Source: https://senecalearning.com/en-gb/revision-notes/teacher-cpd/cpd-assessment-for-teachers-seneca-certified-assessor/1-1-1-validity-and-reliability

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# Validity & Reliability

CPD: Assessment for Teachers (by Dawn Cox), topic 1.1.1

## Reliability and Validity of Assessment

Teachers should consider the reliability and validity of any assessment that they design/issue to pupils.

### Definition of validity

![Definition of validity](https://image-v2.cdn.app.senecalearning.com/2018-09/5f2b35eb-5212-4088-bce7-10f7478504ce/statistics.png)

- To Stuart Kime:
 - The ability of the assessments to test what it is meant to test and to provide information that is valuable and appropriate for its purposes.
- An assessment is not valid in itself. Its validity is related to the inferences made from the results of an assessment and the factors that impact these inferences.

### Definition of reliability

![Definition of reliability](https://image-v2.cdn.app.senecalearning.com/courseImages/physics/1.1.1%20Measuring%20length,%20volume,%20etc.../paper-1849364_640-min.jpg)

- Reliability is a sliding scale on the extent to which an assessment result is free from error.
- In practical terms, a reliable assessment means that if a pupil repeated the assessment, they would get the same result.
- For Ofqual, reliability is making sure that students get a fair result, regardless of:
 - Who is marking the paper.
 - Types of questions (eg: multiple choice or essay).
 - Which topics are covered.
 - Date of the exam.

### The importance of the assessment

![The importance of the assessment](https://image-v2.cdn.app.senecalearning.com/2019-03/55ac1669-2415-4b11-a51a-e905f905eadf/plan.jpg)

- According to Wiliam (2014), the importance of the assessment is not to test how well students did. 
- Rather, its importance is in what we can say from the evidence gathered about what those students are able to do in other contexts and at other times.
- The challenge for teachers is to minimize unreliability where possible.

### Important notes

![Important notes](https://image-v2.cdn.app.senecalearning.com/2019-04/86cd8f85-23dc-4978-97d1-f2b34ea58c09/percent-100-hand-pen-write-sure-certain-.jpg)

- When using assessments in the classroom it is important to consider if they provide an accurate picture of what we want to know about a pupil and their learning. 
- No assessment is 100% reliable or 100% valid, however, there are steps teachers can take to increase this.

- Whilst validity and reliability are often discussed separately, they are linked. The reliability of an assessment affects its validity.

## Important Questions about Reliability and Validity

Things to keep in mind when discussing reliability and validity of assessments.

### Threats to validity

![Threats to validity](https://image-v2.cdn.app.senecalearning.com/2019-01/8d81dd3c-4cdb-4bce-bc9e-1f005d078369/weeping-willow-tree-dark-.jpg)

- According to Crooks et al. (1996), the following factors threaten the validity of an assessment:
 - How it is administered.
 - How it is scored.
 - How performance in the assessment is used to make judgments and how we act on those judgments.
 - How scores are aggregated across papers to define students' performance in the whole course from questions about its specific parts.

### Questions on validity

![Questions on validity](https://image-v2.cdn.app.senecalearning.com/2018-07/e2638090-d1c0-41de-b50f-248719d3f9ca/Capacity-Storage-Space-Computer-Hard-Drive-.jpg)

- Assessment design:
 - What part/s of the course is being tested? 
 - What is the difficulty level?
 - Does it test what it needs to test, or is it testing things we are not interested in? E.g. if a pupil can interpret a question rather than answer it?

### Questions on validity

![Questions on validity](https://image-v2.cdn.app.senecalearning.com/2018-08/1b4d57f1-904a-41f2-8312-cb34759fe759/man-thinking-work-working.jpg)

- Performance: 
 - What factors might affect performance on the test? E.g. where and when it is taken, level of readability.
- Results: 
 - How will the results of the assessment be used? What inferences will be made?

### Questions on reliability

![Questions on reliability](https://image-v2.cdn.app.senecalearning.com/2018-05/1cd60aec-ba66-412a-9b5f-a94fbf36a64b/shutterstock_366868868.jpg)

- Administration:
 - What is available to students when they complete an assessment? 
 - What time of day was it completed? 
 - Were there any distractions? 
 - How much time is available to complete the assessment?
- Subjectivity:
 - Who is marking the work? Are they biased?

### Questions on reliability

![Questions on reliability](https://image-v2.cdn.app.senecalearning.com/2019-08/e28f1804-1093-45d7-baa1-14e28f918c44/pen-162124_1280.png)

- Standards: 
 - What does a ‘good’ answer look like? 
 - What criteria makes a successful answer? 
- Consistency:
 - How will answers be moderated? Do all markers mark in the same way?
- Marking: 
 - What variables might affect how marks are allocated? 
 - Is there any pressure on the results of the marking that may influence how it is marked? Eg. accountability measures?.

## Test yourself on Validity & Reliability

- What does **assess** mean in Latin?
- What is the job of teachers when it comes to assessment reliability?
- According to Crooks et al. (1996), what are the threats to the validity of an assessment?
- What can be said about the reliability of an assessment?
- What can be said about the validity of an assessment?

[Practise this topic for free](https://app.senecalearning.com/classroom/course/04e36b88-c9c6-47ac-8a4b-54b9ceeea532/section/46533ffb-4a7d-4082-adc8-be0e4d8837c7/session)

- Next topic: [1.2.1 Summative & Formative Assessments](https://senecalearning.com/en-gb/revision-notes/teacher-cpd/cpd-assessment-for-teachers-seneca-certified-assessor/1-2-1-summative-and-formative-assessments.md)

## CPD: Assessment for Teachers (by Dawn Cox) contents

### 1 Introduction to Assessment
- 1.1 Definitions
  - [1.1.1 Validity & Reliability](https://senecalearning.com/en-gb/revision-notes/teacher-cpd/cpd-assessment-for-teachers-seneca-certified-assessor/1-1-1-validity-and-reliability.md)
- 1.2 Types of Assessments
  - [1.2.1 Summative & Formative Assessments](https://senecalearning.com/en-gb/revision-notes/teacher-cpd/cpd-assessment-for-teachers-seneca-certified-assessor/1-2-1-summative-and-formative-assessments.md)

### 2 Feedback
- 2.1 Feedback
  - [2.1.1 Feedback](https://senecalearning.com/en-gb/revision-notes/teacher-cpd/cpd-assessment-for-teachers-seneca-certified-assessor/2-1-1-feedback.md)

### 3 Assessment Methods
- 3.1 Assessment Methods
  - [3.1.1 Research on Assessments](https://senecalearning.com/en-gb/revision-notes/teacher-cpd/cpd-assessment-for-teachers-seneca-certified-assessor/3-1-1-research-on-assessments.md)
  - [3.1.2 Rubrics & Comparative Judgment](https://senecalearning.com/en-gb/revision-notes/teacher-cpd/cpd-assessment-for-teachers-seneca-certified-assessor/3-1-2-rubrics-and-comparative-judgment.md)
  - [3.1.3 MCQs & Self-Assessment](https://senecalearning.com/en-gb/revision-notes/teacher-cpd/cpd-assessment-for-teachers-seneca-certified-assessor/3-1-3-mcqs-and-self-assessment.md)