The USE Test in History and Its Validity: Experts of Regional Subject-Specific Committees Speculating on Free-Response Items

  • Oleg Fedorov Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA) (Novosibirsk)
  • Ksenia Verinchuk European Gymnasium (Moscow)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17323/1814-9545-2021-3-189-211
Keywords: testing, validity, constructed-response items, free-response items, history performance assessments, subjectivity in assessment, Unified State Exam (USE)

Abstract

The Unified State Exam (USE) in Russia is both an achievement and admission test, yet its validity has not been looked into on a large scale. The evolution of USE tests is distinctly marked by a growing number of constructed-response items, which might be affecting the validity of test results in many ways.
In-depth semi-structured interviews with 36 USE experts in history allow identifying three major threats to USE validity: assessment criteria for items 24 and 25, item content, and expert bias. Interview transcripts were analyzed using content analysis, the results of which are presented along with recommendations on how to further improve the processes of item design and evaluation.

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Published
2021-09-21
How to Cite
Fedorov, Oleg, and Ksenia Verinchuk. 2021. “The USE Test in History and Its Validity: Experts of Regional Subject-Specific Committees Speculating on Free-Response Items”. Voprosy Obrazovaniya / Educational Studies Moscow, no. 3 (September), 189-211. https://doi.org/10.17323/1814-9545-2021-3-189-211.
Issue
No 3 (2021)
Section
Education Statistics and Sociology