Module 2: Important Characteristics of Assessments

Usability or Practicality

Usability of assessment procedures is an important practical consideration in selecting assessments.  How long does the assessment take to administer?  How easy or difficult are the administration procedures?  What type of training and qualifications are needed to correctly administer the assessment?  How easy or how difficult is it to interpret the assessment results and apply them to make informed decisions about students’ strengths and needs?  How expensive is the assessment?  These are just a few of the questions that should be addressed when looking at the usability and practicality of assessment procedures (Díaz-Rico & Weed, 2006; Linn & Gronlund, 2000). Can you think of more?

Obtaining valid and reliable results should take precedence over usability considerations.  Thus, it would not be appropriate to select an extremely short test, which could substantially reduce the reliability of scores for the sake of expediency.  Nor would it be appropriate to use a test that is easy to score but does not properly measure the content you are interested in measuring.