Assessment is a well understood educational topic with a really long history and a wealth of literature. Given this level of understanding of the topic, educational practitioners are able to differentiate, for example, between valid and invalid assessments. Despite the fact that we can test for the validity of an assessment, knowing how to systematically generate a valid assessment is still challenging and needs to be understood. In this thesis we introduce a similarity-based method to generate a specific type of questions, namely multiple choice questions, and control their difficulty. This form of questions is widely used especially in contexts where automatic grading is a necessity. The generation of MCQs is more challenging than generating open-ended questions due to the fact that their construction includes the generation of a set of answers. These answers need to be all plausible, otherwise the validity of the question can be questionable. Our proposed generation method is applicable to both manual and automatic gener- ation. We show how to implement it by utilising ontologies for which we also develop similarity measures. Those measures are simply functions which compute the similarity, i.e., degree of resemblance, between two concepts based on how they are described in a given ontology. We show that it is possible to control the difficulty of an MCQ by varying the degree of similarity between its answers. The thesis and its contributions can be summarised in a few points. Firstly, we provide literature reviews for the two main pillars of the thesis, namely question generation and similarity measures. Secondly, we propose a method to automatically generate MCQs from ontologies and control their difficulty. Thirdly, we introduce a new family of similarity measures. Fourthly, we provide a protocol to evaluate a set of automatically generated assessment questions. The evaluation takes into account experts' reviews and students' performance. Finally, we introduce an automatic approach which makes it possible to evaluate a large number of assessment questions by simulating a student trying to answer the questions.

The purpose of the current study is to measure whether delay discounting and impulsivity will differentiate between smokers and non-smokers. It is important to extend upon previous research to understand the effects of antecedent control of delay discounting and impulsivity. Research on this subject is important in developing effective interventions for impulsive behavior like smoking cigarettes. Two surveys were provided to participants: The Monetary Choice Questionnaire (MCQ-27) and the Barratt Impulsivity Scale (BIS-11). An unpaired t test was used to interpret results. Neither the MCQ-11 nor the BIS-11 had a significant difference. Further analysis was conducted comparing age differences using unpaired and paired t tests. There was significant data to support that self-ratings of impulsive behavior differed with age comparisons in the BIS-11. Smokers (ages 26-28) were more impulsive than non-smokers (ages 22-28), and smokers (ages 20-29) showed no statistical significance when compared to smokers (ages 52-68). The MCQ-27 did not show a significant difference in overt impulsive behavior.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-27T14:22:02Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Renato Campos Faustino.pdf: 508743 bytes, checksum: ebce4bb3b8e180b5d4481bd52b009826 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-11-09 / In order to identify consumer necessities, as well as understand consumer behavior, researchers have been developed different methodologies that allow them to analyze several factors involved in buying behavior. Nowadays, it has been growing research under the Behavioral Perspective Model, developed by Foxall (e.g. 1990), under the scope of Behaviorism and Behavior Analysis. Based in this approach, the present study primarily aimed to evaluate how 208 participants estimate cars knowing and quality, and evaluation of several attributes (comfort, safety, maintenance, durability, and price), and their importance in car s choice. Attributes analysis was not systematically different between car owners and non-owners, except for comfort, that was evaluated more positively by non-owners. Buying frequency data from October, 2008, and from all over this year were related to knowing-quality-mean (KQM). A power function fit to these data, and showed that knowing-quality-mean can be used as predictive for consumer behavior. / Com o objetivo de identificar as necessidades do consumidor e entender o comportamento do consumo, pesquisadores de comportamento do consumidor têm desenvolvido metodologias de estudo para analisar diversos fatores envolvidos na compra e/ou consumo de produtos ou serviços. Nos últimos anos tem sido crescentes as pesquisas que estudam o comportamento do consumidor a partir do Modelo na Perspectiva Comportamental, desenvolvido por Foxall (e.g. 1990) a partir dos princípios do Behaviorismo e da Análise do Comportamento. A partir desta abordagem o presente estudo teve como objetivo principal avaliar qualidade e conhecimento de carros 1.0, bem como a avaliação de diversos atributos (conforto, segurança, custo de manutenção, durabilidade, preço) e o grau de importância dessas características na escolha de um veículo para compra através da aplicação de questionários em 208 participantes de ambos os sexos, com idades entre 18 e 47 anos, possuidores ou não de carros. As análises dos atributos não diferiram sistematicamente entre o grupo de participantes que possuem carro e o grupo de participantes que não possuem carro, exceto para Conforto, avaliado mais positivamente pelo grupo de participantes que não possui carro. Os Dados de freqüência de compra de veículos 1.0 em 2008 (outubro e ao longo do ano) foram relacionados às médias de qualidade e conhecimento de 206 participantes. Uma função potência se ajustou a esses dados, mostrando que a Média de Qualidade e Conhecimento pode ser utilizada como uma medida preditora do comportamento do consumidor.

