Plugging the Book on Rasch

For anyone really serious about understanding at least the basics of the Rasch model, Trevor Bond and Christine Fox wrote the best book, Applying the Rasch Model, I know of so far for educators. I say "so far" because the book is actually written for those scholars who are conducting Rasch analyses and so it is geared to how to use it. It means it is a bit long and technical for an educator who just wants to understand general principles. None-the-less, it has some readable chapters on the basics that are perhaps the best source so far for a simple introduction to the Rasch model.

Trevor Bond is a remarkable teacher educator and researcher from James Cook University in Australia with a world wide reputation and a huge vita of work in developmental theory, Rasch modeling, and leadership in all kinds of organizations, scholarly journals, and conferences. He is currently on sabbatical as Professor at Hong Kong Institute of Education in the New Territories where he provides academic leadership to the Dept of Educational Psychology, Counseling and Learning Needs. He is a popular speaker at conventions, and several times in the past, he has graciously agreed to come to Portland for conferences we organized. One of our conferences was a joint conference with the NWREL focused on the Rasch model.

All this to say, Rasch is an extremely important research tool that every grad student in education should learn. Since it is replacing norm-referencing as a method of test development and calibration, it is very important for educators to understand. Every educator should understand the basics of measurement even if the technical details are a bit difficult to grasp quickly.

For example, understanding the power of the Rasch model makes clear some of the disappoints we have with the ODE such as in the attempt by the math specialist to develop math problem solving tests. Another example. For teachers, the use of a simple matrix of items by students showing the pattern of correct responses that Trevor describes in his book can easily be done by any teacher for any test they give, and should be. For educators in general, they should understand how to interpret test scores, use a fit statistic for an item or a student, and interpret the error size and its placement on the logit scale. Sadly, these essential aspects of professional knowledge of assessment are lacking in most if not all teachers and administrators. The simplistic views of testing seems to restrict reform efforts to inside-the-box notions of testing as demanding and counting the right responses we want from students. John’s exemplary effort to understand the Rasch model far surpasses the level of apathy in understanding measurement I find among educators.

Perhaps someday we might entice Dr. Bond to return to Portland to help us advance our woeful lack of understanding of measurement. We need some serious discussions of the issues, theories, and ideologies surrounding state testing. Wouldn’t that be interesting?