Psychology Discussion Questions Wk1

Wk1 Psych 655 Discussion Questions

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1. Can tests predict later achievement? Are they fair to interviewees?

References/ Notes

A Good Test. Films Media Group, 1988, fod.infobase.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?wID=18566&xtid=48721.

Intelligence Testing A good test [Video file]. (1988). Retrieved January 19, 2017, from http://fod.infobase.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?wID=18566&xtid=48721

 

2. What are some of the changes of the 1900 ideas of John Dewey’s controversial IQ tests adjustment curriculum and today’s educational testing curriculum? Does testing help define achievement academically?

NOTES In 1900, 6% of America’s children graduated from high school; by 1945, 51% graduated and 40% went on to college. This program recalls how massive immigration, child labor laws, and the explosive growth of cities fueled school attendance and transformed public education. Also explored are the impact of John Dewey’s progressive ideas as well as the effects on students of controversial IQ tests, the “life adjustment” curriculum, and Cold War politics. Interviews with immigrant students, scholars, and administrators provide a portrait of America’s changing educational landscape in the first half of the 20th century.

As American as public school: 1900-1950 [Video file]. (2000). Retrieved January 19, 2017, from http://fod.infobase.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?wID=18566&xtid=11763

3. How effective is Normal Distribution

NOTES Education psychologists use IQ tests to test a child’s ability to learn effectively. A normal distribution is an arrangement of a data set in which most values cluster in the middle of the range and the rest taper off symmetrically toward either extreme.

Height is one simple example of something that follows a normal distribution pattern: Most people are of average height, the numbers of people that are taller and shorter than average are fairly equal and a very small (and still roughly equivalent) number of people are either extremely tall or extremely short.

The normal distribution is the most important and most widely used distribution in statistics. It is sometimes called the “bell curve,” although the tonal qualities of such a bell would be less than pleasing. It is also called the “Gaussian curve” after the mathematician Karl Friedrich Gauss. As you will see in the section on the history of the normal distribution, although Gauss played an important role in its history, Abraham de Moivre first discovered the normal distribution.

Strictly speaking, it is not correct to talk about “the normal distribution” since there are many normal distributions. Normal distributions can differ in their means and in their standard deviations. Figure 1 shows three normal distributions. The green (left-most) distribution has a mean of -3 and a standard deviation of 0.5, the distribution in red (the middle distribution) has a mean of 0 and a standard deviation of 1, and the distribution in black (right-most) has a mean of 2 and a standard deviation of 3. These as well as all other normal distributions are symmetric with relatively more values at the center of the distribution and relatively few in the tails.

 

REF:

Psychology Research in Context. Films Media Group, 2008, fod.infobase.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?wID=18566&xtid=40117.

http://fod.infobase.com/p_ViewVideo.aspx?xtid=40117&loid=73354#

 

4. Describe a situation in which testing is more appropriate than assessment.

NOTES We define psychological assessment as the gathering and integration of psychology-related data for the purpose of making a psychological evaluation that is accomplished through the use of tools such as tests, interviews, case studies, behavioral observation, and specially designed apparatuses and measurement procedures. We define psychological testing as the process of measuring psychology-related variables by means of devices or procedures designed to obtain a sample of behavior.

 

 

 

5. By contrast describe a situation in which assessment is more appropriate than testing.

NOTES In contrast to the process of administering, scoring, and interpreting psychological tests (psycho- logical testing), psychological assessment may be conceived as a problem-solving process that can take many different forms. How psychological assessment proceeds depends on many factors, not the least of which is the reason for assessing. Different tools of evaluation—psychological tests among them—might be marshaled in the process of assessment, depending on the particular objectives, people, and circumstances involved as well as on other variables unique to the particular situation. Admittedly, the line between what constitutes testing and what constitutes assessment is not always as clear as we might like it to be. However, by acknowledging that such ambiguity exists, we can work to sharpen our definition and use of these terms. It seems useful to distinguish the differences between testing and assessment in terms of the objective, process, and outcome of an evaluation and also in terms of the role and skill of the evaluator. Keep in mind that, although these are useful distinctions to consider, exceptions can always be found

 

6. Is the strength of a particular psychological trait the same across all situations or environments? Based on your response, what are the implications for assessment of psychological traits?

