GI Forum v. Texas Education Agency: Observations for states

Seven conclusions for professionals who administer state assessment program s are drawn from the GI Forum v. Texas Education Agency ruling: (a) the Ame rican Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, and National Council on Measurement in Education (1999) standards are appr opriate to use; (b) items showing different p values for subgroups may be u sed if they are selected as adequate for sound educational reasons; (c) a c ut score setting process should be educationally justified; (d) a high-stak es testing program can appropriately address unfair access to education; (e ) multiple opportunities to pass satisfies the standard that a single test score should not be the sole basis for a high-stakes decision; (f) a conjun ctive decision-making model can appropriately motivate both students and sc hools; and (g) an 80% pass rate criterion applied to eventual, as opposed t o initial, success rates for subgroups is a reasonable threshold for advers e impact. Caution is recommended because circumstances in other states may not parallel those in Texas in important ways.