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The document describes score adjustments for test differences, compares proficiency levels across administrations, and interprets trend data from 1991–2009. It addresses contributing factors such as higher July pass rates and lower LSAT entering scores for a February 2009 examinee sample, while noting that jurisdictional declines can be driven by score distribution around pass/fail thresholds.",{"@graph":69,"@context":123},[70,84,106],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":20,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/exam/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/the-testing-column-what-goes-up-often-comes-down-february-2009-performance-on-the-mbe/390990/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/the-testing-column-what-goes-up-often-comes-down-february-2009-performance-on-the-mbe/390990.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Theodore","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-06","2026-09-25",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":105},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",11,{"@type":107,"mainEntity":108},"FAQPage",[109,115,119],{"name":110,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":112},"Does the decreased average score mean the MBE is getting harder?","Question",{"text":113,"@type":114},"No. The MBE scaled score is adjusted to account for differences in questions across administrations.","Answer",{"name":116,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":117},"What accounts for the decrease in performance in February 2009?",{"text":118,"@type":114},"Some decline may relate to the higher-than-usual pass rate in July. For about 40% of the February 2009 examinees, LSAT scores were lower than in February 2008, and about 20% of lower MBE scores can be attributed to lower LSAT entering scores, though the specific proficiency-reducing factors are not fully known.",{"name":120,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":121},"Why was there such a large decrease in the pass rate for some jurisdictions?",{"text":122,"@type":114},"Pass rate changes vary across jurisdictions. In February 2009, about three-fourths saw pass rate decreases of roughly 1 to over 16 percentage points, and small differences in score distributions can produce large pass/fail swings because many examinees fall near the standards.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":125,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":127,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":129,"site_id":62},390990,1790836563,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":132},{"doc_id":129,"user_id":133,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":134,"doc_module":4,"category_id":19,"category_name":20,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":135,"file_id":136,"file_url":137,"file_type":138,"file_size":139,"view_count":105,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":81,"language":140,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":144,"read_time":39,"preview_page_count":4},7971461740886,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_3d24733baf745e90a7e4bdd5f77d97b2","The TesTing Column  \nWhaT goes up ofTen Comes DoWn: february 2009 performanCe on The mbe  \nby Susan M. Case, Ph.D.  \nI’ve received a number of calls  \nregarding the lower scores and  \nlower pass rates on the February  \n2009 bar examination. As many of you know, MBE scaled scores were at a record high in July 2008, which some hoped was the start of a continued increase in scores. This was not to be. The July 2008 high was followed by a February low, though not the lowest ever.  \ndifficulty into account. As a result, when the average score decreases from July to the next February or from one February to the next February, we can assume that the examinees were less proficient. In this case, examinees in February 2009 were about 2 points less proficient on average than examinees in February 2008, and about 10 points less proficient on average than examinees in July 2008.  \nFigure 1 shows the trend in average  \nFebruary MBE scaled scores from 1991 to 2009. Based on the total population of MBE takers, mean MBE scaled score changes from one July to the next and from one February to the next have continued to be less than three points. The mean scores for the past 10 February administrations have ranged from 135 to 138; during the same period, July mean scores have ranged from 141 to 146. The July 2008 mean was the highest on record.  \nFollowing is an explanation of the February 2009 results in a Q & A format. This article follows directly from the article in the November 2008 Bar examiner’s Testing Column in which the July 2008 results were summarized. Together they are intended to provide an explanation of score increases and of score decreases.  \n1. Does the decreased average score mean the MBE is getting harder?  \nNo, the MBE is not getting harder. The MBE scaled score is adjusted to take any differences in question  \n2. What accounts for the decrease in performance?  \nSome of the decrease may be attributable to the higher than usual pass rate in July. A second possible explanation is based on background data that we have for about 40 percent of the February 2009 examinees. For this sample, the LSAT scores were lower in February 2009 than in February 2008 both for first-time takers and for repeaters. About 20 percent of the lower MBE scores can be attributed to lower entering scores on the LSAT. However, while we can speculate, we don’t actually know what factors resulted in the decrease in proficiency.  \nLaw schools might have some information that would help to shed light on the weaker performance. For example, for their examinee populations, were the LSAT scores lower, were the law school grades lower, or was the proportion of repeaters higher?  \n48 The Bar Examiner, May 2009  \nFigure 1: Trend in Average February MBE Scaled Scores  \nYear  \n3. Did the score decrease apply to all groups evenly?  \nWe do not yet have this information for a large enough sample to do the analyses. Additional data will be received over the next few months, and we will address this question then. We do know that the decreased MBE scores were seen across the country in about three-fourths of the jurisdictions.  \n4. Why was there such a large decrease in the pass rate for some jurisdictions?  \nThere is always a range of pass rate changes across jurisdictions. In February 2009, approximately three-fourths of the jurisdictions saw a decrease in pass rates from those in February 2008. While mean score decreases for jurisdictions ranged from less than 1 point to over 7 points, decreases in pass rates for these jurisdictions ranged from 1 percentage point to over 16 percentage points. At the sametime, a few jurisdictions saw increased scores and pass rates that were similar in magnitude to the decreases described above.  \nFigure 2 shows the distribution of examinee scores in February 2008 and February 2009. The February 2009 curve is just slightly to the left of the February 2008 curve; it is also slightly more peaked. The curves in Figure 2 highlight how sma","cbCaibXA4YwyU4zY","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaibXA4YwyU4zY","pdf",237308,"English","# Explanation of February 2009 Results\n## Decreased average score: is the MBE harder?\n## Causes of lower performance\n## Whether the decrease applied evenly across groups\n## Large decreases in pass rates in some jurisdictions\n## Possibility of stricter graders or harder essay questions","[{\"question\":\"Does the decreased average score mean the MBE is getting harder?\",\"answer\":\"No. The MBE scaled score is adjusted to account for differences in questions across administrations.\"},{\"question\":\"What accounts for the decrease in performance in February 2009?\",\"answer\":\"Some decline may relate to the higher-than-usual pass rate in July. For about 40% of the February 2009 examinees, LSAT scores were lower than in February 2008, and about 20% of lower MBE scores can be attributed to lower LSAT entering scores, though the specific proficiency-reducing factors are not fully known.\"},{\"question\":\"Why was there such a large decrease in the pass rate for some jurisdictions?\",\"answer\":\"Pass rate changes vary across jurisdictions. In February 2009, about three-fourths saw pass rate decreases of roughly 1 to over 16 percentage points, and small differences in score distributions can produce large pass/fail swings because many examinees fall near the standards.\"}]","The Testing Column - What Goes Up Often Comes Down - February 2009 Performance on the MBE | PDF",1790343786]