Normative assessment

Encyclopedia : N : NO : NOR : Normative assessment

Normative assessment is a style of assessment (or testing) in which the tested individual is compared to a sample of his or her peers (referred to as a "normative sample").[Assessment Guided Practices] When a test uses normative assessment, it is said to be a "norm-referenced test" or "norm-referenced assessment."

Alternative to normative assessment, assessments can be ipsative, that is, the individual assessment is compared to his- or her-self through time.[Assessment][PDF presentation] By contrast, a test is criterion-referenced when provision is made for translating the test score into a statement about the behavior to be expected of a person with that score. The same test can be used in both ways.Cronbach, L. J. (1970). Essentials of psychological testing (3rd ed.). New York: Harper & Row. Robert Glaser originally coined the terms "norm-referenced test" and "criterion-referenced test".Glaser, R. (1963). Instructional technology and the measurement of learning outcomes. American Psychologist, 18, 510-522.

Most state achievement tests are criterion referenced. In other words, a predetermined level of acceptable performance is developed and students pass or fail in achieving or not achieving this level. Tests that set goals for students based on the average student's performance are norm-referenced assessments. Tests that set goals for students based on a set standard (e.g., 80 words spelled correctly) are criterion-referenced assessments.

Many college entrance exams and nationally used school tests use normative assessment. The SAT, Graduate Record Examination (GRE), and Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) compare individual student performance to the performance of a normative sample. Test-takers cannot "fail" a norm-referenced test, as each test-taker receives a score that compares the individual to others that have taken the test, usually given by a percentile.

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