Pearson VUE launches Spring 2009 Series of free Psychometric Workshops
The sessions are intended to help those involved in, or getting started in the creation of assessments, to develop tests that are a better and more reliable reflection of the abilities they are intended to measure.
COMPUTER-based assessment company Pearson VUE has launched its Spring 2009 series of free psychometric workshops, to be hosted at its offices at 80 Strand, London.
The sessions are intended to help those involved in, or getting started in the creation of assessments, to develop tests that are a better and more reliable reflection of the abilities they are intended to measure. They are equally suitable for individuals from large organisations, educational establishments or government bodies.
Both sessions will cover testing objectives, candidate population, effectiveness of each item (task or question to be assessed) and item banking (the repertoire of items from which an assessment is created).
The first, on the 13th May, is the introductory level workshop, and the second on the 14th is the intermediate level. They will be hosted by Pearson VUE's experienced in-house psychometricians and will be informal and interactive, allowing participants to examine a variety of aspects of test development and to ask questions.
Introductory Level Workshop
Kathleen A. Gialluca, Director of Measurement and Research Services at Pearson VUE who will be hosting the sessions, explains: "The introductory level workshop is for those who are new to test development or item writing. The morning session discusses determining what and how to measure to ensure the test is as valid as possible. The afternoon session will provide an introduction to test and item statistical analysis as a means of ensuring that the test content is reliable and that every candidate is given a fair opportunity."
Intermediate Level Workshop
Kathleen Gialluca continues, "The intermediate level workshop will cover Item Response Theory (IRT). This has several advantages over classical test theory for constructing tests and measuring people. IRT models estimate the probability that a person will respond correctly or incorrectly to a test question. This workshop will overview the most common IRT models (Rasch, two and three parameter logistic models) for use with multiple choice items. The concepts of information and standard error in the context of IRT will be presented. Emphasis in the presentation will be on practical applications for use of IRT in item banking, test creation, equating and scaling of both items and persons. No prior experience or mathematical background is required for this workshop."
Previous psychometric workshops have been met with enthusiasm from attendees. Peter Watkins, Director of Education at CFA UK, described them as "Excellent, truly relevant," while Patrick Haverty, e-Assessment Manager at ICAEW, said, "Very enjoyable and informative, really good presentation, I particularly enjoyed the informal approach."
Those wishing to register for their free delegate pass for these events should visit www.pearsonvue.co.uk.
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Media contacts: Oliver Chesher or Jessica Hope at Gyro International, (+44 161 876 5522), [email protected] / [email protected]
Notes to editors: Pearson VUE (www.pearsonvue.co.uk) is a global leader in computer-based testing for information technology, academic, government and professional testing programmes around the world. Pearson VUE provides a full suite of services from test development to data management, and delivers exams through the world's most comprehensive and secure network of test centres in 165 countries. Pearson VUE is a business of Pearson (NYSE: PSO; LSE: PSON), the international media company, whose businesses include the Financial Times Group, Pearson Education and the Penguin Group.