This presentation will discuss the limitations of current practices in the design of the textual and visual features of test items. These limitations stem from the lack of a theory that guides the process of test item development and ultimately have serious validity implications. Dr. Solano-Flores will talk about recent conceptual and methodological developments in the design of test items in both national and international assessment programs. He will share findings from research that he has conducted with his colleagues.
Guillermo Solano-Flores is Professor of Education at the Stanford Graduate School of Education. He specializes in educational assessment and the linguistic and cultural issues that are relevant to test validity. He is the author of the theory of test translation error, which addresses testing across cultures and languages. His research examines the use of generalizability theory—a psychometric theory of measurement error—in the testing of linguistically diverse populations, the formative assessment practices for culturally diverse science classrooms, and the design and use of illustrations in international and national large-scale assessment programs.
Professor Solano-Flores earned a BA in Psychology and an MA in Educational Psychology from the National University of Mexico; and a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley.