A avaliação da compreensão leitora em espanhol língua estrangeira: análise de provas de vestibular

Analisa quantitativa e qualitativamente a avaliação da compreensão leitora do Espanhol Língua Estrangeira em provas de vestibular da região norte do Brasil, para assim evidenciar os tipos de operações e, dessa maneira, os tipos de modelos de leitura privilegiados nos testes analisados; estabelecer uma relação entre as provas coletadas e as concepções didáticas subjacentes; identificar problemas nos itens das provas com base em uma série de parâmetros de qualidade; analisar a validade dos testes selecionados; e detectar possíveis diferenças entre as provas elaboradas por Instituições de Ensino Superior públicas e privadas. Essa análise evidencia, por um lado, a tendência a se priorizarem, nessas provas, modelos ascendentes de leitura, com valorização das operações cognitivas de baixo nível e de aspectos léxico-gramaticais da língua, como conseqüência de uma concepção didática de leitura baseada em um enfoque estruturalista. Por outro lado, o estudo empreendido mostra a existência de sérias deficiências nos itens das provas de vestibular, afetando assim sua validade.

Use of cognitive interviewing in the development of a Spanish language genetic knowledge instrument

Study purpose. Genetic advances are significantly impacting healthcare, yet recent studies of ethnic group participation in genetic services demonstrate low utilization rates by Latinos. Limited genetic knowledge is a major barrier. The purpose of this study was to field test items in a Spanish-language instrument that will be used to measure genetic knowledge relevant to type 2 diabetes among members of the ethnically heterogeneous U.S. Latino community. Accurate genetic knowledge measurement can provide the foundation for interventions to enhance genetic service utilization. ^ Design. Three waves of cognitive interviews were conducted in Spanish to field test 44 instrument items Thirty-six Latinos, with 12 persons representative of Mexican, Central and South American, and Cuban heritage participated, including 7 males and 29 females between 22 and 60 years of age; 17 participants had 12 years or less of education. ^ Methods. Text narratives from transcriptions of audiotaped interviews were qualitatively analyzed using a coding strategy to indicate potential sources of response error. Through an iterative process of instrument refinement, codes that emerged from the data were used to guide item revisions at the conclusion of each phase; revised items were examined in subsequent interview waves. ^ Results. Inter-cultural and cross-cultural themes associated with difficulties in interpretation and grammatical structuring of items were identified; difficulties associated with comprehension reflected variations in educational level. Of the original 44 items, 32 were retained, 89% of which were revised. Six additional items reflective of cultural knowledge were constructed, resulting in a 38-item instrument. ^ Conclusions. Use of cognitive interviewing provided a valuable tool for detecting both potential sources of response error and cultural variations in these sources. Analysis of interview data guided successive instrument revisions leading to improved item interpretability and comprehension. Although testing in a larger sample will be essential to test validity and reliability, the outcome of field testing suggests initial content validity of a Spanish-language instrument to measure genetic knowledge relative to type 2 diabetes. ^ Keywords. Latinos, genetic knowledge, instrument development, cognitive interviewing ^

Validation and reliability of the Modified Elderly Mobility Scale

Objective: To establish concurrent validity, interrater and test-retest reliability of the Modified Elderly Mobility Scale (MEMS). Methods: Ninety elderly patients were scored on the MEMS. To establish concurrent validity, 75 patients MEMS scores were compared to Functional Independence Measure (FIM) scores using Spearman's correlation. Videotaped patient performances were used to establish interrater and test-retest reliability using percentage absolute agreement and intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs). Results: The total MEMS score demonstrated a significant association with the motor (r = 0.725) and total FIM scores (r = 0.718). Absolute agreement for interrater reliability was greater than 93% for all test items, with 97 and 98% for the two new measures, respectively. Test-retest reliability demonstrated similar high levels of absolute agreement and had ICCs ranging from 0.870 to 1.0. Conclusions: The MEMS is a quick, valid and reliable test of motor function of elderly patients with a spread of functional levels.

An investigation into children’s inductive reasoning strategies:What drives the development of category induction?

