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Meagher, EdD Mark Daniel, PhD Rachel P. Wegner, MANatividad Ybarra, PhD  \nFor inquiries or reordering:  \n800.622.3231  \n[www.pearsonassessments.com/pcat](www.pearsonassessments.com/pcat)  \nCopyright © 2020 NCS Pearson, Inc. All rights reserved.  \nWarning: No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without the express written permission of  \nthe copyright owner.  \nPearson, PCAT, and the PCAT logo are trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries of Pearson PLC or its affiliates.  \nNCS Pearson, Inc. 5601 Green Valley Drive Bloomington, MN 55437 Produced in the United States of America.  \n Table of Contents  \nAcknowledgments ................................................................................................................................... iv  \nAbstract ......................................................................................................................................................... v  \nIntroduction................................................................................................................................................. 1  \nRecent Test-Optional Admission Trends in Higher Education......................................................................... 1  \nTest Item Development and the Question of Bias ............................................................................................... 2  \nTest Score Differences and the Question of Fairness.......................................................................................... 4  \nConclusion .......................................................................................................................................................................... 9  \nReferences..................................................................................................................................................10  \nTables  \nTable 1 Means and Standard Deviations (SD) of Scaled Scores and Writing Scores for Five  \nPost-Secondary Admission Tests by Voluntary Self-Reported Candidate Sex, and Effect Sizes for Score Differences Between Female and Male Candidate Groups..................5  \nTable 2 Means and Standard Deviations (SD) of Scaled Scores and Writing Scores for Five Post-Secondary Admission Tests by Selected Voluntary Self-Reported Race/Ethnicity,  \nand Effect Sizes for Score Differences Between Black / African American and White (B/W) and Between Hispanic / Latino and White (H/W) Candidate Groups .............................6  \nTable 3 PharmCAS Applicants and Applicants Accepted by a Pharmacy School for 2018 19 by Voluntary Self-Reported Sex and Race/Ethnicity ........................................................................ 7  \nAcknowledgments  \nAs employees of Pearson, the publisher of the PCAT, the authors wish to acknowledge Libby Ross of the AACP and Paul W. Jungnickel and the other members of the PCAT Advisory Committee for suggesting this paper, and to thank Pearson staff Tianshu Pan for his assistance with data analyses and Jeffrey Miller for his editorial suggestions.  \nAbstract  \nIn a current climate of declining applicant pools and increasing competition among schools for applicants, many programs in higher education generally and pharmacy schools in particular are considering holistic and test-optional admission policies. Relevant to this reality are questions sometimes raised regarding whether admission tests such as the PCAT contain structural elements that are biased against candidates from certain demographic groups and whether test scores unfairly penalize such candidates. These questions are addressed by reviewing the recent trend toward test-optional admission policies in higher education and in pharmacy schools, by describing the rigorous procedures used b","cbCaihh8aJoNHGQZ","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaihh8aJoNHGQZ","pdf",570782,18,"English","# Introduction\n## Recent test-optional admission trends in higher education\n## Test item development and the question of bias\n## Test score differences and the question of fairness\n# Conclusion\n# References","[{\"question\":\"What problem does the paper address about standardized admission tests?\",\"answer\":\"It addresses concerns that tests like the PCAT may contain structural elements biased against certain demographic groups and that test scores might unfairly penalize those candidates.\"},{\"question\":\"How does the paper frame its response to test-bias and fairness questions?\",\"answer\":\"It reviews the movement toward test-optional admissions, explains Pearson’s procedures for constructing valid and fair PCAT test forms, and reports evidence regarding why score differences are not attributable to inherent unfairness.\"},{\"question\":\"What is the relationship between test-optional policies and the questions of bias and fairness?\",\"answer\":\"The discussion connects test-optional adoption trends to ongoing questions about whether standardized test requirements disadvantage particular groups and how scores should be interpreted and used.\"}]","Test Bias, Fairness, and Standardized Admission Tests | PDF",45]