This article is a written version of the Presidential Address I gave at the annual meeting of the National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME) in April 2017. It is a call to NCME members (and others who read this, of course) to rebalance their focus so that classroom assessments are seen as being at least as important as large-scale…

This work systematically reviews teacher assessment literacy measures within the context of contemporary teacher evaluation policy. In this study, the researchers collected objective tests of assessment knowledge, teacher self-reports, and rubrics to evaluate teachers' work in assessment literacy studies from 1991 to 2012. Then they evaluated…

Test items undergo multiple iterations of review before states and vendors deem them acceptable to be placed in a live statewide assessment. This article reviews three approaches that can add validity evidence to states' item review processes. The first process is a structured sensitivity review process that focuses on universal design…

The author takes the position that many of the fundamental measurement concepts and relationships often are used in our written communications in ways that demonstrate misunderstanding and lead to confusion. Illustrations of the misuses are provided, anecdotes and speculation about the implications are offered, and suggestions for addressing the…

Many educational testing programs report examinee performance at more than two levels of proficiency. Whether these assessments have the capacity to support these multiple inferences, though, is a topic that has not been widely discussed. This study proposes a method for evaluating the minimum number of measurement opportunities for reporting…

Presents two approaches to evaluating gender measurement bias in mathematics testing, and discusses how to assess these approaches. The two approaches are the study of internal test structure and external test relationships. Ensuring a gender-fair test requires attention to both areas. (SLD)

Systematic empirical research is used to investigate the feasibility of using socioeconomic status (SES) ratings by school principals as an alternative to more costly SES measures. Studies with 85 principals and 19 central office administrators support the approach as a credible proxy measure of SES. (SLD)

In this paper I describe and illustrate the Roussos-Stout (1996) multidimensionality-based DIF analysis paradigm, with emphasis on its implication for the selection of a matching and studied subtest for DIF analyses. Standard DIF practice encourages an exploratory search for matching subtest items based on purely statistical criteria, such as a…

This paper demonstrates how an analysis of the "Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing" (1985) can define the body of knowledge needed by teachers for the effective use of tests in classroom instruction. Procedures are described for identifying standards relevant to teachers' roles and their behavior. (SLD)

Issues in the measurement of subject matter proficiency, as defined by recognized subject matter scholars, are explored as they relate to the increasing use of teaching machines, programmed learning, and broadly conceived instructional systems. Criterion-referenced measurement is discussed. (SLD)

This article examines how psychometric models based on certain assumptions have come to be used counterproductively by many practitioners in ways that limit the kinds of conclusions that can be made. The general problem of the context's influence on performance is discussed, and some implications are drawn. (SLD)

In determining what will best help learning, the timeliness and possible reversibility of teachers' decisions are influenced by standardized achievement tests. Ways tests can supplement other performance information and confirm or challenge teachers' impressions of student achievement are described. (CM)

This instructional module discusses the one-, two-, and three-parameter logistic item response theory (IRT) models. Mathematical formulas are given for each model and they are compared, with figures illustrating the effects of changing parameters. A single data set is used to demonstrate the effects of changing parameter values. (SLD)

Results of a survey completed by 60 representatives of institutions and a questionnaire answered by 55 employers suggest that there will continue to be a shortfall in the number of measurement professionals graduating from educational programs in measurement relative to the number of available employment opportunities, and that this is especially…

The implications for educational and employment testing of recent measurement, social, and policy issues are compared and contrasted. Changes are proposed relative to technical conceptualization of assessment, an increased focus on performance-based evaluation, and expanded expectations and uses of assessment. (SLD)