Technical problems with norm-referenced achievement testing that can lead to the erroneous evaluation of schools for Chapter 1 Program improvement is discussed, and an alternative testing model is presented. The history of Chapter 1 testing and evaluation policies is briefly reviewed, and problems with the norm-referenced model are explored. Data…

This study investigated the appropriateness of Item Response Theory (IRT) models to analyze language test data. In a university second language institute, results of typical versions of tests of French as a Second Language (n=831 examinees) and of English as a Second Language (n=617 examinees) were subjected to non-linear factor analysis in…

Response latency information has been used in the past to provide information for consideration along with response accuracy when obtaining trait level estimates, and more recently, to flag unusual response patterns, to establish appropriate time-to-test limits (Reese, 1993), and to determine predictors of the amount of time needed to administer a…

We describe the item modeling development and evaluation process as applied to a quantitative assessment with high-stakes outcomes. In addition to expediting the item-creation process, a model-based approach may reduce pretesting costs, if the difficulty and discrimination of model-generated items may be predicted to a predefined level of…

Latent trait measurement theory was used to investigate the measurement characteristics of both parts of a multiple-choice measure of field-independence, the Finding Embedded Figures Test (FEFT). Analysis was based on data provided by 1,528 students enrolled in one of two middle schools located in the southern United States. Of the subjects, 731…

A new standard setting method, Mapmark, was recently developed by ACT Inc. in the course of a contract with the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) to set achievement levels for the 2005 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in Grade 12 mathematics. Mapmark includes elements of the bookmark method (Lewis, Mitzel, & Green, 1996;…

A 25-item Likert-type survey constructed to measure teachers' attitudes toward mainstreaming was analyzed using item response theory (IRT) and confirmatory factor analysis with responses of 917 Canadian teachers. A three-factor model fit the data well. Both factor scores and IRT scores can be used in discriminant analyses. (SLD)

Evaluates the measurement equivalence of an English-language version of the Trier Personality Inventory, using statistical methods based on item response theory to identify items displaying differential item functioning (DIF). Results with 295 U.S. and 213 West German undergraduates and 203 U.S. college students indicate significant agreement in…

The cognitive structure of an algebra test was defined and validated using the linear test model (LLTM) and quadratic assignment (QA) techniques. The LLTM is an extension of the Rasch model with a linear constraint that describes item difficulty in terms of the cognitive operations required to solve the item. The model permits the specification of…

The impact of test item multidimensionality was examined as it affected fitting items on a teacher licensure test to an item response theory (IRT) model. Test item data from the 1990 study of G. W. Guiton and G. Delandshere are used. The Connecticut Elementary Certification Test (CONNECT) is a licensure examination designed to assess the subject…

The purpose of this essay is to explore both what is known and what needs to be learned about the information value of performance items "when they are used in large scale assessments." Within the context of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), there is substantial motivation for answering these questions. Over the…

Performance of 156 undergraduate and 48 graduate students on a self-adapted test (SFAT)--students choose the difficulty level of their test items--was compared with performance on a computer-adapted test (CAT). Those taking the SFAT obtained higher ability scores and reported lower posttest state anxiety than did CAT takers. (SLD)

The implementation of the Rasch model during the longitudinal evaluation of a federally funded early-childhood preschool-intervention program is described. Results with 828 eighth graders show a functional relationship between years of early intervention and magnitude of effect on the life-skills competency variable. (SLD)

In the past decade, there have been ample interests in the assessment of cognitive and affective processes and products for the purposes of meaningful learning. Meaningful measurement (MM) has been proposed which is in accordance with a humanistic constructivist information-processing perspective. Students' responses to the assessment tasks are…

The partial credit model of G. N. Masters (1982), a one-parameter unidimensional polychotomous Rasch model, was used to reduce the error of measurement, particularly for students near the cut score, and to permit measurement to reflect the actual ability of a student more accurately by reducing the degree of misfit for students near the cut…