This paper examines the utilization of construct validity in formative assessment for classroom-based purposes. Construct validity pertains to the notion that interpretations are made by educators who analyze test scores during formative assessment. The purpose of this paper is to note the challenges that educators face when interpreting these…

This chapter introduces theory that undergirds the role of testing adaptations in assessment, provides examples of item modifications and testing accommodations, reviews research relevant to each, and introduces a new paradigm that incorporates opportunity to learn (OTL), academic enablers, testing adaptations, and inferences that can be made from…

Extended time is one of the most common testing accommodations provided to students with disabilities. It is also controversial; critics of extended time accommodations argue that extended time is used too readily, without concern for how it changes the skills measured by tests, leading to scores that cannot be compared fairly with those of other…

Articles in this special issue attempt to address the most significant aspect of certification and licensing testing programs: validity. Although construct validity has become the prevailing model, the theoretical formulation of the construct of competence remains a topic of considerable debate. (SLD)

This paper examines the validity of measures of teacher effectiveness from the Tennessee Value Added Assessment System (TVAAS). It considers the following claims regarding teacher effects: (1) they capture teachers' unique contributions to student learning adequately; (2) they reflect adequate standards of excellence for comparing teachers; (3)…

The purpose of this study was to examine the construct validity of a performance assessment program, the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program (MSPAP). Based on analyses of the longitudinal associations of Grade 5 MSPAP data in 1996 with Grade 3 MSPAP data in 1994, the following hypothesis was examined: the unattentuated correlation or…