Understanding Standardized Tests

Dr. Dennis M. Roberts

Aim of Course:

To provide an overview to the main statistical and measurement tools that are associated with interpretation of data from standardized educational tests, including the types of tests used in conjunction with the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law. Participants will learn how to interpret test results, equipping them to understand test manuals and to discuss both group and individual student performance with administrators and parents. Basic statistical (descriptive) and measurement concepts (reliability and validity) are presented, along with discussions of issues such as specific tests, norms, and test bias.

Who Should Take This Course:

Anyone in U.S. K-12 school systems who is involved with or responsible for interpreting standardized test data to administrators, teachers, parents and others, and who has not had any specialized work in the area of measurement and assessment.

For those enrolled in Professional Advancement Programs, this is a required or elective course in the following Programs:

• Statistics for Social Sciences - elective

Course Program:

The course is structured as follows

The Instructor:

Dr. Roberts has spent over 35 years teaching in the areas of statistics and measurement/assessment, including courses in basic and intermediate statistics, educational assessment and psychological testing. His professional career was spent (3 years) at The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, (3 years) in Psychology at East Carolina University, and since 1973 (until retirement as Emeritus Professor) in the Educational Psychology program at Penn State University. Over the years, Dr. Roberts published dozens of empirical articles in journals, directed a Correspondence Course in Basic Statistics for 20 years and revised the study guide several times, revised his own introductory statistics book 3 times, and made numerous presentations at conferences of the American Educational Research Association and other professional societies.

Organization of the Course:

The course takes place over the internet, at statistics.com. During each course week, you participate at times of your own choosing - there are no set times when you must be online. Course participants will be given access to a private discussion board. In class discussions led by the instructor, you can post questions, seek clarification, and interact with your fellow students and the instructor. The course is scheduled to take place over 4 weeks, and typically requires 10-15 hours per week. At the beginning of each week, you receive the relevant material, in addition to answers to exercises from the previous session. During the week, you are expected to go over the course materials and work through exercises. Discussion among participants is encouraged. The instructor will provide answers and comments.

Certificates and Grades:

You may be interested only in learning the material presented, and not be concerned with grades or certificates. Or you may be enrolled in a statistics.com Professional Advancement Program that requires demonstration of proficiency in the subject, in which case your work will be assessed for purposes of issuing a grade. Or you may require only a "Certificate of Course Completion," along with professional development credit in the form of Continuing Education Units (CEU's). As you begin the class, you will be asked to specify your category.

Credit:

This course offers continuing education units (CEU's). For those successfully completing the course (generally this means marks of 50% or better on the homework), 5.0 CEU's and a certificate will be issued by statistics.com, upon request.

Dates:

Jun. 13 - Jul. 11, 2008
Click here to be notified of future course offerings.

Participants gain access to the online materials on the first day of the course, and typically spend about 10-15 hours per week (at their convenience). You retain full access to course materials, including discussion board, for two weeks after the course closing date.

Level:

Novice

Prerequisite:

No formal statistical or measurement course work background is required.

Course Text:

The course material will consist of online chapters (pdf files) from Descriptive and Inferential Statistical Topics by Dennis Roberts (to be made available on the course web site), plus other course notes and internet links provided by the course instructor.

Software:

No statistical or measurement software is required, and the emphasis is on interpretation, not calculation. Many of the examples in the main text materials use Minitab, those with a strong interest in statistical calculation can download the FREE 30 day trial of the full package Minitab. Click here for a list of software used in various statistics.com courses, including Minitab.

Registration:

Register Online - $449
Register Online (academic) - $349 (you must be affiliated with a college, university or high school)

Add $50 service fee if you require a prior invoice, or if you need to submit a purchase order or voucher, pay by wire transfer or EFT, or refund and reprocess a prior payment. Please use this printed registration form, for these and other special orders.

Note: Courses may fill up at any time and registrations are processed in the order in which they are received. Your registration will be confirmed for the first available course date, unless you specify otherwise.