FOCUS ARTICLE: The Foundations of Assessment

2001

Recent advances in the cognitive and measurement sciences should be the foundation for developing a new system of student assessment.

International Journal of Educational Research, 1990

Educational Psychology Review, 2011

When we rely upon gains on some measure to support statements of prescription, we have the obligation to ensure that those measures are valid. Nearly 10 years after an influential National Research Council (2001) report on educational assessment identified an explicit model of cognition as one of three necessary components of a valid assessment system, we note that most measures still lack this fundamental cornerstone. In this paper, we draw attention to the construct modeling approach to assessment that strives for coherence and consistency with a model of cognition in which student proficiency varies along a continuum of competence. This approach is illustrated in the context of an assessment of conceptual understanding of certain scientific phenomena given to undergraduates at a large public university (National Research Council 2001). Keywords Cognition. Assessment. Validity. Construct modeling When we rely upon gains on some measure to support statements of prescription, we have the obligation to ensure that those measures are valid. The National Research Council (2001) report Knowing What Students Know described three necessary components of a valid assessment system: "a model of student cognition and learning in the domain, a set of beliefs about the kinds of observations that will provide evidence of students' competencies, and an interpretation process for making sense of the evidence" (p. 44). We note that 10 years later, most measures still lack the first leg of the stool: an explicit model of cognition.

We are indebted to too many people to list here for enlightening discussions of topics addressed in this paper. We would like to acknowledge Lyle Bachman, Irwin Kirsch, Mary Schedl, and John Norris with regard to issues in language assessment, and, for their comments on an earlier draft, the editor Mark Wilson and two anonymous referees.

2004

Many existing quantitative assessment tools focus on a binary question: Have the students applied the knowledge correctly or have they not? The results of such a measurement are the percentage of students who get the correct answer. The fact that each student may simultaneously possess alternate frameworks or misconceptions is not reflected in the measurement.

Mathematics Education Research Journal, 2005

2004

National Center For Research on Evaluation Standards and Student Testing, 2007

This paper will describe the relationships between research on learning and its application in assessment models and operational systems. These have been topics of research at the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST) for more than 20 years and form a significant part of the intellectual foundation of our present research Center supported by the Institute of Education Sciences. This description serves as the context for the presentation of CRESST efforts in building the POWERSOURCE © assessment system as described in subsequent papers delivered at Session N2 of the 2006 annual meeting of the National Council on Measurement in Education. This paper will describe the relationships between research on learning and its application in assessment models and operational systems. These have been topics of research at the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST) for more than 20 years and form a significant part of the intellectual foundation of our present research Center supported by the Institute of Education Sciences, as well as of many of the research studies on learning and assessment funded by the Office of Naval Research. This description is intended not to advocate a general approach (although I do), but rather to serve as the context for subsequent presentations about CRESST efforts in building the POWERSOURCE © assessment system. Part 1. Rationale for Model-Based Assessment (MBA): Background of Our Efforts to Incorporate Learning Psychology Into Assessment Systems Definitions of Model CRESST R&D in assessment and learning fits two different but compatible definitions of the term "model." The first definition of model relates to the science it 1 Paper presented at the 2006 annual meeting of the National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME). Note that the first extended section of this piece is for those who have not heard or read the many discussions of model-based assessment as practiced at CRESST. The second section can be best understood by first understanding how the model is used. The section on relating learning to assessment design and use is most directly relevant to the presentation as described in the conference program.

1992

The model presented in this document integrates authentic assessment with traditional evaluation practices to create comprehensive assessment systems for elementary and secondary school students. Specifically, the model poses six categories of competencies that enjoy high levels of acceptance and construct validity: (1) knowledge of concepts, generalizations, processes, and strategies considered critical to specific content areas; (2) the ability to use complex reasoning processes; (3) the ability to gather and utilize information from a variety of sources in a variety of modes; (4) the ability to communicate effectively; (5) the ability to regulate one's own learning and development; and (6) the ability to work in a cooperative/collaborative manner. These competencies are meant to be assessed in three basic ways: through multiple validations, through secured tasks, and through portfolios. Implicit in this model is the identification of world class standards within content areas identified as important at the local, state, or national level. Six appendices, which comprise most of the document, provide definitions of 14 complex reasoning processes; subcompetencies of the 14 complex reasoning processes; benchmarks demonstrating student abilities in content areas; authentic classroom tasks; generalized rubrics for declarative knowledge; and elementary and secondary school tasks. (Contains approximately 85 references.) (LL)

Education Policy Analysis Archives, 2015

In this article, David Conley focuses on how to assess meaningful learning in ways that promote student achievement while simultaneously meeting system accountability needs. The article draws upon research that supports the notion that a major shift in educational assessment is needed in order to encourage and evaluate the kind of learning that enables success in college and careers. Over the next several years, almost every state will either implement the Common Core State Standards or develop an alternative version of their own. The question worth posing is whether educational stakeholders should be satisfied with on- demand tests that measure only a subset of the standards, or will they demand something more like a system of assessments in which multiple measures result in deeper insight into student mastery of complex and cognitive challenging standards? This article presents a vision for a new system of assessments, one designed to support the kinds of ambitious teaching and le...