State summative educational assessment is about to begin in earnest. Rightfully, many are raising questions about the quality, meaning, and appropriate use of the assessment results. This document was written to support state educational agencies (SEAs) and their assessment providers in devising effective and efficient analysis plans. This…

We describe the summative assessment component within a K-12 assessment program and our development of a validity argument to support its claims with respect to intended uses and interpretations. First, we describe the "Winsight"® assessment program theory of action, a logic model elucidating mechanisms for how use of the assessment…

Long-standing concerns within the field of educational assessment consider the impact of assessment policy and practice as matters of equity, inequality and social justice. Yet educational assessment policy and practice continues to have powerful social consequences for key users such as children and young people. This paper re-positions these…

The rank-ordering method for standard maintaining was designed for the purpose of mapping a known cut-score (e.g. a grade boundary mark) on one test to an equivalent point on the test score scale of another test, using holistic expert judgements about the quality of exemplars of examinees' work (scripts). It is a novel application of an old…

"Linking" is a term given to a general class of procedures by which one represents scores X on one test or measure in terms of scores Y on another test or measure. A recent taxonomy by Holland and Dorans (2006; Holland, 2007) organizes the various types of links into three broad categories: prediction, scale aligning, and equating. In…

Newton's article (2010) makes three main contributions to the literature. First, it is transatlantic, bringing together literatures that have been dealing with similar problems, using sometimes different methods and certainly with distinctive educational, cultural perspectives. He points out that neither of these literatures has all of the…

In conjunction with testing mandates, some states have developed new measures intended to reflect changes in thinking about reading. Discusses, in dialogue form, whether these new measures support educational improvement or limit them. (BJV)

The authors describe the significant contributions of Robert Ebel to educational measurement theory and its applications. A biographical sketch details Ebel's roots and professional resume. His influence on classroom assessment views and procedures are explored. Classic publications associated with validity, reliability, and score interpretation…

It is argued that consequential validity is a concept worth considering. The solution to defining "validity" is not to narrow the concept, but to allow for the differential prediction provided by tests in different circumstances. Consequences of the uses and interpretations of test scores are central to their evaluation. (SLD)

Intelligence testing has a place in assessment and placement procedures. (PHR)

The Normal Curve Equivalent (NCE) gain statistic is examined, and considerations for its interpretation are highlighted. The NCE gain is made up of an observed and an expected part. The observed score is the posttest result. The expected score can never be observed nor verified for any of the Title I Evaluation and Reporting System (TIERS) models;…

The problems of standardized tests with regard to Mexican American students, particularly "ethnic validity", are reviewed. Inadequate norm group representation, cultural bias, and language bias are purported by the author to be the most common faults of standardized tests. Suggested is the elimination of standardized testing as a principal means…

An expanded framework for validating tests is needed to include the perspectives of teachers and students as well as of test makers and scientists. The development of educational assessments must take place within an understanding of how tests are used in context. (SLD)

With the growing interest in educational accountability and outcomes-based education, there is an increasing emphasis on testing. This paper proposes the development of school-achievement profiles as a tool to assist with the interpretation and implementation of test results for targeting instructional improvement efforts. The study employed test…

Reviews the Stanford Writing Assessment Program that has three intended uses: district-wide survey of students' writing ability, diagnosis of classroom or district-wide instructional strengths and weaknesses, and staff development through training for administering and scoring of writing samples. Notes that of these uses, none is necessarily best…