This document provides an overview of standardized assessments, including their purpose, types, administration, scoring, and accommodations. It defines key terms like norm-referenced vs. criterion-referenced tests and explains how to evaluate reliability and validity. Scoring methods like raw scores, standard scores, percentiles, and grade equivalents are outlined. The concept of a normal distribution curve is introduced to show how scores are distributed. Accommodations for students are described to ensure abilities are assessed rather than disabilities.

1. Standardized Assessments SPE 501-Class 4 Jaime Zurheide

2. Topics Basics of standardized assessments, comparing different types Evaluating standardized assessments—reliability and validity Administering standardized assessments Scoring standardized assessments—reporting scores, normal distribution Accommodations for standardized assessments

3. Important Terms Standardized assessment Norm-referenced test Criterion referenced test Raw score Standard score Stanine Percentile Percentile rank Mean Median Mode Standard deviation Confidence interval Grade/age equivalent Standard error of measurement

4. What are standardized assessments? Also known as Formal Assessments Designed by people who are experts in test construction and distributed by companies Test administration kept consistent Objective Strict standards for scoring Often multiple choice

5. Formal vs. Informal Assessments Formal (standardized) assessments compare student performance with others who took the same test. Informal assessments used to evaluate student performance related to classroom instruction.

6. Types of Formal assessments Aptitude—used to predict performance in the future (ex. ACT, IQ tests) Achievement—used to evaluate academic skills (ex. ISAT) Reasons for administering achievement tests: Determine eligibility for special education Identify students in need of support Compare students across schools, districts, etc. Evaluate schools, teachers, curriculum, etc.

7. Norm vs. Criterion Referenced Norm-referenced assessments compare students with others who took the test. This group is called the norm or reference group. Criterion-referenced assessments compare students with a pre-determined set of skills. These tests do not compare students with each other but focus on describing a individual student’s academic performance.

8. Evaluating Standardized Tests All forms of assessment should be reliable and valid. Reliability refers to the consistency of the test results, or how likely it is that a person will get the same score each time the test is taken. Validity refers to the extent of which a test measures what it is intended to measure. It is also important to consider who is the in the norming group. How do the characteristics (i.e. race, gender, geographic region) of the population used as the norming sample compare with your population of students

9. Reliability How reliability is judged: Test-retest: give a the same test at two different times Alternate form: give two versions of the test Split-half: break test into two sections Interrater: have two different people score a test (only works for tests that involve ratings of performance, i.e. not multiple choice) A test can be reliable w/out being valid, but not valid w/out being reliable.

10. Validity Content validity How well a test’s items reflect a particular body of knowledge and skill Ex. Does the math section on the 3rd grade ISAT reflect what is covered in 3rd grade math? Predictive validity How well a test predicts a student’s future behavior Ex. How well does the ACT predict college success? Construct validity How well a test measures some internal attribute of a person Ex. If a test is measuring student verbal reasoning, how is that term defined/measured?

11. Administering Formal Assessments Considerations What type of test should be used? What is the goal of testing? How will the test be administered? In a group or individually? Room/desk set up? Who will administer the test? Qualifications or training needed? How will you evaluate the student’s test behavior? *see book for more info

12. Basal and Ceiling Levels Used to determine difficulty level appropriate for students Basal level—correct responses needed at one level to move to the next (ex. Need to get a least three words correct on the 4th grade list before moving to the 5th.) Ceiling level—incorrect responses needed to stop the test (ex. Once a student gets 3 words in a row incorrect, stop testing.)