 

NOTES

The psychological traits that an individual has can be displayed at varying degrees in different situations or environments. The traits that an individual displays in a particular situation or environment are dependent on the situation or environment. If an individual for instance is getting yelled at by their boss they may display different traits then they would if they were in a loving family environment. According to Bouchard, Lykken, McGue, Segal, and Tellegan (1990), the traits of an individual can be moderated by the effect of social situation variables which allay or intensify the effects. Meaning that an individual’s traits can influence how the individual responds to the perceived demands of the role that the person is in. The traits of an individual may not be presented in a situation but according to Bouchard et. al., (1990), the differences in traits of an individual have an important effect on the behavior the person displays in different given situations. The traits of an individual vary in strength based on the situation involved so that some traits may be displayed and others not, and some displayed at a higher strength then normal given a different situation. The implication of the assessment that psychological traits shows that the varying strengths and display in traits given the situation lead to the implication that further assessment of traits in situations needs to be done as the research currently available on it is lacking. What is known is that based on the individual differences of people the traits displayed in a strong situation illustrate that people despite undeniably touch situations can retain the capacity to make choices about the display of traits or behaviors in the situation. People react to the situation given based on the traits of them and have the ability to make a choice about the traits displayed. Psychology Discussion Questions Wk1

Reference:

Bouchard, , T.J., Lykken, D.T., McGue, M., Segal, N.L., & Tellegen, A. (1990). Sources of human psychological differences: The Minnesota Study of twins reared apart. Science, 250, 223-228

7. Some testing experts do not believe that the use of grade-equivalent or age-equivalent scores is appropriate, because they can very easily be misinterpreted. What is your opinion on this topic?

NOTES

When it comes to age-equivalent and grade-equivalent scores there is a lot of debate about the appropriateness and usefulness of the tests and scores. The test scores can be easily misinterpreted in ways and the scores themselves are not on an equal-interval scale. Most grade or age-equivalent tests come from a mean or median score interval in that the scores are the average scores given by a certain age group or grade group and that are used as referencing points for the scores given by other individuals. These test scores give a frame of reference for growth based on the typical performance of individuals across different ages or grades (Wright & Wright, 2014). The test scores are a way to provide a reference point for where an individual should be developmentally and in regards to their knowledge or skill, but the scores and tests do not account for individual differences among people within the given groups. The scores uses in the equivalents measure an individual across different ages and grades showing the growth of the individual compared to the average scores received for the given age or grade with no regard to the differences individuals may display (Wright & Wright, 2014). It would seem that a more appropriate measure of an individual would be to use a standard score which would compare the performance of the individual, using the individual’s test scores and viewing them within the particular age or grade that the individual is in. The standard scores measure performance of the individual on an individual level with individual scores, while the equivalent scores measure the growth of the individual through the average scores given. The standard scores allow for differences, variations, which provide sufficient basis for deriving a valid standard score within groups throughout the entire age/grade span. Psychology Discussion Questions Wk1

 

Reference:

Wright, P. & Wright, D. (2014). Tests and measurements for the parent, teacher, advocate, and attorney. Retrieved from http://www.ldonline.org/article/6026.

 

 

 

 

1. Can tests predict later achievement? Are they fair to interviewees?

 

2. What are some of the changes of the 1900 ideas of John Dewey’s controversial IQ tests adjustment curriculum and today’s educational testing curriculum? Does testing help define achievement academically?

 

3. How effective is Normal Distribution

 

4. Describe a situation in which testing is more appropriate than assessment.

 

5. By contrast describe a situation in which assessment is more appropriate than testing.

 

6. Is the strength of a particular psychological trait the same across all situations or environments? Based on your response, what are the implications for assessment of psychological traits?

 

7. Some testing experts do not believe that the use of grade-equivalent or age-equivalent scores is appropriate, because they can very easily be misinterpreted. What is your opinion on this topic?