How It All Started

T = X - E

Recall that one of the fundamental derivations of "strong true score" or "classical" measurement theory is that an examinee's unknown and unseen "true score" (T) is really their observed score (X) on an assessment minus error (E). Since the development of this concept (and even before) measurement practitioners and theorists to boot have been trying to estimate a student's true score with greater and greater precision. This maximization effort typically focuses on ways to partition the error (i.e., to better understand what is causing error) and ultimately reduce it such that observed student performance is a better indicator of underlying achievement or ability.

So, what does all this have to do with the TrueScores blog? Only in that it serves to mention that Pearson Educational Measurement has recently expanded our research efforts and intend to use the TrueScores blog as one of the forums for dissemination and debate. The last thing the world needs is another forum for a pompous psychometrician to pontificate about how the world would be a better place if y'all would only buy their solution. To this end, the TrueScores blog is dedicated to honest, respectful, scientifically based and open debate about the "hot" topics in today's measurement world. Some of these topics include:

• Establishing comparability between paper-and-pencil assessments and their online or electronic counterparts.
  
• Automated essay scoring: Is it practical, reliable and valid?
  
• Is Computer Adaptive Testing (CAT) a potential solution for the age old question of testing time versus instructional time?

Background information related to these topics can be found at our web site on the research pages. Additional publications related to a host of topics in educational measurement can also be found at our web site. Future research will be added periodically and we will use this blog to communicate these additions.

We will be updating this blog so that a new discussion topic will be posted regularly. This will add to the debate shaping our educational policy and will provide practical and applied insights into not only classical measurement but other aspects of educational measurement including Item Response Theory, Growth Modeling (Value Added Models), Equating, Scaling and legal defensibility. As such, we hope you return.

In the mean time, if you have questions about Pearson Educational Measurement, or our parent company Pearson Education, start by visiting our home page.