Computerized Adaptive Tests: An Effective Approach in Educational Measurement

In this paper, first of all, the properties of conventional fixed length tests are investigated and the flaws of this kind of tests are mentioned. Then, the adaptive tests are intoduced and after investigating their properties, the pros of adaptive tests in comparison to conventional fixed length tests are mentioned. These advantages has made adaptive tests superior to conventional fixed length tests. Two major theoris in educational mesuarement, which are classical test theory and item response theory, will be introduced along with their item difficulty and discrimination parameters. The advantages of Item Response theory in comparison to the classical test theory are mentioned to imply the need for reconsidering the fundemental theories of testing process. The pros and cons of adaptive tests in comparison to conventional fixed length tests will be mentioned along with some comments about how much the pros of adaptive tests are important and how the cons of adaptive tests can be fixed, as well. The advantages that brought by computers has made the computerized adaptive tests a powerfull tool in measuring examinee's ability levels. In fact, this paper tries to answer this main question: why one should use computerized adaptive tests instead of conventional fixed length tests?