ASC hosted a webinar on June 14, 2022, as part of its AI In Assessment Series. This edition is an interview with the father of computerized adaptive testing (CAT), Prof. David J. Weiss.
Learn more about his journey in the world of psychology, education, and assessment, from his initial interest in measuring individual differences to early exposure to computers, to the initial applications of item response theory in the development of the CAT approach as part of a research team at the University of Minnesota. He also discusses his recent research and expectations for the future of AI in Assessment.
Prof. David J. Weiss
Dr. David J. Weiss is widely regarded as the father of CAT and is one of the first people to apply computers to deliver assessments. Dr. Weiss has been incredibly impactful in the field of psychometrics and assessment:
– Professor at the University of Minnesota, longtime director of the Psychometric Methods program, where he supervised 37 PhDs
– Founder of the journal: Applied Psychological Measurement
– Founder of the Journal of Computerized Adaptive Testing (JCAT)
– Co-Founder of Assessment Systems Corporation (assess.com)
– Co-Founder of Insurance Testing Corporation
– Co-Founder of the International Association for Computerized Adaptive Testing (iacat.org)
– Published hundreds of journal articles, reports, and conference presentations
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/ .