In a series of studies, I investigated the developmental changes in children’s inductive reasoning strategy, methodological manipulations affecting the trajectory, and driving mechanisms behind the development of category induction. I systematically controlled the nature of the stimuli used, and employed a triad paradigm in which perceptual cues were directly pitted against category membership, to explore under which circumstances children used perceptual or category induction. My induction tasks were designed for children aged 3-9 years old using biologically plausible novel items. In Study 1, I tested 264 children. Using a wide age range allowed me to systematically investigate the developmental trajectory of induction. I also created two degrees of perceptual distractor – high and low – and explored whether the degree of perceptual similarity between target and test items altered children’s strategy preference. A further 52 children were tested in Study 2, to examine whether children showing a perceptual-bias were in fact basing their choice on maturation categories. A gradual transition was observed from perceptual to category induction. However, this transition could not be due to the inability to inhibit high perceptual distractors as children of all ages were equally distracted. Children were also not basing their strategy choices on maturation categories. In Study 3, I investigated category structure (featural vs. relational category rules) and domain (natural vs. artefact) on inductive preference. I tested 403 children. Each child was assigned to either the featural or relational condition, and completed both a natural kind and an artefact task. A further 98 children were tested in Study 4, on the effect of using stimuli labels during the tasks. I observed the same gradual transition from perceptual to category induction preference in Studies 3 and 4. This pattern was stable across domains, but children developed a category-bias one year later for relational categories, arguably due to the greater demands on executive function (EF) posed by these stimuli. Children who received labels during the task made significantly more category choices than those who did not receive labels, possibly due to priming effects. Having investigated influences affecting the developmental trajectory, I continued by exploring the driving mechanism behind the development of category induction. In Study 5, I tested 60 children on a battery of EF tasks as well as my induction task. None of the EF tasks were able to predict inductive variance, therefore EF development is unlikely to be the driving factor behind the transition. Finally in Study 6, I divided 252 children into either a comparison group or an intervention group. The intervention group took part in an interactive educational session at Twycross Zoo about animal adaptations. Both groups took part in four induction tasks, two before and two a week after the zoo visits. There was a significant increase in the number of category choices made in the intervention condition after the zoo visit, a result not observed in the comparison condition. This highlights the role of knowledge in supporting the transition from perceptual to category induction. I suggest that EF development may support induction development, but the driving mechanism behind the transition is an accumulation of knowledge, and an appreciation for the importance of category membership.

Dyslexia - towards diagnosis : the implications of corical laterality for children's reading difficulties

Dyslexia as a concept is defined and reviewed in a context of psychological, neurological and educational processes. In the present investigation these processes are recognised but emphasis is placed on dyslexia as a phenomenon of a written language system. The type of script system involved in the phenomenon is that of an alphabetic code representing phonological elements of language In script form related to meaning. The nature of this system is viewed In the light of current linguistic and psycholinguistic studies. These studies based as they are on an analysis of underlying written language structures provide a framework for examining the arbitrary and rule-governed system which a young child is expected to acquire. There appear to be fundamental implications for reading, spelling and writing processes; for example an alphabetic system requires recognition of consistent script-phonetic relationships, 'mediated word identification' and in particular uni-directional sensory and motor modes of perceiving. These are critical maturational factors in the young learner. The skills needed by the child for decoding and encoding such a phonemic script are described in a psychological and neuropsychological framework. Evidence for individual differences in these skills is noted and the category of the dyslexic-type learner emerges. Incidence is related to the probabilities of individual differences in lateralisation of brain function not favouring the acquisition of our script system In some cases. Dyslexia is therefore regarded as a primary difficulty consequent upon the incompatibility between:the written language system itself and the intrinsic, developmental skills of an individual's perceptual/motor system. It is recognised that secondary stresses e.g. socio-cultural deprivation, low intellectual potential or emotional trauma can further inhibit the learning process. Symptomology of a dyslexic syndrome is described.. The symptomology is seen by the writer to constitute a clinical entity. a specific category of learning difficulty for which predictive and diagnostic procedure could be devised for classroom use. Consequently an index of relevant test items has been compiled, based upon key clinical experiences and theoretical writings. This instrument knovn as the Aston Index is presented and discussed. The early stages of validation are reported and the proposed longtitudinal studies are described. The aim is to give teachers in the classroom the power and understanding to plan more effectively the earliest stages of teaching and learning; in particular to provide the means of matching the nature of the skill to be acquired with the underlying developmental patterns of each individual learner.

Construction and evaluation of achievement tests In English

Доклад, поместен в сборника на Националната конференция "Образованието в информационното общество", Пловдив, май, 2011 г.

Knowledge and use of asthma control measurement tools in the management of asthma: a survey of doctors working in family and internal medicine practice in Nigeria.

Objective: To investigate the knowledge and use of asthma control measurement (ACM) tools in the management of asthma among doctors working in family and internal medicine practice in Nigeria. Method: A questionnaire based on the global initiative on asthma (GINA) guideline was self-administered by 194 doctors. It contains 12 test items on knowledge of ACM tools and its application. The knowledge score was obtained by adding the correct answers and classified as good if the score ≥ 9, satisfactory if score was 6-8 and poor if < 6. Results: The overall doctors knowledge score of ACM tools was 4.49±2.14 (maximum of 12). Pulmonologists recorded the highest knowledge score of 10.75±1.85. The majority (69.6%) had poor knowledge score of ACM tools. Fifty (25.8%) assessed their patients’ level of asthma control and 34(17.5%) at every visit. Thirty-nine (20.1%) used ACM tools in their consultation, 29 (15.0%) of them used GINA defined control while 10 (5.2 %) used asthma control test (ACT). The use of the tools was associated with pulmonologists, having attended CME within six months and graduated within five years prior to the survey. Conclusion: The results highlight the poor knowledge and use of ACM tools and the need to address the knowledge gap.

