ABSTRACT
This chapter introduces a process for setting performance standards with both content and predictive readiness claims, using a combination of empirical evidence and expert judgment. The process of defining readiness claims involves two components: the intended interpretations and the outcomes. The first step in developing a college and career readiness (CCR) assessment is to clearly articulate the intended interpretations or claims that will be made using assessment results. Once the general outcome has been selected, be it college readiness, career readiness, or both, that general outcome must be made concrete. This concrete outcome may be included explicitly as part of the performance level descriptors (PLDs) or may be used instead to provide focus for research studies and evidence gathering. After evaluating results of individual studies, evidence can be summarized to identify common themes and areas of overlap in the results. The higher-quality studies should be emphasized in this phase.
