Nathan Thompson articles

Nathan Thompson earned his PhD in Psychometrics from the University of Minnesota, with a focus on computerized adaptive testing. His undergraduate degree was from Luther College with a triple major of Mathematics, Psychology, and Latin. He is primarily interested in the use of AI and software automation to augment and replace the work done by psychometricians, which has provided extensive experience in software design and programming. Dr. Thompson has published over 100 journal articles and conference presentations, but his favorite remains https://scholarworks.umass.edu/pare/vol16/iss1/1/ .
woman-taking-test
Test Development

Item Review Workflow for Exam Development

Item review is the process of ensuring that newly-written test questions go through a rigorous peer review, to ensure that they are high quality and meet industry standards. What is an item review workflow? Developing

Likert scale meme
Psychometrics

Likert Scale Items

Likert scales (items) are a type of item used in human psychoeducational assessment, primarily to assess noncognitive constructs.  That is, while item types like multiple choice or short answer are used to measure knowledge or

Stackable credential cairn
Credentialing

What are Stackable Credentials?

Stackable credentials refer to the practice of accumulating a series of credentials such as certifications or microcredentials over time.  In today’s rapidly evolving job market, staying ahead of the curve is crucial for career success. Employers

test blueprints specifications
Psychometrics

What are Test Blueprints & Specifications for Assessment?

Test blueprints, aka test specifications (shortened to “test specs”), are the formalized design of an assessment, test, or exam.  This can be in the context of educational assessment, pre-employment, certification, licensure, or any other type. 

student-testlet
Psychometrics

What is a testlet?

Testlet is a term in educational assessment that refers to a set of test items or questions grouped together on a test, often with a common theme or scenario. This approach aims to provide a

job-task-analysis
PsychometricsTest Development

Job Task Analysis Study: Why essential for Certification?

Job Task Analysis (JTA) is a formal process to define what is being done in a profession, especially what is most important or frequent, and then using this information to make data-driven decisions. It is

laptop screen demonstrating automated test assembly
Test Development

Question and Test Interoperability (QTI)

Question and Test Interoperability® (QTI®) is a set of standards around the format of import/export files for test questions in educational assessment and HR/credentialing exams.  This facilitates the movement of questions from one software platform

ASC presents at the conference on test security
ASC News

Assessment Systems presents at the Conference on Test Security (COTS)

The Conference on Test Security is a scholarly conference devoted to the topic of security in educational, credentialing, and employment assessment.   Test fraud/cheating is one of the most salient threats to score validity, and can

job analysis
Psychometrics

Four-Fifths Rule: Fair Employment Selection

The Four-Fifths Rule is a term that refers to a guideline for fairness in hiring practices in the USA.  Because tests are often used in making hiring decisions, the Four-Fifths Rule applies to them so

Iteman45-quantile-plot
PsychometricsTest Development

Classical Test Theory: Item Statistics

Classical Test Theory (CTT) is a psychometric approach to analyzing, improving, scoring, and validating assessments.  It is based on relatively simple concepts, such as averages, proportions, and correlations.  One of the most frequently used aspects

students in school
Psychometrics

Content Validity in Assessment

Content validity is an aspect of validity, a term that psychometricians use to refer to evidence that interpretations of test scores are supported.  For example, predictive validity provides evidence that a pre-employment test will predict

making-predictions-and-decisions-based-on-test-scores
Psychometrics

Predictive Validity of Test Scores: Why so Critical for Pre-Employment and Higher Education?

Predictive Validity is a type of test score validity which evaluates how well a test predicts a future variable, and serves as evidence that the test is therefore useful for this purpose. For instance, it

Classical Test Theory vs. Item Response Theory
PsychometricsTest Development

Classical Test Theory vs. Item Response Theory

Classical Test Theory and Item Response Theory (CTT & IRT) are the two primary psychometric paradigms.  That is, they are mathematical approaches to how tests are analyzed and scored.  They differ quite substantially in substance

shocked-girl-all-psychometric-models-are-wrong
Psychometrics

All Psychometric Models Are Wrong

The British statistician George Box is credited with the quote, “All models are wrong but some are useful.”  As psychometricians, it is important that we never forget this perspective.  We cannot be so haughty as

student remote online proctoring software
Test Security

Best Online Proctoring Providers: The Alternative List You Need

There are many online proctoring providers on the market today, so how can you strategically shop for one?  This post provides some considerations, and a list of most vendors, to help you with the process.

University certificate credential
Credentialing

Certification Management System

A Certification Management System (CMS) or Credential Management System plays a pivotal role in streamlining the key processes surrounding the certification or credentialing of people, namely that they have certain knowledge or skills in a

ANSI ISO 17024 Accreditation
Credentialing

ANSI ISO/IEC 17024 Accreditation

ANSI ISO/IEC 17024 accreditation is an internationally recognized standard for the accreditation of personnel certification bodies.  That is, it is a stamp of approval from an independent audit which says your certification is good quality. 

automated-essay-scoring-machine-learning
Artificial IntelligenceEducation

What is Automated Essay Scoring?

Automated essay scoring (AES) is an important application of machine learning and artificial intelligence to the field of psychometrics and assessment.  In fact, it’s been around far longer than “machine learning” and “artificial intelligence” have

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