Validity and Reliability
"Whether discussing formal or informal assessments, the assessment process must have integrity across an assessment's development, use, and analysis" (Howard, V. F., & Aiken, E., 2015, p. 93). Before beginning the discussion, make sure you have read section 3.4 of our textbook that discusses the importance of reliability and validity in assessment. Next, watch the following videos on test validity and reliability:
• Introduction to test validity. To view a transcript of the video, please click HERE.
• Reliability. To view a transcript of the video, please click HERE.
Then, address the following:
• Summarize your understanding of reliability and validity, including how they are related.
• Explain the importance of reliability and validity in assessment.
• Analyze the following situation:
o A center or school is looking for an assessment instrument to measure reading ability. The selection has been narrowed to two possibilities:
- Test A shows measures of strong validity, but there is no information about its reliability.
- Test B includes measures of strong reliability, but there is no information about its validity.
o Which test would you recommend? Be sure to include a comprehensive rationale with three reasons that support why you chose the test you did.