RESEARCH LIBRARY

Journal of Graduate Medical Education: June 2018, Vol. 10, No. 3, pp. 337-338

To create examinations with scores that accurately support their intended interpretation and use in a particular setting, examination writers must clearly define what the test is intended to measure (the construct). Writers must also pay careful attention to how content is sampled, how questions are constructed, and how questions perform in their unique testing contexts.1–3 This Rip Out provides guidance for test developers to ensure that scores from MCQ examinations fit their intended purpose.

Journal of Educational Measurement: Volume 55, Issue 2, Pages 308-327

The widespread move to computerized test delivery has led to the development of new approaches to evaluating how examinees use testing time and to new metrics designed to provide evidence about the extent to which time limits impact performance. Much of the existing research is based on these types of observational metrics; relatively few studies use randomized experiments to evaluate the impact time limits on scores. Of those studies that do report on randomized experiments, none directly compare the experimental results to evidence from observational metrics to evaluate the extent to which these metrics are able to sensitively identify conditions in which time constraints actually impact scores. The present study provides such evidence based on data from a medical licensing examination.

Applied Psychological Measurement: Volume: 42 issue: 4, page(s): 291-306

The research presented in this article combines mathematical derivations and empirical results to investigate effects of the nonparametric anchoring vignette approach proposed by King, Murray, Salomon, and Tandon on the reliability and validity of rating data. The anchoring vignette approach aims to correct rating data for response styles to improve comparability across individuals and groups.

CJASN May 2018, 13 (5) 710-717

Medical specialty and subspecialty fellowship programs administer subject-specific in-training examinations to provide feedback about level of medical knowledge to fellows preparing for subsequent board certification. This study evaluated the association between the American Society of Nephrology In-Training Examination and the American Board of Internal Medicine Nephrology Certification Examination in terms of scores and passing status.

Medical Teacher: Volume 40 - Issue 11 - p 1143-1150

This study explores a novel milestone-based workplace assessment system that was implemented in 15 pediatrics residency programs. The system provided: web-based multisource feedback and structured clinical observation instruments that could be completed on any computer or mobile device; and monthly feedback reports that included competency-level scores and recommendations for improvement.

Applied Psychological Measurement: Volume: 42 issue: 8, page(s): 595-612

Conventional methods for evaluating the utility of subscores rely on reliability and correlation coefficients. However, correlations can overlook a notable source of variability: variation in subtest means/difficulties. Brennan introduced a reliability index for score profiles based on multivariate generalizability theory, designated as G, which is sensitive to variation in subtest difficulty. However, there has been little, if any, research evaluating the properties of this index. A series of simulation experiments, as well as analyses of real data, were conducted to investigate G under various conditions of subtest reliability, subtest correlations, and variability in subtest means.

Quality Assurance in Education, Vol. 26 No. 2, pp. 150-152

An introduction to a special issue of Quality Assurance in Education featuring papers based on presentations at a two-day international seminar on managing the quality of data collection in large-scale assessments.

Academic Medicine: April 2018 - Volume 93 - Issue 4 - p 636-641

Increasing criticism of maintenance of certification (MOC) examinations has prompted certifying boards to explore alternative assessment formats. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of allowing test takers to access reference material while completing their MOC Part III standardized examination.

Measurement: Interdisciplinary Research and Perspectives, 16:1, 59-70

This article critically reviews how diagnostic models have been conceptualized and how they compare to other approaches used in educational measurement. In particular, certain assumptions that have been taken for granted and used as defining characteristics of diagnostic models are reviewed and it is questioned whether these assumptions are the reason why these models have not had the success in operational analyses and large-scale applications, contrary to what many have hoped.

Journal of Veterinary Medical Education 2018 45:3, 381-387

This study uses item response data from the November–December 2014 and April 2015 NAVLE administrations (n =5,292), to conduct timing analyses comparing performance across several examinee subgroups. The results provide evidence that conditions were sufficient for most examinees, thereby supporting the current time limits. For the relatively few examinees who may have been impacted, results suggest the cause is not a bias with the test but rather the effect of poor pacing behavior combined with knowledge deficits.