Global Perspectives on Educational Testing ― Examining Fairness, High-stakes and Policy Reform

Globally, there has been a significant influx in the use and dependence on standardized tests to foster education improvements. In addition to this, there has been much more concern about the results of the international testing programs that are designed to compare the educational progress of students’ across countries. Testing programs such as TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study), are designed to provide information about a country’s global standing in multiple academic areas. A commonality amongst all testing programs is the use of standardized tests to rank individuals and/or groups relative to the performance of others. The high-stakes nature of standardized tests has increased public concern and interest in issues related to test fairness. Since standardized test performance has a profound influence on multiple aspects of educational systems, it is imperative to better understand and examine issues of fairness. The purpose of this book is to provide a more refined definition of test fairness that can be utilized in multiple contexts to better understand the experiences and perspectives of diverse groups of test takers.

Keena Arbuthnot is Associate Professor of Education at Louisiana State University, USA. She is author of Filling in the Blanks: Understanding Standardized Testing and the Black-White Achievement Gap and has served as a consultant in the United States and internationally.