Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF EDUCATION in the department of EDUCATIONAL PlANNING AND ADMINISTRATION at the UNIVERSITY OF ZULULAND, 1989. / The aim of the study was to find out what the causes of standard 10 examination malpractices were. Standard 10 pupils, teachers, and principals were consulted and interviewed for this purpose. In this study two research methods were used; namely literature review and an empirical investigation. Literature was reviewed on the researched problem. Ndlovu (1983) maintains that some teachers are not in class during their teaching periods because they are in the staffroom or are not at school. Thus pupils involve themselves in examination malpractices in order to pass. The findings of this study were further backed up by Thembela (1982) who is of the opinion that copying is not prevented in some of the centres. In fact in some cases invigilators allow and encourage pupils to copy. There were three distinct samples to which questionnaires were administered. The questionnaire consisted of structured as well as the unstructured items for validity and reliability. The research was conducted among 300 pupils, 90 teachers and 11 principals. The researcher has preferred to use the questionnaire because it is more convenient and economical. By using a questionnaire one can have a lot of respondents without a lot of expense in time and effort. It covers a lot of people within a short space of time. The bigger the number of respondents the greater is the validity in the results. Each respondent receives the same set of questions which are phrased in the same way. The questionnaires are supposed to give a more comparable data. It took the researcher about 1 hour to get pupils, teachers and principals to complete the questionnaire. The researcher analysed data manually. Percentages were mainly used to analyse the pupils1, teachers1 and principals* responses. From the results it was found that standard 10 examination malpractices were caused by absenteeism of both teachers and pupils, lack of teaching equipment, laziness of both teachers and pupils, incompletion . of the syllabus, ^-.■stayg.ways.,-"; teachers-who are engaged in extra mural studies "-lack of prescribed books, and teachers who are not dedicated to their work. The following, hypotheses were formulated: (1) Stayaways, laziness and irresponsibility affect serious teaching and learning at school, leading in turn to the buying of stolen examination papers. (2) Tight security in the department prevents leakage. (3) If malpractices are suspected the department withholds results. (4) Some irresponsible members of^ the community sell stolen examination papers to pupils. The above hypotheses were proved valid in the analysis and interpretation of data. The findings of this study are recommended for further research.

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No description available.

Thesis (M.A.(Ed.))--University of Hong Kong, 1968. / Mimeographed.

This research dealt with the use of oral individual testing as a teaching technique, as well as an evaluative tool. The research was also concerned with students' self-concept, nervous anxiety level, and attitude toward testing. The purpose was to increase student comprehension of content material, and through practice and feedback, raise students' self-concept and reduce his/her nervous anxiety. The four research hypotheses were: (1) there will be a difference in ability to take and pass tests and improve test scores; (2) there will be a difference in student attitude toward oral and written testing; (3) there will be a difference in student self-concept; and (4) there will be a difference in nervous anxiety level. All of these differences were shown over a two-semester span of the experiment. The sample consisted of 33 anatomy-physiology students enrolled in two sections taught by the researcher. Students within each of the experimental classes were assigned to two groups of equal numbers of students which alternated between written and oral testing throughout a two-semester sequence. Instruments used in this study included teacher constructed tests on the human anatomical and physiological systems. The format was identical for both oral and written testing on a particular system. Data were gathered on all test scores: medians, modes, means, and standard deviations were computed. Statistical data included a two-way analysis of variance, tukey HSD and Scheffe Post Hoc Tests, Reliability and Internal Consistency computer checks on teacher made tests, Likert attitudinal scales, and Taylor-Johnson Temperament Analysis. A researcher-student developed five-point Likert was used to measure student attitude toward oral and written tests. The Taylor-Johnson Temperament Analysis was used to gather pre and post data on self-concept and nervous anxiety levels. Individual student test score profiles showed change in ability to take and pass tests, as well as an improvement trend over the two-semester sequence. These were graphed by individual, and by class, for comparison. Statistical analysis showed significant differences in oral and written test scores, so post hoc tests were used to detect these differences. The analysis indicated students were able to improve test taking ability enough to change ranks within the class itself. Students consistently scored higher on oral ests than on written tests of identical format. Reliability and internal consistency checks on teacher made tests showed .95 and .97 consistency on oral and written tests, respectively. Likert scales showed data strongly supporting a student preference for oral testing. This preference included the ability to better tell what they knew; the ability to verbalize, hear and elaborate. Taylor-Johnson Temperament Analysis, pre and post testing, showed a significant rise in self-concept and a decrease in nervous anxiety level over the research time span. Interpretation of the data led to the rejection of the four null hypotheses and to the acceptance of the four research or alternative hypotheses. Repetition of this research using larger numbers of students in different subjects, and by different teachers in a variety of grade levels, would increase the viability of these data and challenge others to try oral individual testing as an alternative method of testing. This, then, would serve as a learning tool for the student as well as an evaluative tool for the teacher.

Thesis (M.A.(Ed.))--University of Hong Kong, 1968. / Also available in print.

