The present study adapted the abbreviated version of Swanson-Cognitive Processing Test (S-CPT) (Swanson, 1996) to be used in Hong Kong. The S-CPT, a North American standardised dynamic working memory assessment, was used to measure 215 students' cognitive ability from four primary schools Hong Kong. The abbreviated S-CPT had five subtests of verbal and visuospatial tasks, which were suggested by Swanson as suitable for individual administration on students above 8 years old. The five S-CPT subtests were adapted and translated into Cantonese in order to suit the Hong Kong context and to minimise the effect of participants' language ability on their performance in the assessment. Students were individually administered the adapted versions of the S-CPT. The adapted English version was administered to students from English-medium schools whereas the adapted Cantonese version administered to students from Chinese-medium schools. The obtained data was Rasch analysed using the Partial Credit Model (Masters, 1982). Two subtests were discovered to have disordered categories during the testing period and the categories in these subtests were collapsed to improve the categories structure, and hence, the measurement scale. Fit measures and reliability estimates for both the English adapted and Cantonese adapted S-CPT showed acceptable values to the Partial Credit Model, indicating that the adapted S-CPT was a valid and reliable measure of cognitive constructs of students within the four schools in Hong Kong.

Assessment has taken the centre stage in the Asia Pacific Region in the last two decades which has witnessed many education reform initiatives. Due to historical as well administrative, technical and statistical reasons in the past, examinations in the Region are generally construed as top-down with little input from the persons assessed and out of their control. That situation does little to enhance learning, which needs ownership by the assessed in order to realize the full potentials of assessment for and as learning. With norm reference as its trademark, the sole purpose of high stake examination is to select the best for the next levels of advancement, be it in education or career. Nevertheless, there is a strong trend within the Region and elsewhere striving to replace the unitary purpose of assessment with a new paradigm entitled the Self-directed Learning Oriented Assessment (SLOA), which holds that assessment should be learning oriented and self-directed. Within the SLOA paradigm, assessment not only has multiple roles in support of learning; it is an integral part of learning. Assessment is to collect evidence of performance and to match the results against preset criteria or standards. The objectives are to evaluate, to inform and to effect learning: assessment of, for and as learning. Modern advancement in assessment design, delivery, statistical models and reporting systems has enabled the assessed to be nearly fully in control of the process of assessment and to self-evaluate against objective criteria. The persons being assessed can, therefore, have full ownership of the assessment. SLOA is a perspective and an assessment design, delivery and reporting that implement the above scenario in assessment. Initial attempts to carry out SLOA in a number of schools in Hong Kong, Macao and Mainland China, albeit still in its initial stage, have amply demonstrated its validity, feasibility and benefits.
[Copyright © 2009 The Hong Kong Institute of Education]

Assessment and evaluation are essential educational practice. In December 2003, a set of Performance Indicators on the Domain of Child Development (revised edition) was published by the Education Manpower Bureau and Social Welfare Department to assist preschools in Hong Kong to evaluate young children’s performance in learning and development. This paper outlines how a project conducted by the Hong Kong Institute of Education has empowered 15 Hong Kong preschools using Performance Indicators to formulate strategies for self-evaluation on the Domain of Child Development. Implications for successful change of the assessment culture in the preschoosl are discussed.
[Copyright © 2008 Hong Kong Institute of Educational Research. The journal website is located at http://www.fed.cuhk.edu.hk/en/pej/]

Hong Kong Teachers understand students' abilities and ranked students' position by the scores of quizzes, tests and examination. Setting items for assessing students is therefore one of significant tasks for Hong Kong teachers. Teachers usually set items to access their students based on what they taught in the classroom. Teachers do not usually consider whether the items are set appropriately to measure their students' abilities. On the other hand, it is important for the teachers learn the quality control of item settings. Rasch measurement is a quality control mechanism and good for diagnosis. The area of diagnosis includes item misfit between items and persons, and probability of a person's correctly answering the item against his ability. The diagnostic information obtained can be used by teachers to enhance their assessment tools such that teachers are better informed about their students' learning. Nonetheless, such diagnoses are under-utilised. The aim of this study is to illustrate how the diagnostic information can be generated from Rasch measurement using the Winsteps software, and how teachers can make use of such information to enhance assessment tools. In particular, this study focused on how to use one of the Item Characteristic Curve as a diagnostic tool in order to analyze the relationship between students' abilities and item difficulties. Based on this analysis, teachers can discern the quality of items in the assessment and hence obtain more accurate estimates of students' abilities and item difficulties. The sample for the study involved about 150 Primary Three students from a local school. Students' basic competencies in mathematics at end of Key-Stage-l were gauged in June 2006 using an assessment tool designed by the authors. Rasch measurements of the students were obtained using the Winsteps software. Item Characteristic Curves of the items were analysed to diagnose the psychometric qualities of the assessment tool. Implications for teachers in

The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between theories of intelligence and goal orientations, and their joint connections to students' academic achievement in the Chinese cultural context. A total of 418 university students in Hong Kong participated in the present study. The survey was administered to collect information on students' beliefs about their goal orientations, theories of intelligence and their college grade point averages. The data were analysed using structural equation modelling. The results suggest that beliefs in the incremental theory of intelligence contribute to students' academic achievements by facilitating their endorsement of mastery goals and performance-approach goals. Students' performance-avoidance goals have a negative association with academic success. Cultural factors and considerations are addressed to clarify further the culture-specific findings.
[Copyright of Educational Psychology is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01443410.2014.893559]

The main purpose of this study was to develop a Rasch Measurement Physical Fitness Scale (RMPFS) based on physical fitness indicators routinely used in Hong Kong primary schools. A total of 9,439 records of students' performances on physical fitness indicators, retrieved from the database of a Hong Kong primary school, were used to develop the Rasch scale. Following a series of iterative Rasch analyses that adopted the 'data should fit the model' approach, four physical fitness indicators (such as 6-min run, 9-min run, 1-min sit-ups, and dominant handgrip) were successfully calibrated to form the RMPFS. The RMPFS and its scale indicators showed fit to the Rasch model sufficient for the intended purposes of measuring the overall fitness of children. The overall physical fitness measure reflects children's fitness on three key core components of physical fitness - cardio-respiratory fitness, muscular endurance, and muscular strength. Advantages of the RMPFS are discussed, and recommendations for future research follow. The findings of this study provide a better knowledge basis for interpreting children's physical fitness assessment results.
[Copyright of Measurement in Physical Education & Exercise Science is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher’s website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1091367X.2011.590772]