Assessing Learners with Special Needs: An Applied Approach, 6e © 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Chapter 5: Introduction to Norm- Referenced

Assessing Learners with Special Needs: An Applied Approach, 6e

© 2009 Pearson Education, Inc.All rights reserved.

Chapter 5: Introduction to Norm-Referenced Assessment

Assessing Learners with Special Needs: An Applied Approach, 6eOverton

© 2009 Pearson Education, Inc.All Rights Reserved.2

Norm-Referenced Tests Norm-referenced tests—tests

developed to establish the average or typical performance of students within specific age or grade groups. When students are administered these test instruments, their performance can be compared with the typical or average performance of students of the same age or grade.



Norm group—a large group of people thought to represent the population for whom the test was designed.

Areas where the norm group must be representative of the larger population include: gender, ethnicity, geographical region, native language, and socioeconomic status.



Test developers select an educational domain they want to assess (e.g., reading fluency, writing composition, math problem solving). A domain is an area of cognitive development or ability thought to be evidenced by certain behaviors or skills.



An item pool, a large collection of test items thought to effectively represent a particular domain or content area, is compiled from various sources and scrutinized for appropriateness.

An experimental version of the test, called a development version, is created and field tested for the purpose of revising before publication.



Interpolation is used to obtain an average expected score for each month of the school year. Interpolation is the process of dividing existing data into smaller units for establishing tables of developmental scores.

Chronological age refers to the numerical representation of a student’s age, expressed in years, months, and days.



Norm-referenced tests are often administered when it is necessary to determine if the student’s ability or skill level is significantly above or below age or grade peers.

For example, these tests are used to assess students who may be within the gifted range of intellectual ability or who may have significant cognitive challenges.



General Guidelines for Test Administration

Student requests for repetition of test items

Asking students to repeat responses Student modification of responses Confirming and correcting student

responses Reinforcing student work behavior



Encouraging students to respond

Questioning students Coaching Administration of test items



Key Terms in Test Administration

Test manual—a manual that accompanies a test instrument and contains instructions for administration and norm tables.

Protocol—the response sheet or record form used by the examiner to record the student’s answers.



Basal—thought to represent the level of skills below which the student would correctly answer all test items.

Ceiling—thought to represent the level of skills above which all test items would be answered incorrectly; the examiner discontinues testing at this level.



Development of Norm-Referenced Scores

Recall that when enough data are collected on skills and abilities, those scores will be distributed in a normal distribution or bell curve.

Norm-referenced tests are given to large groups of students in the age or grade groups for which the test is developed.



These tests are scored and the average performance of students for each grade or age level is determined.

The standard deviation is also calculated.

When the test’s developers produce the tests, the scoring and comparisons are based on the performance of the standardization sample.



When data are collected, the average performance by age, for example, might look like this:

Age

6789101112

Raw Score15192432455063

StandardScore100100100100100100100

PercentileRank50505050505050



The table presents the average raw scores for each age. The average raw scores are the average number of items answered correctly for each age group.

Age

6789101112

Raw Score15192432455063

StandardScore100100100100100100100




Age

6789101112

Raw Score15192432455063

StandardScore100100100100100100100


Many test developers use the standard score scale that has a mean of 100. Therefore, 100 is used to represent average for each age on this particular test.



Recall that percentile rank indicates the student’s standing or rank when compared to the age or grade group. Because these students earned the average or mean score, they also obtained a score in the middle of the distribution.



Age

6789101112

Raw Score15192432455063

StandardScore100100100100100100100


In other words, they performed as well as or better than 50% of the sample.



The previous slides illustrated the average performance. Other data are used by the test developers to determine other scores and percentile ranks for students who did not perform as average.



Age

7

Raw Score8111315192228

StandardScore859094100110115120


See the scores below for other levels of ability of 7 year olds.



Age

7

Raw Score8111315192228



Notice that the average performance of 15 raw score points yields a standard score of 100 and the percentile rank of 50. However, students who earned only 8 raw score points received a standard score of 85 and were ranked at the 19th percentile rank.



Calculating Raw Scores A raw score is the first score

obtained in test administration. This score represents the number of items correct.

The raw score of 8 points was determined by calculating the number of items answered correctly on a particular subtest.



In this example, each time the student answers correctly, the student receives a score of 1.



Calculate theraw score for

this 7 yearold.



