ABSTRACT
When psychometric definitions of validity and reliability are translated and adapted for classroom use, consideration of classroom assessment continues to be framed from a psychometric perspective. In this chapter, I explore trustworthiness as a broader, alternative criterion for classroom assessment, one that incorporates some aspects of the psychometric criteria but not others. My conception of trustworthiness emerges from consideration of two features of classroom assessment: (1) its dual (formative and summative) purposes; and (2) its contextual nature, specific to a particular classroom teaching and learning environment. After a brief discussion of how psychometric criteria–particularly reliability–do not align well with these features of classroom assessment, I lay out an argument for my conception of trustworthiness, as applicable to a wide range of classroom assessment activities. I then illustrate this conception by unpacking how one might conduct an inquiry into one element of trustworthiness: the formative effects of classroom assessment. I conclude by highlighting key aspects of trustworthiness through a brief case study of a high school physics teacher’s consideration of learning progression-based assessment items for both formative and accountability purposes.