The purpose of this research study was to explore the relationship between learning styles, psychological types and multiple-choice standardized achievement examination performance of nurse aide students with typology being the gross indicator using a non-experimental, comparative and descriptive approach. The study sample included nurse aide students (N = 326) seeking nurse aide certification selected through a stratified random sampling technique. The participation rate for completed MBTI® inventory was 58.42% (N = 326). The learning styles and psychological types were measured against the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® Form M in North American English. The multiple-choice standardized achievement examination performance of nurse aide students was determined by Illinois Nurse Aide Competency Examination (INACE) conducted in January 2017. All the research questions and hypotheses compared mean of overall test scores and means of overall test scores based on specific duty areas (i.e. communicating information, performing basic nursing skills, performing personal skills, performing basic restorative skills, providing mental health and social service needs, and providing for residents’ rights) between different groups using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and one-way multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). The findings of the study indicated a statistically significant relationship between mean scores of nurse aide students with Sensing (S) and Intuition (N) learning preferences by perception on overall test performance and test performance based on specific duty areas of the INACE with the mean of nurse aide students with the Sensing (S) learning preference being numerically highest (M = 81.85) than Intuition (N) learning preference (M = 79.96%). Additionally, there were no statistically significant relationships between learning preferences by source of energy (Extraversion – E and Introversion – N), learning preferences by reaction to information or making decisions (Thinking – T and Feeling – F), learning preferences by preference to life style (Judging – J and Perceiving – P), learning preference combinations by orientation to energy and perception (IS, IN, ES, and EN), learning preference combinations by perception and attitude (SP, SJ, NP, and NJ), learning preference combinations by mental process (ST, SF, NF, and NT), and 16 psychological or personality types or learning approaches (ISTJ, ISFJ, INFJ, INTJ, ISTP, ISFP, INFP, INTP, ESTP, ESFP, ENFP, ENTP, ESTJ, ESFJ, ENFJ, and ENTJ) and Illinois Nurse Aide Competency Examination (INACE) performance among nurse aide students. The findings suggested that students with Introversion (I), Sensing (S), Thinking (T), and Perceiving (P) learning preferences had better overall test score on the Illinois Nurse Aide Competency Examination (INACE). Further research with a larger sample is recommended. The findings from the study and review of literature will guide nurse aide trainers and students, improve Illinois Nurse Aide Competency Examination; and increase nurse aide students’ retention efforts by utilizing the MBTI® assessment tool along with understanding and implementing the underlying concepts. Keywords: Personality Type, Psychological Type, Academic Achievement, Academic Aptitude, Type Theory, Standardized MCQ Tests, Standardized Tests, Cognitive Attribute, Academic Success, Achievement Tests, Learning Styles, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator®

The purpose of this essay then is to gain insight into the utilisation of MCQ’s within the field of law at Swedish upper secondary schools and in this question what kind of knowledge requirements can be tested with MCQ. Also, the difference in test results between non-MCQs and MCQ was analyses in large and when it came to gender. Here a MCQ test was evaluated based upon the knowledge requirements while quantitative date gathered from a utilisation of MCQ within the field of employment law was analysed. It was found that it should be possib- le to utilise MCQ within the field of law. With regards to difference in results between non- MCQ and the MCQ under scrutiny it was found that high performing students scored above one grade lower on MCQ than the average of three non-MCQ’s in other subjects. Low per- forming students experienced a little improvement in their results. There was a slightly diffe- rence when it came to score in between gender. Although the average female score on all tests where higher than their male counterpart, females scored a little lower on their first MCQ test. It was felt that the scope of this research is too small to allow any conclusions to be drawn.

