14021 Introduction to Educational Measurement

Credits: 4 graduate credits in Education: Technologies and Learning Systems or in Educational Administration, Policy and Leadership

Prerequisite: Admission to the graduate program in Education: Technologies and Learning Systems, or in Educational Administration, Policy and Leadership, or in the Certificate Studies Program in School Assessment and Measurement and Research Methods in Education

The course is based on a translation (by Edna Cohen) of chapters from Psychological Testing: Theory and Applications, by L. H. Janda (Allyn & Bacon, 1998); a reader edited by Ruth Beyth-Marom and Gili Liviatan; as well as CDs containing lectures by experts in the field.

The course presents principles and basic concepts in assessment and testing in education and acquaints the student with the major tests in these fields.

Topics: Introduction: historical milestones, characteristics of psychological testing, ethical issues in psychological testing; An introduction to various types of tests; Norms and the meaning of test scores; Reliability: the theoretical basis for discussing reliability, measures of reliability; Generalbility theory; Validity: definitions, measurement and estimation problems; Item analysis: the classic model, item response theory; Test construction; Translating and adapting tests; Bias and fairness in ability testing; Standards setting.