The Effects of a Common Cut Score on Misclassifying Examinees

• In Event: Marriott Roundtable Session 17
  In Roundtable Session: Psychometric Issues in Higher Education Assessment

Abstract

Higher education institutions report evidence of student learning using pass/fail designations on assessments. With these exams, misclassification may occur. In a high-stakes scenario, a false negative may have severe effects, such as the stress of repeated testing, holds placed on academic accounts, or, in the most severe cases, ineligibility for graduation. Only student ability should affect pass/fail designations in order to assure fairness in examinations with pass/fail cut-scores. These decisions should not be affected by demographics or other categorizations of students. Using an information literacy exam, we explore the misclassification implications from using the same pass/fail score across subgroups.

Author

• Brian Leventhal, James Madison University