Technological and statistical advances, along with a strong interest in gathering more information about the state of our educational systems, have made it possible to assess more students, in more countries, more often, and in more subject domains. The Handbook of International Large-Scale Assessment: Background, Technical Issues, and Methods of Data Analysis brings together recognized scholars in the field of ILSA, behavioral statistics, and policy to develop a detailed guide that goes beyond database user manuals. After highlighting the importance of ILSA data to policy and research, the book reviews methodological aspects and features of the studies based on operational considerations, analytics, and reporting. The book then describes methods of interest to advanced graduate students, researchers, and policy analysts who have a good grounding in quantitative methods, but who are not necessarily quantitative methodologists. In addition, it provides a detailed exposition of the technical details behind these assessments, including the test design, the sampling framework, and estimation methods, with a focus on how these issues impact analysis choices.

This handbook is the first of its kind to provide a general and comprehensive overview of virtually every aspect of International Large Scale Assessment (ILSA). It includes historical, economic, and policy perspectives, theoretical foundations, methodology, and reviews of findings from analyses of ILSA data. After decades, during which ILSAs have generated knowledge within central areas of education research and gained increased and substantial impact on educational policy, practice and research, such a broad overview for a wide-ranging audience is much needed. With contributions from authors and editors from all continents, this handbook appeals to an international audience and keeps a neutral perspective, not favoring one ILSA over another. The handbook is suitable to be read by politicians, researchers and stakeholders who are seeking an overview of ILSAs, their history and development, and both potential benefits and limitations with regard to policy implications. The reviews of findings from studies analyzing ILSA data will be of interest to stakeholders, teachers, researchers, and policymakers. Considering that the reviews extend to all fields pertaining to educational research, the book will be valuable to all researchers interested in education. Students may use the book to learn about ILSAs in the context of policy, theoretical underpinnings, or research. Moreover, the methodology section is written in a manner that is understandable and accessible for students, stakeholders, or researchers not familiar with these data. This methodology part, however, is also a valuable resource for researchers who are familiar with ILSA data, as it provides overviews of the design and sampling procedures of several ILSAs, and includes advice on methods of analysis.Even the owners of the ILSAs may find the book valuable, as it contains overviews and insights into a number of ILSAs, provides information how the data is used by the research community, and includes recommendations for future instruments.

This open access book describes and reviews the development of the quality control mechanisms and methodologies associated with IEA’s extensive program of educational research. A group of renowned international researchers, directly involved in the design and execution of IEA’s international large-scale assessments (ILSAs), describe the operational and quality control procedures that are employed to address the challenges associated with providing high-quality, comparable data. Throughout the now considerable history of IEA’s international large-scale assessments, establishing the quality of the data has been paramount. Research in the complex multinational context in which IEA studies operate imposes significant burdens and challenges in terms of the methodologies and technologies that have been developed to achieve the stated study goals. The demands of the twin imperatives of validity and reliability must be satisfied in the context of multiple and diverse cultures, languages, orthographies, educational structures, educational histories, and traditions. Readers will learn about IEA’s approach to such challenges, and the methods used to ensure that the quality of the data provided to policymakers and researchers can be trusted. An often neglected area of investigation, namely the consequential validity of ILSAs, is also explored, examining issues related to reporting, dissemination, and impact, including discussion of the limits of interpretation. The final chapters address the question of the influence of ILSAs on policy and reform in education, including a case study from Singapore, a country known for its outstanding levels of achievement, but which nevertheless seeks the means of continual improvement, illustrating best practice use of ILSA data.

Winner of the 2017 AERA Division D Significant Contribution to Educational Measurement and Research Methodology Award! Technological and statistical advances, along with a strong interest in gathering more information about the state of our educational systems, have made it possible to assess more students, in more countries, more often, and in more subject domains. The Handbook of International Large-Scale Assessment: Background, Technical Issues, and Methods of Data Analysis brings together recognized scholars in the field of ILSA, behavioral statistics, and policy to develop a detailed guide that goes beyond database user manuals. After highlighting the importance of ILSA data to policy and research, the book reviews methodological aspects and features of the studies based on operational considerations, analytics, and reporting. The book then describes methods of interest to advanced graduate students, researchers, and policy analysts who have a good grounding in quantitative methods, but who are not necessarily quantitative methodologists. In addition, it provides a detailed exposition of the technical details behind these assessments, including the test design, the sampling framework, and estimation methods, with a focus on how these issues impact analysis choices.

