¶ … Ineffective Assessment Methods
For a test to be accepted within the academic community, it must be both reliable and valid. A reliable test produces consistent results. A valid tests measures what it purports to measure. A good example of reliability is the 'kitchen scale' example. If you weigh the same cup of flour and it is 4 ounces, then 4.25 ounces, then 4.5 ounces on various attempts to use the scale, one after another, it is not a reliable scale (Classroom assessment, 2013, Florida Center for Instructional Technology). Similarly, a test which suggests that the same student is above or below grade level, after the same student takes the same test in rapid succession with no additional preparation raises questions about its reliability. "Generally, if the reliability of a standardized test is above .80, it is said to have very good reliability; if it is below .50, it would not be considered a very reliable test" (Classroom assessment, 2013, Florida Center for Instructional Technology).
A test can be reliable but not valid. For example, the cup of flour might reliably weigh 4 ounces on a scale with every attempt but if it actually weighs 5 ounces, the scale is not valid. Similarly, a test which suggests a student is above or below grade level -- although he is not, based upon other accepted assessments of his or her validity -- is not valid. But test validity can be more subjective to assess regarding human beings.
A good example of this is the previous version of the SAT, the required test many students must take to be considered as an applicant for a college. Virtually all students entering undergraduate programs in the nursing profession must take the SAT. The SAT was purportedly reliable predictor of students' grades during their first year of college (it is not an intelligence test, contrary to what many people believe). "The College Board's Handbook for the SAT Program 2000-2001 claims the SAT-V and SAT-M have a correlation of .47 and .48, respectively, with freshman GPA (FGPA)" (SAT I: A faulty instrument for predicting college success, 2007, Fair Test).
However, this assessment is controversial: furthermore, while the validity of the SAT as a predictor of performance of first...
Assessment Competencies Abstract Assessment in education is referred to a range of tools or methods used by educators to measure, document and evaluate the academics readiness, skill acquisition, progress and learning needs of students. The tracking progress report plays an important role to the student since it gauges where they are heading in terms of academics. Assessment is often likened to the traditional standardized tests but educators nowadays, use different types of
Ineffective Public Policy -- No Child Left Behind One of the most widely criticized educational policies of recent years was / is No Child Left Behind. It is widely referred to an ineffective policy (or legislation). Despite high hopes and bipartisan support, the policy has not worked out as planned. This paper delves into the problems with No Child Left Behind -- and will present the changes that could make it
Psychological test or assessment method. "The Substance Abuse Questionnaire -- Adult Probation III Brief Description of the Test The recent release of one of the youngest convicted child murders in our nation's history, Lionel Tate, now an adult, into the general population, has highlighted the difficulty of determining if a former prisoner should be eligible for parole. Psychologists have attempted to answer this difficult and subjective question by designing the objectively-assessed test
Ed Assessment Oral Hygiene Educational Assessment Tools Assessing educational outcomes and thus the efficacy of certain specific educational efforts and methodologies is an important part of any educational program regardless of the specific educational area or setting. Choosing the appropriate methods for such assessment, however, is highly dependent on specific aspects and parameters of the education being assessed, and thus should incorporate evidence of successful assessment practices previously identified in specific fields
Psychometric Assessment Autism Background of Autism What is autism? Autism is a disease, which poses tons of questions, while providing least of answers. This being said, autism is one of the five diseases coming under Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD). It shows in early years of a human and effects the brain's functioning. An autism website states that, 'it's a result of a neurological disorder, which hampers the proper operations of a brain,
Facilitated communication is widely under scrutiny and doubt owing to the fact that one cannot ascertain the authorship of the typed messages. FC, as it is commonly known, is designed to assist a person with autism to communicate by use of a message board or even an electronic device. The procedure involves a facilitator supporting the hand or other body organ of the affected person with the intention of assisting
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