This paper describes a novel method to create a quantitative model of an educational content domain of related practice item-types using learning curves. By using a pairwise test to search for the relationships between learning curves for these item-types, we show how the test results in a set of pairwise transfer relationships that can be…

With the demand for a demonstration of continuous progress as an accountability gauge in public schools, teachers are compelled to examine assessment data for each of their pupils. This data analysis, in turn, should help teachers gauge their instructional practices and differentiate instruction so that all can reach proficient levels of…

This study examines the relationship between certification examination test results and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) career success. The sample was drawn from the Longitudinal Emergency Medical Technician Attributes and Demographics Study (LEADS). LEADS participants were matched with National Registry of Emergency Medical Technician (NREMT)…

Using results from the Collegiate Learning Assessment (CLA) administered at Central Connecticut State University, a public Carnegie master's-larger programs university in the Northeast, this study demonstrates time on spent on the test, student motivation, and to a lesser extent the local institutional administration procedures represent…

This paper describes the development of Board policy on the reporting, release, and dissemination of National Assessment results and other relevant information. Through selected scenarios, it also illustrates the kinds of issues that required action by the Board. These issues have included concerns about the testing and reporting of English…

Because reliability is a function of scores, and not tests per se, it is inaccurate to hold that a given test will yield scores with the same reliability across samples. Therefore, score reliability should always be reported and interpreted in both measurement and substantive studies. In an effort to facilitate this outcome, this paper is intended…

This paper studies whether equating results can be improved if the variable that accounts for all systematic differences between equating populations is identified and used as an anchor in anchor test design or as a variable on which to match equating samples. The sample invariant properties of four anchor test equating methods (Tucker and Levine…

Validity is concerned with the clarification and justification of the intended interpretations and uses of observed scores. It has not been easy to formulate a general methodology set of principles for validation, but progress has been made, especially as the field has moved from relatively limited criterion-related models to sophisticated…

The tendency for some survey respondents to be unreasonably agreeable on attitude measures with an agree-disagree format is typically termed acquiescence, or acquiescent responding (AR). This paper suggests an alternative operational definition of AR plus a statistical test for identifying AR subjects. If positively and negatively phrased items…

The term "equating" refers to a statistical procedure that adjusts test scores on different forms of the same examination so that scores can be interpreted interchangeably. This study examines the impact of equating with fewer items than originally planned when items have been removed from the equating set for a variety of reasons. A…

The ability of students to interpret from, represent mathematical problems in, and interact with, a number of differing representations appears to be a crucial part of understanding mathematical concepts. Here we consider the role of representation in student understanding of derivative and present an outline framework for determining its…

Although the issue of dimensionality of the data obtained from educational and psychological tests has received considerable attention, the terms "unidimensional" and "multidimensional" have not been used very precisely. One use of the term dimensionality is to refer to the number of hypothesized psychological constructs…

Given the potential value of reliability generalization (RG) studies in the development of cumulative psychometric knowledge, the purpose of this paper is to provide a tutorial on how to conduct such studies and to serve as a guide for researchers wishing to use this methodology. After some brief comments on classical test theory, the paper…

Using data from a sample of 10 colleges at which most students had taken both the SAT I: Reasoning Test and SAT II: Subject Tests researchers simulated the effects of making selection decisions using SAT II scores in place of SAT I scores. Students in each college were treated as forming the applicant pool for a more select college, and the top…

A review course (RTC) for the Georgia Board of Regents' Reading Test (GRT) is provided in most institutions in Georgia's university system to help students who have not passed the GRT before they have earned 50 cumulative semester hours. A study was conducted to determine how RTC students' levels of test anxiety, as measured by the Test Anxiety…