Abstract
The problem of how to place students in a sequence of hierarchically related courses is addressed from a decision theory point of view. Based on a minimal set of assumptions, it is shown that optimal mastery rules for the courses are always monotone and a nonincreasing function of the scores on the placement test. On the other hand, placement rules are not generally monotone but have a form depending on the specific shape of the probability distributions and utility functions in force. The results are further explored for a class of linear utility functions.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 18-34 |
Number of pages | 16 |
Journal | Journal of educational and behavioral statistics |
Volume | 23 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1998 |