The content analysis of subject-matter a dialogue between Robert M. Gagn and M. David Merrill: The computer as an aid in the design of criterion-referenced tests

This paper considers the question of how the computer I might be employed to make easier and more precise the task of constructing achievement examinations in any subject. The aim of the plan to be described is to simplify the routine of item construction and item selection, and at the same time to produce tests which have the inherent content validity characteristic of criterion-referenced assessment. This aim is to be accomplished by utilizing primarily the memory storage and random access features of the computer, as opposed to its computational features. The plan to be described is exploratory, and needs a great deal of further refinement.