Les travaux réalisés dans cette thèse proposent une aide à la décision pour améliorer la qualité de l’apprentissage. L’apprentissage scolaire englobe deux dimension; une dimension humaine et une dimension pédagogique. La dimension humaine inclut l’apprenant et l’enseignant. La dimension pédagogique, représentée par le programme fixé par l’établissement éducatif, correspond au savoir. Ce dernier va se transformer en connaissance chez l’apprenant. Les deux notions de connaissance et savoir sont donc tout à fait différentes. La distance entre les deux représente la distance entre ce que l’enseignant présente (le savoir) et ce que l’apprenant acquière (la connaissance). La qualité de l’apprentissage concerne les apprenants qui vont à l’école pour acquérir le savoir. En fait, apprendre consiste à intérioriser le savoir. Cette intériorisation demande des efforts pour un changement intellectuel persévérant et exige une continuité basée sur les expériences antérieures. L’acquisition du savoir et sa transformation en connaissance par l’apprenant sont influencées par plusieurs facteurs qui interviennent positivement ou négativement sur la quantité et la qualité de cette connaissance. Il peut résider chez l’apprenant une confusion entre les deux notions qui peut l’amener à valoriser ou ignorer sa connaissance. Le processus de construction des connaissances par le savoir diffusé exige une constante mise en œuvre de procédures d’évaluation. Le processus d’évaluation apprécie alors la structure de la connaissance pour prendre des décisions destinées à la faire évoluer. Cependant, lors d’une évaluation, la confusion entre connaissance et savoir peut amener l’apprenant à valoriser le score, négligeant ainsi le regard qu’il pourrait porter sur les processus de transformation des connaissances au profit d’une restitution la plus fidèle possible du savoir. Cette confusion peut être mise en évidence pourvu que l’évaluation intègre une dimension processuelle. Dès lors, l’évaluation peut être mieux associée à des actions d’amélioration et de transformation des connaissances. L’évaluation peut alors être abordée dans une logique d’aide à la décision. Dans ce travail nous montrerons donc qu’une situation d’apprentissage s’apparente à une situation d’aide à la décision. / The research realized in this thesis proposes a decision support to improve the quality of learning. The learning includes two dimensions; human dimension and pedagogic one. The human dimension includes the learner and the teacher. The pedagogic dimension represented in curriculum set by the educational establishment; it is the know. The learner is going to transform the know into knowledge. Thus the know and the knowledge are two notions completely different. The distance between both is the distance between what the teacher presents (the know) and what the learner acquires (the knowledge). The quality of the learning concerns the learners who go to the school to acquire the know. In fact, learning consists in interiorizing the know. This internalization requires the efforts for persistent intellectual change and demands continuity based on past experiences. The acquisition of knowledge and its transformation into knowledge by the learner is influenced by several factors that affect positively or negatively on the quantity and quality of this knowledge. The confusion between the know and the knowledge guide the learner to value or to ignore his knowledge. The knowledge construction process by the diffused know requires an constant evaluation process. The process of evaluation then appreciates the structure of knowledge to make decisions intended to make it evolve. However, during an evaluation, the confusion between knowledge and knowledge can bring learner to value the score so neglecting the importance which he must give for the transformation knowledge process in favor of the highest possible fidelity of knowledge. This confusion can be detected provided that the evaluation includes a processual dimension. Therefore, the evaluation may be better associated with improvement actions and transformation of knowledge. Then the evaluation can be addressed in a logical decision support. Therefore In this research we demonstrate that the learning situation is a decision aiding situation.

This study explored the effectiveness of a student question creation process engaging students actively in self, peer, and instructor interaction in development of affective, cognitive, and meta-cognitive skills. Employing a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design assigning both treatment and control activities sequentially in an alternating pattern over a six week period, students' performance on exams as well as their perceptions of various aspects of the student question creation process were used to evaluate the effectiveness of student-created questions (SCQs) activities as a cognitive strategy and to identify factors contributing to the effectiveness of question creation activities on students' learning. Subjects of this study were high performing and highly motivated graduate students in an 8-week online biomedical statistics course, part of a specialized master's program designed for medical school preparation. Survey findings and focus groups strongly supported the student question creation process as a facilitator of higher order thinking. However, the relatively short study duration, comparison of student question creation with another competing method for facilitating learning (discussion board) and not a pure control group, and availability of a common study guide course with student-created questions on all course topics may have muted assessment of the full impact of the strategy on learning. Although practically difficult in an education environment, further research to assess fully the impact of the student question creation strategy is desirable especially if these confounding factors can be greatly minimized, if not eliminated.