Personal Blogs

Murphy, S. 'Literacy assessment and the politics of identities' [Course website]

Notes on implications and equity issues in individual assessment.

General problems

• Low scoring students results based on smaller sample of responses than higher scoring students
• No credit for partial knowledge
• Summaries masks differences between test scores i.e. student scores uniformly low or one test is very low and rest above average
• Knowledge of format of tests affects performance
• Limited generalisability from test to context e.g. comprehension test can be answered without reading the passage
• Limited relevance to non-school environment
• One narrow path to success - perceived as unfair by those with strengths in other areas.

Systematic bias

Testing takes place in context. It has behavioural rules on inter-personal communication and participation

• Interaction between examiner/examinee
• Anxiety
• Over-testing and speed of testing for African-American children
• Low achievers more anxious
• Negative about process that sorts them for race and class
• Freq. of specific word use differs across languages so students may not recognise words even if translated to their own language
• In translation the resultant tasks may not be equivalent

Teachers administering tests

• Successful result of the system
• Forced to participate in system even if do not agree
• Psychologists do not know child; teacher/parent does so ideas of teacher/parent often confirmed even though results are ambiguous
• Teachers focus on those pupils likely to show gains in test results
• Teachers reportedly alter results, teach to the test, use test items in class. Resistance but pressure to get pupils to achieve.

Psychologists administering tests

• Seem to be autonomous in selection and administration of tests
• Milofsky found psychologists in suburbs worked in environment and identified barriers; those in urban environment were too busy and identified individual differences
• Objectivity of test legitimises the work;
• Working in marginal position so power important to personal identity
• Legal requirements require audit trail