Reliability and Validity of International Large-Scale Assessment: Understanding IEA’s Comparative Studies of Student Achievement (IEA Research for Education, 10)

This open access book describes and reviews the development of the quality control mechanisms and methodologies associated with IEA's extensive program of educational research. A group of renowned international researchers, directly involved in the design and execution of IEA's international large-scale assessments (ILSAs), describe the operational and quality control procedures that are employed to address the challenges associated with providing high-quality, comparable data. Throughout the now considerable history of IEA's international large-scale assessments, establishing the quality of the data has been paramount. Research in the complex multinational context in which IEA studies operate imposes significant burdens and challenges in terms of the methodologies and technologies that have been developed to achieve the stated study goals. The demands of the twin imperatives of validity and reliability must be satisfied in the context of multiple and diverse cultures, languages, orthographies, educational structures, educational histories, and traditions. Readers will learn about IEA's approach to such challenges, and the methods used to ensure that the quality of the data provided to policymakers and researchers can be trusted. An often neglected area of investigation, namely the consequential validity of ILSAs, is also explored, examining issues related to reporting, dissemination, and impact, including discussion of the limits of interpretation. The final chapters address the question of the influence of ILSAs on policy and reform in education, including a case study from Singapore, a country known for its outstanding levels of achievement, but which nevertheless seeks the means of continual improvement, illustrating best practice use of ILSA data.-- Provided by publisher This open access book describes and reviews the development of the quality control mechanisms and methodologies associated with IEA's extensive program of educational research. A group of renowned international researchers, directly involved in the design and execution of IEA's international large-scale assessments (ILSAs), describe the operational and quality control procedures that are employed to address the challenges associated with providing high-quality, comparable data. Throughout the now considerable history of IEA's international large-scale assessments, establishing the quality of the data has been paramount. Research in the complex multinational context in which IEA studies operate imposes significant burdens and challenges in terms of the methodologies and technologies that have been developed to achieve the stated study goals. The demands of the twin imperatives of validity and reliability must be satisfied in the context of multiple and diverse cultures, languages, orthographies, educational structures, educational histories, and traditions. Readers will learn about IEA's approach to such challenges, and the methods used to ensure that the quality of the data provided to policymakers and researchers can be trusted. An often neglected area of investigation, namely the consequential validity of ILSAs, is also explored, examining issues related to reporting, dissemination, and impact, including discussion of the limits of interpretation. The final chapters address the question of the influence of ILSAs on policy and reform in education, including a case study from Singapore, a country known for its outstanding levels of achievement, but which nevertheless seeks the means of continual improvement, illustrating best practice use of ILSA data. [Publisher summary, ed] Front Matter ....Pages i-xi Introduction to Reliability and Validity of International Large-Scale Assessment (Hans Wagemaker)....Pages 1-5 Study Design and Evolution, and the Imperatives of Reliability and Validity (Hans Wagemaker)....Pages 7-21 Framework Development in International Large-Scale Assessment Studies (John Ainley, Wolfram Schulz)....Pages 23-36 Assessment Content Development (Liz Twist, Julian Fraillon)....Pages 37-59 Questionnaire Development in International Large-Scale Assessment Studies (Wolfram Schulz, Ralph Carstens)....Pages 61-83 Translation: The Preparation of National Language Versions of Assessment Instruments (Paulína Koršňáková, Steve Dept, David Ebbs)....Pages 85-111 Sampling, Weighting, and Variance Estimation (Sabine Meinck)....Pages 113-129 Quality Control During Data Collection: Refining for Rigor (Lauren Musu, Sandra Dohr, Andrea Netten)....Pages 131-150 Post-collection Data Capture, Scoring, and Processing (Alena Becker)....Pages 151-167 Technology and Assessment (Heiko Sibberns)....Pages 169-186 Ensuring Validity in International Comparisons Using State-of-the-Art Psychometric Methodologies (Matthias Von Davier, Eugenio Gonzalez, Wolfram Schulz)....Pages 187-219 Publications and Dissemination (Seamus Hegarty, Sive Finlay)....Pages 221-230 Consequential Validity: Data Access, Data Use, Analytical Support, and Training (Sabine Meinck, Eugenio Gonzalez, Hans Wagemaker)....Pages 231-244 Using IEA Studies to Inform Policymaking and Program Development: The Case of Singapore (Hui Leng Ng, Chew Leng Poon, Elizabeth Pang)....Pages 245-259 Understanding the Policy Influence of International Large-Scale Assessments in Education (David Rutkowski, Greg Thompson, Leslie Rutkowski)....Pages 261-277