Adult and Continuing Education and Teaching Commons^™

9. Differential Item Functioning In Licensure Tests, Barbara S. Plake

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, and Practices

When test scores are used to make important decisions, as is typically the case with licensure tests, the validity of test score interpretations is extremely critical. The validity of the decision (e.g., pass or fail the licensure examination) relies heavily on the validity of the test score that is used in making the licensure decision. So, although validity is always a critical component in test score interpretation, it has increased importance when the score is used in high-stakes decision situations such as licensure testing.

Issues in validity for licensure tests have been addressed in Chapter 4 of this volume. The …

13. Future Psychometric Practices In Licensure Testing, Steven S. Nettles

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, and Practices

New technologies continue to emerge each year, and influence testing practices. In particular, in the last 10 years the personal computer has evolved from a curious and minimally useful tool to an indispensable partner in many certification and licensure testing programs. It is involved in every aspect- including candidate scheduling, test assembly, test administration, test scoring and analysis, and score reporting. Initially, it is used to determine the content to be included in the job analysis instrument, and later, to analyze the returned surveys. After the job analysis is completed and test specifications prepared, it can be used to bank …

11. Equating, Judy A. Shea, John J. Norcini

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, and Practices

INTRODUCTION

Testing programs nearly always need examinations that measure the same thing, but are composed of different questions (i .e., alternate forms of the same test). When different questions are used, however, there is no assurance that scores on the forms are equivalent; different sets of items might be easier or harder and, therefore, produce higher or lower scores. Equating is used to overcome this problem. Simply stated, it is the design and statistical procedure that permits scores on one form of a test to be comparable to scores on an alternate form.

A hypothetical example will help explain why …

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, And Practices [Complete Work], James C. Impara, Linda L. Murphy

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, and Practices

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, and Practices (374 pages)

Copyright © 1995 by Buros Institute of Mental Measurements All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by photostat, microfilm, retrieval system, or any other means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Buros Institute of Mental Measurements 135 Bancroft Hall University of Nebraska-Lincoln Lincoln, NE 68588-0348

The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences-Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1984.

Title And Contents- Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, And Practices, James C. Impara, Linda L. Murphy

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, and Practices

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, And Practices

Contents

Dedication

Preface

SECTION ONE: Purposes and Policy Issues

1. What is Licensure?
Kara Schmitt

2. Legal and Professional Bases for Licensure Testing
William A. Mehrens

3. Policy Issues with Psychometric Implications
Michael Rosenfeld, Richard J. Tannenbaum, and Scott Wesley

SECTION TWO: Procedures

Overview of the Licensure Testing Process
James C. Impara

4. Practice Analysis: Building the Foundation for Validity
Joan Knapp and Lenora Knapp

5. Test Development: Systematic Item Writing and Test Construction
Anthony LaDuca, Steven Downing, and Thomas Henzel

6. Developing and Using Clinical Examinations
Jimmie Fortune and Ted Cromack

7. Basic …

1. What Is Licensure, Kara Schmitt

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, and Practices

When most individuals hear the terms license and licensure, their first reaction is that these are easily understood and relatively simple words. Everyone knows what these terms mean. Or do they?

What is licensure? It is a multifaceted, complex governmental system of regulation with the stated purpose being public protection. According to Webster's dictionary (Guralnik, 1976), a license is defined as "a formal permission to do something: esp., authorization by law to do some specified thing (license to marry, practice medicine, hunt, etc.)." The term Licensure is then defined to mean "the act or practice of granting licenses, …

2. Legal And Professional Bases For Licensure Testing, William A. Mehrens

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, and Practices

In this chapter the author presents the legal setting for licensure testing, I discusses the role of various professional standards and codes (i.e., the EEOC Uniform Guidelines, 1978, and the AERA/APA/NCME Standards, 1985), presents some of the pertinent rulings from several court decisions, and makes inferences about future changes in professional standards and their potential impact on licensure test development.

There necessarily is some minor overlap with the material in this chapter and some other chapters in this book. There is a brief discussion of the differences between licensure, certification. and employment testing and how those differences relate …

Author Index

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, and Practices

Authors listed A-Z (8 pages)

A

Ader, H. 1. : 2 10,2 18
Ahluwalia, N. T.: 240, 25 1, 330, 344
Aitkin, M.: 262, 267, 282
AI-Dosary, I. M.: 28 1, 282
AI-Karni , A.: 27 1, 28 1, 282
Albanese, M. A.: 125, 138,324,341
Alexander, R. A.: 225, 250
Algin a, 1.: 256, 283
Allen, D. L.: 158, 164
American Counci l on Education: 167, 185
American Educational Research Association: 33,37,38,39,40, 41 , 42,43,53,55,66, 68,72,84,94, 11 4, 11 8, 122,137, 138, 168, 170, 17 1, 179, 185, 236, 248, 254, 255,26 1,28 1
American Psychological Association: 33, 37, 38,39,40, …

Subject Index

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, and Practices

Subject Index listed A-Z (8 pages)

A

a parameter: 299-300, 303, 305-306, 314
absolute standard procedure: 329
absolute standards: 222-223
accuracy of the inference: 150
Adaptive Mastery Testing (AMT): 298,305
advisory committee: 100-101 , 103-105,111- 112
AERA/APA/NCME Standards: 33,37-43, 53, 55 , 66, 68, 72, 84, 94, 11 4, 118, 122, 137-138,168, 170- 171,179,185, 236, 248, 254-255, 26 1, 281
all -in-one requirement: 155
alternate-choice: 120
alternate-choice multiple choice: 324
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA): 22-23, 43, 54-55, 60-6 1, 63, 65, 68-70, 297
amplified objective: 129,147
amplified objective method: 129
analysis of variance (ANaYA): 153
anchor items: …

10. Establishing Passing Standards, Craig N. Mills

Licensure Testing: Purposes, Procedures, and Practices

INTRODUCTION

When tests are used to determine eligibility for a license, a passing standard or cut score must be established that divides the test scores into two categories: eligible for license or not. Standard setting has been widely researched and there are many reviews available (see, for example, Jaeger, 1989; Mills & Melican, 1988; Berk, 1986; Hambleton, 1980; Hambleton & Eignor, 1980; and Shepard, 1980a, 1980b), yet there is limited practical advice available for conducting standard setting studies and establishing standards. The one available resource (Livingston & Zieky, 1982) is somewhat dated. The purpose of this chapter is to provide …