This article presents the consensus of an National Council on Measurement in Education Presidential Task Force on Foundational Competencies in Educational Measurement. Foundational competencies are those that support future development of additional professional and disciplinary competencies. The authors develop a framework for foundational…

In this digital ITEMS module, we introduce the framework of nonparametric item response theory (IRT), in particular Mokken scaling, which can be used to evaluate fundamental measurement properties with less strict assumptions than parametric IRT models. We walk through the key distinction between parametric and nonparametric models, introduce the…

In this digital ITEMS module, Dr. Jeffrey Harring and Ms. Tessa Johnson introduce the linear mixed effects (LME) model as a flexible general framework for simultaneously modeling continuous repeated measures data with a scientifically defensible function that adequately summarizes both individual change as well as the average response. The module…

Drawing upon his experience, more than 60 years ago, as a psychometric support person to a very special teacher of brain damaged children, the author of this article reflects on the productive use of educational assessments and data from them to educate - assessment in the service of learning. Findings from the Gordon Commission on the Future of…

Mokken scale analysis (MSA) is a probabilistic-nonparametric approach to item response theory (IRT) that can be used to evaluate fundamental measurement properties with less strict assumptions than parametric IRT models. This instructional module provides an introduction to MSA as a probabilistic-nonparametric framework in which to explore…

Changes to the design and development of our educational assessments are resulting in the unprecedented demand for a large and continuous supply of content-specific test items. One way to address this growing demand is with automatic item generation (AIG). AIG is the process of using item models to generate test items with the aid of computer…

A more fragmented approach to assessment of global ability concepts than is generally advocated is suggested, based on the assumption that decomposing a complex ability into cognitive components and tracking performance across multiple measures will yield valid and instructionally useful information. Specifications are suggested for designing…

An example application of portfolio assessment was developed and the model and estimates of reliability derived from the literature were then used to estimate the characteristics of an operational large-scale portfolio assessment program. Costs were estimated to put results in a realistic context. (SLD)

The student assessment tasks identified by administrators in a previous study (J. C. Impara, B. S. Plake, and J. J. Fager, 1993) as tasks they performed are crossed with the knowledge, skills, and abilities identified as requirements of administrators to perform those tasks. The resulting matrix may be useful in designing instructional programs.…

The utility of item response theory (IRT) models in computerized adaptive tests is considered. Measurement questions that have been answered using IRT, and those that might be overlooked because of IRT, are reviewed. Areas in which fuller use of IRT could improve adaptive testing practices are identified. (SLD)

Proposed an accountably model that addresses the challenges of allowing school districts to choose the specific strategies they use to measure student performance and evaluated this model using data from multiple sources for all school districts in Florida. Findings identify three strategies that would be useful for this type of accountability…

Explores the relationship between measurement theory and practice, considering five broad categories of: (1) models, assumptions, and terminology; (2) reliability; (3) validity; (4) scaling; and (5) setting performance standards. It must be recognized that measurement is not an end in itself. (SLD)

Major changes in educational and psychological theories that have come about since the cognitive and affective taxonomies of educational objectives were published in 1956 and 1964 are traced. The changes emphasize the need to understand thinking in the context of students' beliefs and self-directed cognitions. (SLD)