This book explores the often controversial international large-scale assessments (ILSAs) in education and offers research-based accounts of international testing as a social practice. Assessment exercises, such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), produce comparable international statistics and rankings on educational performance, and are influential practices that shape educational policy on a global scale. The chapters in this volume, written by expert researchers in the field, take the reader behind the scenes to document a broad range of ILSA practices – from the recruitment of countries into ILSAs, to the production and performance of large-scale testing, and the management, media reception and use of test data. Based on data that is only available to expert researchers with inside access, the international case study material includes examples from Australia, Ecuador, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Norway, Russia, Scotland, Slovenia, Sweden, the UK and the USA. The volume provides important insights for teachers, researchers and policy-makers who use and study assessment data and who wish to evaluate its significance for educational policy and practice.

This open access methodological book summarises existing analysing techniques using data from PIAAC, a study initiated by the OECD that assesses key cognitive and occupational skills of the adult population in more than 40 countries. The approximately 65 PIAAC datasets that has been published worldwide to date has been widely received and used by an interdisciplinary research community. Due to the complex structure of the data, analyses with PIAAC datasets are very challenging. To ensure the quality and significance of these data analyses, it is necessary to instruct users in the correct handling of the data. This methodological book provides a standardised approach to successfully implementing these data analyses. It contains examples of and tools for the analysis of the PIAAC data using different statistical approaches and software, and it offers perspectives from various disciplines. The contributing authors have hands-on experience of using PIAAC data, and/or they have conducted data analysis workshops with these data.

This open access book presents a large number of innovations in the world of operational testing. It brings together different but related areas and provides insight in their possibilities, their advantages and drawbacks. The book not only addresses improvements in the quality of educational measurement, innovations in (inter)national large scale assessments, but also several advances in psychometrics and improvements in computerized adaptive testing, and it also offers examples on the impact of new technology in assessment. Due to its nature, the book will appeal to a broad audience within the educational measurement community. It contributes to both theoretical knowledge and also pays attention to practical implementation of innovations in testing technology.

This book is open access under a CC BY-NC 2.5 license.​​ This book describes the extensive contributions made toward the advancement of human assessment by scientists from one of the world’s leading research institutions, Educational Testing Service. The book’s four major sections detail research and development in measurement and statistics, education policy analysis and evaluation, scientific psychology, and validity. Many of the developments presented have become de-facto standards in educational and psychological measurement, including in item response theory (IRT), linking and equating, differential item functioning (DIF), and educational surveys like the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), the Programme of international Student Assessment (PISA), the Progress of International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) and the Trends in Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). In addition to its comprehensive coverage of contributions to the theory and methodology of educational and psychological measurement and statistics, the book gives significant attention to ETS work in cognitive, personality, developmental, and social psychology, and to education policy analysis and program evaluation. The chapter authors are long-standing experts who provide broad coverage and thoughtful insights that build upon decades of experience in research and best practices for measurement, evaluation, scientific psychology, and education policy analysis. Opening with a chapter on the genesis of ETS and closing with a synthesis of the enormously diverse set of contributions made over its 70-year history, the book is a useful resource for all interested in the improvement of human assessment.

This book draws together leading student assessment academics from across Europe exploring student monitoring policies and practices in a range of countries across 22 chapters. The chapters in the first part offer a broad overview on student assessment covering history and current status, aims and approaches as well as methodological challenges of international student assessment. The second part presents country specific chapters provide an in depth look examining country specific policy and practices and findings of national and/or international assessments. Findings are critically discussed and recommendations are made for further development of each country's assessment context. The book shows similarities and differences within the educational assessment landscape as well as complexity and similarities in assessment policy documents and strategies, Given the globalized world we live in today, this book fills a need in the higher educational context and is intended for for policy makers in different countries as well.