Assessment – Page 11 – Embrace the Absurd

I’m Feeling ’22 (Taylor’s Version)

2022. It’s finally here. The one thought that kept so many of us going these last two treacherous, dangerous, and often reckless, years was that if we could just hold on a little longer, we would be happy and free to shamelessly quote Taylor Swift for an entire year. Everything will be alright if weContinue reading “I’m Feeling ’22 (Taylor’s Version)”

Yes, Virginia

VIRGINIA, your friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see on cable news and read on social media platforms. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by our little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether in red states or inContinue reading “Yes, Virginia”

Know Thyself

To know thyself is the beginning of wisdom – Socrates Identity. That’s the first word that comes to mind when I think about the state of educational measurement and assessment in 2021. On so many levels, our field, and the individuals within it, are in search of an identity. Derek Briggs, our nominal and effectiveContinue reading “Know Thyself”

And Then There Were None

I open LinkedIn and read yet another post from a rising star in K-12 testing moving to a new position in certification or some other area of testing. It has become a regular occurrence. It’s a tough time for K-12 testing – to state the obvious. Over the past two years, friend and foe alikeContinue reading “And Then There Were None”

Give Thanks for Little Knowledge

Back in college, we had a visiting professor for one of the final courses I took as a music major. He didn’t think much of us, and we viewed him as the epitome of the adage those who can’t but want others to think they can, sit comfortably within the university pointing out what everyoneContinue reading “Give Thanks for Little Knowledge”

Vive La Variance!

To educate is to change. Instruction and learning are about change. Educational measurement is defined by variance. Literally. The fundamental concepts in the field are expressed in terms of variance. One of the first techniques that we learn as eager young graduate students is analysis of variance. Without variance, our lives as psychometricians, much likeContinue reading “Vive La Variance!”

Adrift at “C” with IRT

For the past three decades we have weathered the storm of test-based accountability in a skiff called IRT. Buttressed only with a few psychometric tools, loosely defined unidimensional latent constructs, and the promise of measurement invariance we have been buffeted by wind and waves, sometimes taking on water, sometimes finding ourselves run aground in shallowContinue reading “Adrift at “C” with IRT”

We’ve Come A Long Way, Baby!

It’s Saturday morning. The weekend lies before me. We might take the yacht up the river and allow ourselves to be enraptured by the foliage as it envelops us, or head over to the club for some golf, tennis, or one of the other myriad activities that well-to-do white folks engage in before ski season.Continue reading “We’ve Come A Long Way, Baby!”

Render Unto Caesar What Is Caesar’s

How do you innovate in large-scale state testing while continuing to meet federal assessment and accountability requirements? That, essentially, was the question addressed by the Center for Assessment team and state leaders in the final session of the Center’s virtual Reidy Interactive Lecture Series (RILS). Specifically, the session featured interviews with leaders in states currentlyContinue reading “Render Unto Caesar What Is Caesar’s”

Stuck In The Middle With You

Clowns to the left of me! Jokers to the right! Here I am stuck in the middle with you. Read the headlines, listen to podcasts, or chat in line while waiting to show your vaccine card and you might come away with the impression that everything in education revolves around assessment. The root of everythingContinue reading “Stuck In The Middle With You”