especially in larger classes; cognitive correspondence…

Analysis of response strategies employed by 261 undergraduate chemistry students when answering multiple-choice and stem-equivalent constructed-response questions revealed no significant differences in types of solution strategies or types of errors across test format. However, analysis of student oral reports revealed a higher frequency of…

Describes a project consisting of reanalyzing survey data showing Asian-American science and engineering majors to be less content with their undergraduate experiences and their field of study than other students. Results raised the question as to whether Asian Americans were really less content or whether their style of responding instead…

The way students, aged 12 through 16, ascribed meaning to coded words representing historical terms, based on contextual clues, was studied. Intelligence, grammatical ability, cultural background, and interest in history were also examined. (Author/MH)

Briefly presents the results of a study comparing the responses of Asian Canadian students and European Canadian students for evidence of social responsibility bias. Using the Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding, the study found little evidence of bias. Discusses implications and weaknesses of the experiment. (MJP)

An age-dependent answer-selection sequence of answers on multiple-choice tests suggested by previous studies was supported using statistical rather than clinical means. Results with 2,810 students aged 88 months through 241 months given a reading comprehension test twice during a 5-month interval support the systematically connected age-dependent…

Gives examples of major sources of unreliability in multiple choice items in health professions classroom achievement tests (clues to response combinations, mutually exclusive alternatives, implausible distractors) and offers some suggestions for eliminating them when writing such tests. (MF)

Performance of 162 children, ages five to seven, on concept formation and perception tests indicated that enforced delay in responding minimally affected all reflective subjects and impulsive boys; impulsive girls improved. (Available in microfiche from: Carfax Publishing Company, Haddon House, Dorchester-on-Thames, Oxford 0X9 8JZ, England.) (CP)

Although student evaluation of instruction has been shown to produce reliable results over class averages, considerable within-class variability exists that has not been investigated. This study looked at examples of student evaluations in which students diametrically differed in their evaluation of the same instructor. Patterns were noted. A…

Explores the cumulative impact of repeated standardized testing on student attitudes and motivation. By high school, a large number of students, especially low achievers, become disillusioned about tests, are less motivated to give genuine efforts, and increasingly use inappropriate test-taking strategies, undermining test validity and genuine…

Identifies problems with the Approaches to Studying Inventory (ASI) as a survey instrument for use with non-Western students. A study using ASI attempted to examine the effects of secondary educational experiences on Fiji college students' study habits. Responses suggested the students were influenced by an acquiescent response bias. (MJP)