13. Reporting Scores Ways to report scores on standardized tests: Raw score Standard/scale score Percentile Stanine Confidence intervals Cut scores

14. Helpful Terms Mean—average score (*used the most) Median—the middle score Mode—the score the occurs the most often Standard deviation—how far each score deviates from the mean Ex: Given scores of 60, 78, 80, 80, 85, 92, 96 Mean = 81.6 Median = 80 Mode = 80

15. The Normal Curve The “normal distribution” is a distribution of scores that are distributed evenly around the mean score. It describes many naturally occurring physical and social phenomena. Many scores will cluster around the mean. Fewer scores fall at the end points or at the higher and lower occurrences. Sometimes referred to as a bell curve

16. Properties of the Normal Distribution The mean is the midpoint of the distribution. The mean, the median, and the mode are all at the same point. 68% of all scores are located in the area of plus or minus one standard deviation from the mean. About 16% of the scores are higher or lower than one standard deviation above the mean. Only 2% of the scores are more than two standard deviations above or below the mean. Example: If you scored 700 on the SAT math test, you did well, because only about 2% of the people who take the test make that score.

17. The Normal Distribution

18. Raw Score The number of questions answered correctly Always reference the Number of Items (questions) when interpreting the raw score Never try to interpret raw scores across subtests or between tests because the subtests & tests differ in difficulty and in the number of questions asked Example: The CPS reading benchmark gives raw scores out of 45

19. Standard Score Also sometimes called a scaled score Way of converting raw scores to a number that makes more sense (i.e. does not take into account the number of items) Uses the mean and standard deviation to convert scores Many tests use standard scores with a mean of 100 and a SD of 15 (ex. IQ tests—100 is average)

20. Percentile Rank These scores show the percentage of students in a normed sample who score at, below, or above a particular raw score. A student scoring better than three-fourths of the students in the normed sample would be at the 75th percentile or have a percentile rank of 75. A percentile rank of 50 means the student scored as well, or better than, 50% of the students in the normed sample. Different from % correct. Percentsare only used with raw scores.

21. Normal Curve

22. Stanine Divides the normal curve into 9 sections. Range from stanine 1 (lowest) to stanine 9 (highest)

23. Grade Equivalent Scores (GE) GE scores are obtained from separately normed samples for each grade level. They are reported in numbers such as 3.8, 5.4, 11.2. The whole number equals the grade and the decimal the month. GE scores are often misleading and misinterpreted. For example, if a 7th grade student has a GE of 10, should he be promoted to the 10th grade? Certainly not. This score means that the 7th grade student scored similar to what a 10th grade student would have scored on that same test. Different forms of the test are used at different grade levels, so this student may not have had to answer all of the items given to the 10th grader. The high scores may simply represent superior mastery of material at the 7th grade level. Most educators and psychologist prefer not to use GE scores in reporting scores.

24. Confidence Interval This is a “standard error band” within which a student’s score can fall. It is based on the standard error of measurement, and is an estimation made by test developers who take into consideration how much a student’s score would vary over repeated testing sessions. You might see this as a shaded area surrounding a graph of scores

25. Cut Scores Some tests use cut scores to divide students into classification groups Cut scores are normally use the standard/scale score instead of percentiles For example, on the 3rd grade ISAT for reading: 120-155 = Academic warning 156-190 = Below Standards 191-226 = Meets Standards 227-329 = Exceeds Standards

26. Accommodations for Testing Accommodation is defined as: any change in testing materials or procedures that enables students to participate in assessments so that their abilities, rather than their disabilities, are assessed. -Salvia & Ysseldyke (2007)

27. Types of Accommodations 5 general types: Presentation(repeat directions, read aloud) Response (mark answers in book, point to answers) Setting (study carrel, separate room) Timing(extended time, frequent breaks) Scheduling (2 sessions, multiple days)

28. Accommodations for Standardized Tests May not be the same as accommodations used for classroom assessments. Different accommodations are allowed for different tests. For a student to receive accommodations on standardized tests they must be listed in the IEP and have been used previously by the student (Ex. You can’t create new accommodations just for the ISAT if a student hasn’t used them in classroom assessments)

29. For more information ISBE info on standardized tests: http://www.isbe.state.il.us/assessment/ Iowa Testing Program, interpreting scores: http://www.education.uiowa.edu/itp/itbs/itbs_interp_score.aspx Information about tests for parents (good review of info): http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/schools/etc/guide.html