This webinar discussed the importance of the instructional sensitivity of assessments and encouraged dialogue about how the use of results from instructionally sensitive assessments can promote teacher effectiveness. This Q&A addressed the questions participants had for Dr. Popham following the webinar. The webinar recording and PowerPoint…

Insofar as the title of this piece might call for a straightforward answer, it seems obvious that EPMA professionals are servants. Viewed in this perspective, Paul E. Newton's analysis is carefully balanced, in that it respects the complex history of the concerns of the professionals, whilst moving towards conclusions that place the needs of the…

Haertel's argument is that one must "expand the scope of test validation to include indirect testing effects" because these effects are often the "rationale for the entire testing program." The author strongly agrees that this is essential. However, he maintains that Haertel's argument does not go far enough and that there are two additional…

In his article, Haertel (this issue) asks a fundamental question about how use of a test is expected to cause improvements in the educational system and in learning. He also considers how test validity should be investigated and argues for a more expansive view of validity that does not stop with scoring or generalization (the more technical and…

Considering consequences in the evaluation of validity is not new although it is still debated by Paul E. Newton and others. The argument-based approach to validity entails an interpretative argument that explicitly identifies the proposed interpretations and uses of test scores and a validity argument that provides a structure for evaluating the…

This article presents the author's response to Xiaoming Xi's paper titled "How do we go about investigating test fairness?" In the paper, Xi offers "a means to fully integrate fairness investigations and practice". Given the current importance accorded to fairness in the language testing community, Xi makes a case for viewing fairness as an aspect…

In this commentary, the author discusses some of the issues she finds interesting from a Swedish perspective, and also makes some comparisons between the systems. The English and Swedish education and assessment systems have some fundamental differences, but also similarities. Some are becoming even more evident after learning about the…

The National curriculum assessment (NCA) in Wales has evolved from common foundations into a system that is now distinct from that in England. The influence of the political and social milieu of Wales can be seen both in the distinctive features that have been in place from the outset and in the more radical changes introduced since 2002. In this…

Through an examination of one institution's efforts to strengthen teaching and learning on campus, the author makes a strong case for the use of common examinations as a powerful form of assessment as well as a fruitful context for faculty deliberations. Providing a continuing occasion for faculty inquiry and discussion, insuring grade…

The results of standardized tests are misused and often do more harm than good, according to William W. Cooley, professor and researcher at the University of Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania). The results seldom assist anyone in improving instruction. Too many out-of-school variables such as social-economic status influence test scores. Achievement is…

Psychometricians continue to introduce new approaches to setting cut scores for educational assessments in an attempt to improve on current methods. In this paper we describe the Item-Descriptor (ID) Matching method, a method based on IRT item mapping. In ID Matching, test content area experts match items (i.e., their judgments about the knowledge…

Achieving a fair and objective evaluation of teacher performance is not easy. Student test results have been used to assess teacher performance, but this approach has many weaknesses, especially because students differ from school to school and standardized tests are open to questions about their fairness. Criterion-referenced tests have been…

The author asserts that using pupil test scores to evaluate teachers is unacceptable because teachers cannot control differences in student background and out-of-school influences that affect test performance. This article consists of excerpts from the author's presentation at the New Jersey Education Association's Symposium on Teacher Evaluation.…

The Board of Regents of South Dakota's public colleges and universities decided in 1984 to implement a Value-Added Testing program (an exit test required for graduation) modelled on the Northeast Missouri State University plan. The plan was intended to increase student learning, improve curricular design, and encourage excellent teaching.…

The theory, presented by Ginsberg (TM 508 964), that quantitative indicators are likely to be corrupted when used for purposes of accountability is supported by the results of the Learning Disabilities Identification Study. The quantitative indicator in this case had to do with selection of pupils eligible for services for the handicapped. (BW)