What do we know about the assessment of educational performance? Psychometric features and problems in performance assessments

Abstract

Performance assessments demand students to complete complex tasks showing their ability to apply knowledge and skills to real life in simulated situations. In education, performance assessment is used as an academic achievement measure, having high impact over student’s life. Thus, it is capital to have a good understanding about how these scores are obtained, what information is given, which are the technical requirements to be consider as reliable and valid, which are their main limitations and which way should have to be followed in the future research. This article is a synthesis of scientific research literature that evidences psychometric features of performance tests, their strengths and weaknesses. Research evidences are limited and their main conclusions claim for the development of more research about educational performance in test psychometric features. The main problem of this kind of test is the score comparability, due to inter rater variability, among others. Moreover, basic psychometric features as test reliability and validity don’t find enough empirical bases on research literature.