Keywords: Equating, IRT, Testlet Respons Model, Rasch Testlet Model, LSC, Concurrent, FPC / Test equating allows direct comparison of test scores from alternative forms measuring the same construct by employing equating procedures to put the test scores on the same metric. Three equating procedures are commonly used in the literature including the concurrent calibration method, the linking separate calibration methods (e.g. the moment methods and the characteristic curve methods), and FPC (Fixed Parameter Calibration) method. The first two types of methods for traditional IRT model have been well developed. FPC is being emphasized recently because of its utility for constructing item bank and computerized adaptive testing (CAT). However, there are few studies that examine the equating accuracy of the FPC method compared to that of the linking separate calibration method and the concurrent calibration method. / The equating methods for the traditional IRT model are not appropriate for linking testlet-based tests because the local independence assumption of IRT model cannot be held for this type of tests. Some measurement models, such as testlet response model, bi-factor model, and Rasch testlet model, were advanced to calibrate the models for the testlet-based tests. Few equating methods, however, that take into consideration the additional local dependence among the examinees' responses to items within testlets have been developed for linking testelet-based tests. / The first study compared the equating accuracies of the FPC, the linking separate calibration, and the concurrent calibration method based on the IRT model to equate item parameters under different conditions. The results indicated that the FPC method using BILOG-MG performed as well as the linking separate calibration method and the concurrent calibration method for linking the equivalent groups. However, the FPC method produced larger equating errors than the other two methods did when the ability distributions of the base and target groups were substantially nonequivalent. Differences in difficulties between the common items set and the total test did not substantially affect the equating results with the three methods, with other conditions being held equal. As expected, both small sample size and less number of common items led to slight greater equating errors. / The last study used the concurrent calibration method under the multidimensional Rasch testlet model to link the testlet-based tests in which the testlets were composed of dichotomous, polytomous, and mixed-format items. The results demonstrated that the concurrent calibration method under the Rasch testlet model worked well in recovering the underlying item parameters. Again, equating errors were substantially increased if the local dependences were ignored in model calibration. And smaller testlet variances for the common testlets led to more accurate equating results. / The results of the studies contribute to a better understanding of the effectiveness of the different equating methods, particularly those for linking testlet-based tests. They also help clarify influences of the other factors, such as characteristics of the examinees, features of the common items and common testlets on equating results. Testing practitioners and researchers may draw useful recommendations from the findings about equating method selection. Nevertheless, generalizations of the findings from the simulated studies to practical testing programs should be cautious. / The second study developed an item characteristic curve method and a testlet characteristic curve method for the testlet response model to transform the scale of item parameters. It then compared the effectiveness of the characteristic curve methods and the concurrent calibration methods under different conditions in linking item parameters from alternate test forms which were composed of dichotomously scored testlet-based items. The newly developed item characteristic curve method and the testlet characteristic curve method were shown to perform similarly as or even better than the Stocking-Lord test characteristic curve method and the concurrent calibration method did. Ignoring the local dependence in model calibration substantially increased equating errors. And larger testlet variances for the common testlets led to greater equating errors. / To address the need to better understand the FPC method and to develop new equating methods for linking testlet-based tests, the studies were to compare the effectiveness of the three types of equating methods under different linking situations and to develop equating methods for linking testlet-based tests. Besides the equating methods concerned, other factors, including sample size, ability distribution, and characteristics of common items and testlets that might affect equating results were also considered. Three simulation studies were carried out to accomplish the research purposes. / Zhang, Zhonghua. / Adviser: Yujing Ni. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 72-01, Section: A, page: . / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2010. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 156-166). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, MI : ProQuest Information and Learning Company, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, MI : ProQuest Information and Learning Company, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstract also in Chinese.

The Delton Silent Reading Test, Forms A and B, was developed as an alternate test for the Schonell Silent Reading Test which is currently used for screening the reading comprehension of special students. The aim of the Delton Silent Reading Test is to achieve greater consistency in mid-year and mid-program assessments for special students who were originally assessed with the Schonell Silent Reading Test. This study reports the development of the Delton Silent Reading Test and the validation process undertaken to determine the equivalence of content, readability levels, comprehension strategies, questioning strategies and student test scores on the Delton and Schonell tests. Results indicate that there is no significant difference between matched test items on the Delton and Schonell Silent Reading Tests for item content, readability levels and reading and questioning strategies. Results from correlations of student test scores indicated that test scores did not differ significantly. (r=.93,p<.000001) Results of correlations of teacher ratings of students' reading ability and student achievement on the Schonell Silent Reading Tests were inconsistent.(r=.76,r=-.09) / Graduation date: 1994

This study examined the effects of computer-assisted testing on text anxiety, achievement and student attitudes toward a course. One hundred students from an undergraduate educational psychology class were randomly assigned to one of two groups. The first group of students was assigned to take all of their unit examinations using computer-assisted testing (CAT). For those in the CAT group, examinations were presented on microcomputers. The second group of students took the same examinations using regular paper and pencil testing procedures (RT). With the exception of testing methods, an attempt was made to keep all other factors relating to course administration consistent for both groups. Pre and posttest measures of the students' levels of test anxiety were obtained during the course, using the Achievement Anxiety Test (AAT). Both debilitating and facilitating anxiety scores were used from the AAT. Achievement was assessed using a comprehensive final examination at the end of the course. Student attitudes toward the course were measured using a course evaluation form. It was hypothesized that assignment to CAT would result in higher scores on the facilitating anxiety scales and lower scores on the debilitating anxiety scale. The study also postulated that students exposed to CAT would demonstrate higher levels of performance on the final achievement test. Finally, it was theorized that students in the CAT group would rate the course more positively than the students exposed to regular testing procedures. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of variance procedures. The results of the analysis indicated that there were no significant differences between the CAT and RT groups in terms of test anxiety, achievement, or attitudes toward the course. In comparing traditional and computer-assisted testing, the present study suggests that it may be possible to obtain the ease of test administration, feedback, item analysis, and record keeping provided by a computer, without affecting student testing behaviors or test norms.

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