1st Edition
Gender and Fair Assessment
Biography
Warren W. Willingham, Nancy S. Cole
"This book's two primary goals are to provide data regarding differences and similarities in test results related to gender and to meet the need for fair test and assessment results."
—CHOICE"They are used to make some of the most important decisions in our lives -- who gets into a university or other competitive program, who gets the scholarships to pay tuition costs that can equal the salary a mid-level manager will earn in three years, who will gain entry into a world of the 'right' connections, and who will develop their intellectual potential in an environment of higher education. I am referring, of course, to the high-stakes tests that are used in college admissions and for determining entry into professional schools and professions. Some of these tests yield large and consistent differences between females and males, among African-Americans, Latinos, and Americans of European descent, between majors in the humanities and those in the sciences, to name a few. Are these tests fair, given the differences that exist among the groups? What does test fairness mean, both to the average person-on-the-street and the stat-smart developers of these anxiety-producing assessments? The authors tackle these questions and many other tough issues and criticisms of standardized testing, most directly focusing on sex differences in these tests and in other types of assessment (e.g. grades in school). Most importantly, they suggest guidelines for appropriate use of scores on high-stakes tests and provide assistance to consumers trying to understand what test scores really mean. Not everyone will agree on the causes or consequences of sex differences on high-stakes tests, but every reader will gain an understanding of the complexities involved in measuring the knowledge and reasoning skills needed for success in an academic area and the way that the many differences in the lives of males and females can be reflected in standardized tests."
—Diane F. Halpern, PhD
California State University, San Bernardino