Jeremy Age 71. 1 13. 1 25. 12. 1 14. 1 26. 13. 1 15. 1 27. 04. 1 16. 1 28. 05. 1 17. 0 29. 06. 1 18. 1 30. 07. 1 19. 18. 0 20. 1 Raw Score?9. 1 21. 110. 1 22. 011. 1 23. 112. 0 24. 1



Age

7

Raw Score8111315192228



Look at the table below. Jeremy, who earned a raw score of 22 would receive what standard score and percentile rank?

Development of Norm-Referenced Scores (cont.)



Age

7

Raw Score8111315192228



Refer to the bell curve illustration in chapter 3 of your text. How does this table relate to the bell curve? Can you locate the standard scores and the percentile ranks on the bell curve? What percent of students would you expect to score within 1 standard deviation unit above and below the average score (i.e. the mean)?



Scoring Norm-Referenced Tests

Recall that the first score obtained on norm-referenced tests is the raw score.

The raw score usually indicates the correct number of items correct when the items are scored with a point value of 1 for correct and 0 for incorrect.

Some subtests have items that are scored with varying point values. For example a subtest may have items that are scored from 0-4.



The example used for illustrating scoring on the next few slides includes a reading subtest with a point value of 0 for incorrect and 1 for correct.

The example employs a standard score scale with a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 10.



Steps in Scoring Norm-Referenced Tests

Step 1—Obtain all raw scores for all subtests administered.

Step 2—Use the age or grade appropriate table in the test manual to look up the student’s standard score and percentile rank. In order to find the correct score, use the obtained Raw Score.

Step 3—Locate the raw score on the table and read across to find the correct standard score and percentile rank.



Reading Decoding Subtest for an 8 year old student.

1. 1 9. 12. 1 10. 13. 1 11. 04. 1 12. 0 Raw Score 5. 1 13. 16. 0 14. 07. 1 15. 08. 0 16. 0

9

Step 1—Obtain Raw Scores



Raw Score Standard Score

Percentile

Rank

7 107 67

8 108 69

9 109 72

10 110 75

11 111 76

Step 2—Use Tables to Find SSs & Percentiles



With a raw score of 9, what is the standard score?

What is this percentile rank?Raw Score Standard Score Percentile

Rank

7 107 67

8 108 69

9 109 72

10 110 75

11 111 76

109

72

Step 3—Locate the SS and Percentile associated with

the raw score.



Important Questions Remember that the standard score

scale for this instrument is based on a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 10.

What does the standard score of this 8 year old mean?

What does the percentile rank of this 8 year old mean?

How would you explain this to the student’s parents?



Based on the scores below, can you interpret the possible strengths and weaknesses that might be indicated by these results?

Standard Percentile Score Rank

Reading Decoding 109 72Reading Comprehension 110 73Spelling 100 50Written Language 98 48Math Calculations 72 5Math Application 70 4

Interpreting Strengths and Weaknesses



High Stakes Testing Group achievement tests are used to

assess accountability of individual students and school systems.

They are called high stakes tests because the results often have serious implications for accountability, accreditation, and funding for school systems. They are also used to make high stakes decisions about students.



IDEA 2004 supports IDEA 1997’s mandate that all students with disabilities be included in statewide and district-wide accountability assessments.

The majority of students with disabilities are expected to take the same assessment as their non-disabled peers, with accommodations where appropriate.



Students who are not capable of taking the general assessment are required to be given an alternate assessment.



Accommodations are necessary changes in format, response mode, setting, or scheduling that will enable a student with disabilities to complete the general curriculum or test. Accommodations must not alter what the test is measuring.

Assistive technology (AT) (e.g., speech synthesizers, electronic readers, communication boards) is necessary technology that enables the student to participate in a free, appropriate public education.



Accommodations for assessments include: The use of assistive technology Possible changes in:

the format of assessment the manner in which the student responds

the setting of the assessment the scheduling of the assessment.



The purpose of accommodations for assessments is to prevent measuring the student’s disability and to allow a more accurate assessment of the student’s progress in the general curriculum.



Alternate assessments should be designed to reflect progress in the general education curriculum at the appropriate level. The type and level of the assessment is an individualized decision. For example, a student with significant cognitive disability may not be able to master the skills expected of a 1st or 2nd grade student. Skills measured for this student may be pre-academic skills necessary to progress toward 1st and 2nd grade skills.



Universal Design—the practice of designing assessments to be more fair and user friendly for all learners from the beginning rather than attempting to fit a test to a student’s needs after it has been developed.

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Assessing Learners with Special Needs: An Applied Approach, 6e © 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Chapter 5: Introduction to Norm- Referenced