Education in Doctor of Medicine programs has moved towards an emphasis on clinical competency, with entrustable professional activities providing a framework of learning objectives and outcomes to be assessed within the clinical environment. While the identification and structured definition of objectives and outcomes have evolved, many methods…

The Scylla and Charybdis in this discussion of teacher evaluation are standardized achievement test data on the one hand, and classroom observational systems on the other. These are the two most common methods used to judge teachers' competency. Both have serious flaws: the former primarily with validity, the latter primarily with reliability. At…

Diagnostic classification models (DCMs) classify examinees based on the skills they have mastered given their test performance. This classification enables targeted feedback that can inform remedial instruction. Unfortunately, applications of DCMs have been criticized (e.g., no validity support). Generally, these evaluations have been brief and…

This commentary on the article titled "Examining the Internal Structure Evidence for the Performance Assessment for California Teachers: A Validation Study of the Elementary Literacy Teaching Event for Tier 1 Teacher Licensure" provides an overview of Performance Assessment for California Teachers (PACT), its relationship to edTPA and…

Much of the argument about comparability of examination standards is at cross-purposes; contradictory positions are in fact often both defensible, but they are using the same words to mean different things. To clarify this, two broad conceptualisations of standards can be identified. One sees the standard in the observed phenomena of performance…

Robert Coe has claimed that three broad conceptions of comparability can be identified from the literature: performance, statistical and conventional. Each of these he rejected, in favour of a single, integrated conception which relies upon the notion of a "linking construct" and which he termed "construct comparability".…

In arguing for more comprehensive practice, policy and research considerations of assessment in physical education (PE), this paper outlines and discusses four integrated conditions of assessment efficacy for the development and promotion of productive assessment in PE. These conditions are prefaced by the proposition that quality PE requires the…

This handbook is designed as a quick reference for first-year teachers who find themselves in an assessment driven environment with little experience to help make sense of the language, underlying philosophy, or organizational structure of the assessment system. The handbook begins with advice on developing and evaluating effective learning…

Authentic and direct assessment of performance and products are examined in light of contrasting functions and purposes with implications for validation, especially those of specialized validity criteria for performance assessment. The roles of positive and negative consequences of validation are underscored, along with the need for evidence of…

A procedure to assess the interpersonal competence of teachers was developed and validated. The procedure includes the use of the Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (QTI), an observation instrument and a self-evaluation instrument. The concepts of construct-irrelevant variance and construct under-representation were used to explore the validity…

Construct validity has been an issue in assessment centers literature. This study developed a model for competency-based assessment centers by integrating competency modeling, training design, assessment centers, and multi-source feedback assessment. Several propositions in conjunction with the model were also developed to help resolve construct…

During a period when the reform-minded are very critical of the degree to which testing is actually related to the conditions for which data are employed, authentic assessment offers the opportunity to evaluate learning in settings closely related to the real world. It also allows the evaluator to tailor assessment conditions for individual…

Data are presented that demonstrate the reliability and construct validity of a 27-item behaviorally anchored rating scale (BARS) used to rate the performance of 757 nursing assistants in South Carolina. Results support the reliability and construct validity of the BARS and the usefulness of the BARS approach for evaluation. (SLD)

In recent years, many psychological constructs with associated measures have been proposed for educational research and the evaluation of educational programs. Among the most interesting and potentially useful are those reflecting motivational and volitional aspects of human behavior, the conative constructs. Among the conative constructs are…

The relationship construct between physicians and patients was explored in the context of medical education and evaluation focusing on the clinical performance of third-year medical students. The Relationship Instrument, a performance-based assessment, was constructed to measure interpersonal and communication skills of the physician interacting…