Educational assessment designers are pedagogical administrators that create new tests and oversee exam experiments. Formal degree programs that train educators to become assessment designers begin at the graduate level and continue to the doctorate level.
Earn a Bachelor’s Degree in Education
Almost all educators earn a bachelor’s degree in the field of education. The guiding philosophy of these programs is to turn students into competent and effective educators. These programs may focus on early, elementary, secondary or higher education. Students develop core competencies by mentorships, field studies and teaching experiences. These programs include courses that discuss the foundations of education, child development and instruction theories. These degree programs provide opportunities for students to select electives related to testing and assessment designs. These courses provide opportunities for students to examine current testing practices, regulatory policies and ethical issues. Students will learn how to create effective tests that accurately evaluate their student’s knowledge and competency.
Work as an Educator
There are many types of jobs in the education field. A K-12 public school teacher will maintain a safe and positive learning environment through applying school policies, enforcing expectations and acting as a professional role model. Teachers participate in school-wide initiatives and lead classroom projects. Teachers constantly test their students, but also must participate in employee performance appraisals and complete regular self-evaluations. Working as a teacher will help educators learn assessment compliance rules and state and federal regulations. As an alternative, educators may start their careers working in administration. School administrators maintain office hours for student, parent, teacher and operational support. They maintain up-to-date records related to student progress, attendance and performance.
Earn a Master’s Degree
The next step in becoming an education assessment designer is to complete a graduate level program. Master degrees in educational assessments and evaluations is the best choice. Many programs allow students to focus on key areas, so current elementary school math teachers can focus their academic research on using digital media resources to create better multiplication tests. High-school science teachers might focus on how to design competency based tests that assess student’s knowledge of things like climate change and chemical compositions. Some graduate students may just want to learn how to design general assessments. These students will learn about how to apply the conceptual tools, analytical processes and methodological practices to a variety of educational contexts. Graduates will learn how to observe students, interview educators and understand learning processes and educational environments.
Advance Your Career
After graduating from a master’s program, educators will be ready to work as education assessment designers. For example, they may work as a test development specialist who develops content, executes publication processes and monitor progress against project scopes and deadlines. They must consistently produce high-quality test content and questions within limited timeframes. They create project plans, review test inventories and research current standards and curricula to set learning objectives. Test development specialists create item development plans and assignments. They verify that items and passages are aligned with state and federal standards and school guidelines. They also fact and plagiarism check materials before submitting completed tests for formal committee reviews.
Related Resource: Become an Educational Researcher
Educational assessment designers may also work for the Department of Education reviewing standards or become local assessment specialists who develop strategies to measure student learning performance and program outcomes.
