ERIC Number: EJ1242276
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 29
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1934-5747
EISSN: N/A
Using Assessment Metadata to Quantify the Impact of Test Disengagement on Estimates of Educational Effectiveness
Kuhfeld, Megan; Soland, James
Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, v13 n1 p147-175 2020
Educational stakeholders have long known that students might not be fully engaged when taking an achievement test and that such disengagement could undermine the inferences drawn from observed scores. Thanks to the growing prevalence of computer-based tests and the new forms of metadata they produce, researchers have developed and validated procedures for using item response times to identify responses to items that are likely disengaged. In this study, we examine the impact of two techniques to account for test disengagement--(a) removing unengaged test takers from the sample and (b) adjusting test scores to remove rapidly guessed items--on estimates of school contributions to student growth, achievement gaps, and summer learning loss. Our results indicate that removing disengaged examinees from the sample will likely induce bias in the estimates, although as a whole accounting for disengagement had minimal impact on the metrics we examined. Last, we provide guidance for policy makers and evaluators on how to account for disengagement in their own work and consider the promise and limitations of using achievement test metadata for related purposes.
Descriptors: Metadata, Computer Assisted Testing, Achievement Tests, Reaction Time, Guessing (Tests), Scores, Sampling, School Effectiveness, Elementary School Students, Middle School Students, Achievement Gap, Reading Achievement, Achievement Gains
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education; Junior High Schools; Middle Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: Measures of Academic Progress
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A