Does gender make a difference? Gender-related fairness of high-stakes testing in A-level examinations in English as foreign language in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia in the context of Educational Governance

The shift from decentralized to centralized A-level examinations (Abitur) was implemented in the German school system as a measure of Educational Governance in the last decade. This reform was mainly introduced with the intention of providing higher comparability of school examinations and student achievement as well as increasing fairness in school examinations. It is not known yet if these ambitious aims and functions of the new centralized examination format have been achieved and if fairer assessment can be guaranteed in terms of providing all students with the same opportunities to pass the examinations by allocating fair tests to different student subpopulations e.g., students of different background or gender. The research presented in this article deals with these questions and focuses on gender differences. It investigates gender-specific fairness of the test items in centralized Abitur examinations as high school exit examinations in Germany. The data are drawn from Abitur examinations in English (as a foreign language). Differential item functioning (DIF) analysis reveals that at least some parts of the examinations indicate gender inequality. (DIPF/Orig.)

Optimization of test and maintenance of ageing components consisting of multiple items and addressing effectiveness

There are many models in the literature that have been proposed in the last decades aimed at assessing the reliability, availability and maintainability (RAM) of safety equipment, many of them with a focus on their use to assess the risk level of a technological system or to search for appropriate design and/or surveillance and maintenance policies in order to assure that an optimum level of RAM of safety systems is kept during all the plant operational life. This paper proposes a new approach for RAM modelling that accounts for equipment ageing and maintenance and testing effectiveness of equipment consisting of multiple items in an integrated manner. This model is then used to perform the simultaneous optimization of testing and maintenance for ageing equipment consisting of multiple items. An example of application is provided, which considers a simplified High Pressure Injection System (HPIS) of a typical Power Water Reactor (PWR). Basically, this system consists of motor driven pumps (MDP) and motor operated valves (MOV), where both types of components consists of two items each. These components present different failure and cause modes and behaviours, and they also undertake complex test and maintenance activities depending on the item involved. The results of the example of application demonstrate that the optimization algorithm provide the best solutions when the optimization problem is formulated and solved considering full flexibility in the implementation of testing and maintenance activities taking part of such an integrated RAM model.

Hand receipt covering contents of components of end item (COEI), basic issue items (BII), and additional authorization list (AAL) for radio test set AN/PRM-34 (NSN 6625-01-094-5646).

"2 September 1983."

Operator's manual including basic issue items list : test set, generator, and voltage regulator, automotive (Allen Electric and Equipment Co. model 30-82) (4910-270-3780).

"April 1965."

Individual differences influencing context effects in responding to items assessing conscientiousness in a personality test

Context effects in a personality scale were examined by determining if conscientiousness scale (C) scores were significantly different when administered alone vs. part of a Five Factor Model inventory (Big5). The effectiveness of individual difference variables (IDVs) as predictors of the context effect was also examined. The experiment compared subjects who completed the full Big5 once and the C alone once (Big5/C or C/Big5) to subjects who complete either the Big5 inventory twice (Big5/Big5) or the C twice (C/C). No significant differences were found. When Big5/C and C/Big5 groups were combined, IDVs were tested, and only the field dependence variable (R2 = .06) was found to significantly predict the context effect. However, the small R2 minimized concerns of context effects in Big5 inventories. ^

Multiple-choice versus short-response items: Differences in omit behavior

The overall rate of omission of items for 28,331 17 year old Australian students on a high stakes test of achievement in the common elements or cognitive skills of the senior school curriculum is reported for a subtest in multiple choice format and a subtest in short response format. For the former, the omit rates were minuscule and there was no significant difference by gender or by type of school attended. For the latter, where an item can be 'worth' up to five times that of a single multiple choice item, the omit rates were between 10 and 20 times that for multiple choice and the difference between male and female omit rate was significant as was the difference between students from government and non-government schools. For both formats, females from single sex schools omitted significantly fewer items than did females from co-educational schools. Some possible explanations of omit behaviour are alluded to.

Australian student reactions to U.S. tourism advertising : a test of advertising as public diplomacy

A study among Australian college students gauged their reactions to a television commercial produced for the U.S. Commerce Department to bolster sagging tourism numbers among international visitors. In addition to using traditional measures applied to tourism advertisements, the student also concluded items to measure attitudes toward the U.S. government and its people Pre- and post-viewing results indicated that while the Hollywood-movie-themed commercial was not well received by the Australian students as a tourism message, it did result in more favorable attitudes toward the U.S. government, though not the U.S. people. The findings lend partial support for the potential of tourism advertising efforts to exert a "bleed-over effect" in terms of their contributions to overall attitudes toward a country, regardless of whether viewers plan to visit the country whose travel advertisements they see.

Australian student reactions to US tourism advertising : a test of advertising as public diplomacy

A study among Australian college students gauged their reactions to a television commercial produced for the US Commerce Department to bolster sagging tourism numbers among international visitors. In additional to using traditional measures applied to tourism advertisements, the study also included items to measure attitudes toward the US government and its people. Pre- and post-viewing results indicated that although the Hollywood-movie-themes commercial was not well received by the Australian students as a tourism message, it did result in more favourable attitudes toward the US government, although not the US people. The findings lend partial support for the potential of tourism advertising efforts to exert a 'bleed-over effect' in terms of their contribution to overall attitudes toward a country, regardless of whether viewers plan to visit the country whose travel advertisements of which they see.