ERIC Number: EJ1456647
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025
Pages: 4
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0164-775X
EISSN: N/A
Framework for Promoting Equity through Nonstandardized Assessment
Miranda Kucera; K. Kawena Begay
Communique, v53 n5 p20-23 2025
While the field advocates for a diversified and comprehensive professional role (National Association of School Psychologists, 2020), school psychologists have long spent most of their time in assessment-related activities (Farmer et al., 2021), averaging about eight cognitive evaluations monthly (Benson et al., 2020). Assessment practices have historically focused on identifying and classifying students based on a medical diagnostic classification model (Holman et al., 2023), in which the goal is to label and classify students into categories. The evaluation process ends when the student is labeled and passed on to the next group of educators responsible for their growth and success (e.g., special education IEP team, interventionists). This process assumes the evaluation was appropriately conducted and interpreted and, therefore, resulted in accurate categorization. Evaluators believe that the scores and numbers obtained through standardized measures are objective. However, evaluators often engage with students who are not represented in the norming samples of commonly used assessments, which can impact the validity of the results. Fortunately, with a thoughtful and structured nonstandardized approach to evaluation, school psychologists can move beyond the constraints of standardized measures and gain a comprehensive understanding of each student's functioning that informs individualized educational planning.
Descriptors: Equal Education, Student Evaluation, Evaluation Methods, Standardized Tests, School Psychologists, Test Construction, Students with Disabilities, Test Items, Student Characteristics, Data Collection, Data Use, Educational Planning, Academic Accommodations (Disabilities)
National Association of School Psychologists. 4340 East West Highway Suite 402, Bethesda, MD 20814. Tel: 301-657-0270; Fax: 301-657-0275; e-mail: publications@naspweb.org; Web site: http://www.nasponline.org/publications/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A