Type | Journal Article - School Science and Mathematics |
Title | Re-examining test item issues in the TIMSS Mathematics and Science assessments |
Author(s) | |
Volume | 111 |
Issue | 7 |
Publication (Day/Month/Year) | 2011 |
Page numbers | 334-344 |
URL | http://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ958344 |
Abstract | As the largest international study ever taken in history, the Trend in Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) has been held as a benchmark to measure U.S. student performance in the global context. In-depth analyses of the TIMSS project are conducted in this study to examine key issues of the comparative investigation: (1) item flaws in mathematics and science; (2) inability to reflect item score differences between adjacent grades; (3) ambiguity of the test items behind nonrandom guessing; and (4) unfair comparisons resulted from inconsistent item difficulties across the nations. The TIMSS item checking could help education stakeholders understand more profound assessment issues through the information triangulation. |