Assessment - Assessment Develoment
CETE Begins Works on Multiyear Testing Contract
In November 2009, CETE was awarded a 4-year contract to continue recent work on the Ohio Career Technical Competency Assessment (OCTCA) system for the Ohio Department of Education (ODE). Traditionally, OCTCA technical tests have measured performance by individual specializations, or occupations. However, starting in 2008, CETE has assisted ODE in beginning a transition to a system of career field assessments that measure performance by pathways, or groups of multiple, closely related specializations.
Under current plans, CETE will perform three phases of work phases on 31 pathway tests:
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Test development. CETE will finalize development of 7 pathway tests begun in 2008-2009, develop new tests in 24 pathways. (In addition, four pathways tests developed in 2008-2009 will be revised in Year 4.) Development will begin in Year 1 and continue through Year 4. For each pathway, a team of subject matter experts (SMEs) will be identified and will meet face to face in workshops to write test items; a second team of SMEs will then meet at a distance or face to face in a 2-day workshop to validate test items and set cutoff scores.
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Field testing. The new and revised pathway tests will be field tested incrementally, as they are completed. Field test psychometric data will be used along with content validation data to select items for the final tests. Field testing is projected to begin in January 2010 and will continue through Year 4.
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Test administration. The 35 new and revised pathway tests will be administered incrementally, as field testing completed. ODE estimates that the 31 new and revised pathway tests will be administered to approximately 65,000 students in Ohio’s workforce development programs during the term of the contract.
The 31 pathways are show in the table below.
| Career Field | Pathway |
|---|---|
| Agricultural and Environmental Systems |
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| Arts and Communication |
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| Business and Administrative Services |
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| Construction Technologies |
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| Education and Training |
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| Finance |
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| Hospitality and Tourism |
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| Information Technology |
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| Law and Public Safety |
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| Manufacturing Technologies |
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| Marketing |
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| Transportation Systems |
|
New pathway tests will be available either online, through CETE’s Webxam testing system, or in paper and pencil format. CETE will continue to administer existing OCTCA specialization tests through Year 2 of the contract; during that time, OCTCA specialization tests will continue to be used to meet Perkins accountability requirements.
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