Shifting the focus of validity for test use

The conventional focus of validity in educational measurement has been on intended interpretations and uses of test scores. Empirical studies of test use by teachers, administrators and policy-makers show that actual interpretations and uses of test scores in context are invariably shaped by local users’ questions, which frequently require attention to multiple sources of evidence about students’ learning and the factors that shape it, and depend on local capacity to use such information well. This requires a more complex theory of validity that can shift focus as needed from the intended interpretations and uses of test scores that guide test developers to local capacity to support the actual interpretations, decisions and actions that routinely serve local users’ purposes. I draw on the growing empirical literature on data use to illustrate the need for an expanded theory of validity, point to theoretical resources that might guide such an expansion, and suggest a research agenda towards these ends.     

论未经登记房屋买卖合同的效力

不动产物权登记为物权公示原则的体现，而合同的效力则属合同法合同效力的问题，两者既有严格的区别，但又有密切的联系，物权变动只是物权公示和物权公信问题，而非决定不动产物权的合同效力，合同效力则依法律，行政法规规定应当履行批准，登记等手续的，则采用不动产交付和转移效力认定的登记生效主义和登记对抗主义。     

论保证期间的法律性质

保证期间既不属于诉讼时效,也不是除斥期间,而是一种独立的期间形态,即为失权期间.如果债权人不在该期间内行使权利,保证期间届满,其保证债权将在实体上消灭,保证人也由此而免责.     

一份阅读试题的评估(Ⅰ)

This paper evaluates a reading test designed as the final examination of some third year seeondary school students in Singapore. Based on the data, histogram is made to illustrate the distribution of different marks among the candidates. The paper then proceeds on to discuss the reliability and validity of the test. Problems affecting the validity of the test are pointed out and improvements are suggested.     

Assessing and Developing the Concept of Assumptions in Science Teachers

The practical work of the Hong Kong A-level biology course has been dominated by recipe-type activities. This can be related to the inadequate knowledge and skills of the teachers in teaching investigative work. Based on the responses to a written test, the present study indicates that most of the biology teachers attending a post-graduate teacher education course demonstrated a poor understanding of the notion of assumptions and could not evaluate experimental evidence with reference to the assumptions made. By using small-group and whole-class discussions with guiding questions, the teachers were able to construct successfully the concept of assumptions and develop a better appreciation of the nature and limitations of the process of scientific inquiry.     

The Bookmark Standard-Setting Method: A Literature Review

The Bookmark method for setting standards on educational tests is currently one of the most popular standard-setting methods. However, research to support the method is scarce. In this report, we review the published and unpublished literature on this method as well as some seminal work in the area of evaluating standard-setting studies. Our review highlights both strengths and limitations of the method. Strengths include its wide acceptance and panelist confidence in the method. Limitations include a potential bias to produce lower-than-intended standards and problems in selecting the most appropriate response probability value for ordering the items presented to panelists. It is clear that more research on this method is needed to support its wide use. Several areas for future research to better understand the validity of the Bookmark method for setting standards on educational tests are presented.     

A review scrutinising the consequential validity of dynamic assessment

This literature review explored whether dynamic assessment procedures in psycho-educational practice might bridge the well-known gap between diagnosis and intervention. Due to a learning phase included in the testing procedure, qualitative information about the child’s learning needs can be revealed by means of dynamic assessment. The question is, however, what the consequential validity, i.e. the extent to which assessment influences instructional and learning processes, of dynamic assessment procedures really is. The review of 31 articles that met the inclusion criteria showed that proximal consequential validity of dynamic assessment is warranted, but distal consequential validity is warranted to a lesser extent (e.g. some guidelines for practice). Furthermore, it can be noticed that motivational aspects never played an explicit role during learning phases. In order to design student-tailored interventions following dynamic assessment, there is a need for more explicitness of learning phases and types of feedback in the development of these instruments.     

Substituting SAT II: Subject Tests for SAT I: Reasoning Tests: Impact on Admitted Class Composition and Quality

Using data from a sample of 10 colleges at which most students had taken both SAT I: Reasoning tests and SAT II: Subject tests, we simulated the effects of making selection decisions using SAT II scores in place of SAT I scores. Specifically, we treated the students in each college as forming the applicant pool for a more select college, and then selected the top two thirds (and top one third) of the students using high school grade point average combined with either SAT I scores or the average of SAT II scores. Success rates, in terms of first-year grade point averages, were virtually identical for students selected by the different models. The percentage of African American, Asian American, and White students selected varied only slightly across models. Appreciably more Mexican American and Other Latino students were selected with the model that used SAT II scores in place of SAT I scores because these students submitted subject test scores for the Spanish test on which they had high scores.     

股票市场发展对货币政策的影响

我国股票市场历经十多年的发展,已逐渐成为影响货币政策的一个不可忽视的因素。股票市场发展对货币政策的挑战已经成为我国金融体制转轨过程中货币政策无法回避的现实问题,因此我国在实施货币政策时要关注金融资产价格,进一步推进利率市场化改革,开辟证券市场与货币市场之间资金合理流动的联系渠道,从而提高货币政策的有效性。     

Moving beyond academic achievement goal measures: A study of social achievement goals

The current research explored the theory of social goal orientation. More specifically, we conducted three studies utilizing six-independent university student samples to evaluate the construct validity of the Social Achievement Goal Orientation Scale (SAGOS; Ryan & Hopkins, 2003), a measure representing the construct of social goal orientation. The purpose of Study 1 was to: (1) compare the three-dimensional (mastery, performance-approach, and performance-avoidance) model of social goal orientation to three theoretically based competing models, (2) examine item functioning, and (3) assess generalizability of the factor structure. The fit of the proposed three-factor model was promising; however, areas of misfit and problematic items were identified. Stronger support for the three-factor structure of goal orientation was found using scores from an abbreviated 13-item SAGOS. In Study 2, item wording was altered slightly to evaluate a revised Social Achievement Goal Scale (SAGS), yet resulted in similar findings. Study 3 examined external validity evidence for the SAGS, garnering some support for the meaning of the scores. Although continued refinement of the SAGOS and SAGS is recommended, the findings help contribute to our general understanding and conceptualization of social goal theory and the role that social goals may play in academic contexts.