PSM7 and PSM8: Validating Two Problem-solving Measures.

Abstract

New mathematics standards were adopted broadly across the United States of America between 2011-2013. Problem solving is a central facet of these new standards. Given new standards and the prominence of mathematical problem solving, there is a need for valid and reliable assessments that measure students' abilities related to those standards. Moreover, Rasch measurement techniques support psychometric analyses during validation studies, effectively measuring students' and items' properties in ways not afforded by true score theory. This manuscript builds upon past research (see Bostic and Sondergeld, 2015a, 2015b) with a validity study of two related problem-solving measures for grades seven and eight. Results from this validation study indicated that the problem-solving measures for grades seven and eight had sufficient evidence for their use.