The process of measurement is an essential component of the learning system. Measurement is always done of a quality, attribute or variable of a thing or a person. The process of measurement converts the variable into variety which is used for drawing inferences. For example, intelligence is quantified in terms of IQ and achievement variable is measured in terms of scores.
E.L. Thorndike stated that ‘anything that exists at all, exists in some quantity; and anything that exists in some quantity is capable of being measured’. Measurement of any kind is a matter of determining how much or how little, how great or how small, how much more than or how much less than.
James M. Bradfield defined measurement as’ the process of assigning symbols to the dimension of phenomenon as precisely as possible’.J.P.Guilford defined measurement as the ‘assignment of numerals to objects or events according to certain rules’.
1900-1915:
It is the period marked for the development and research for different methods in the field of measurement. It is conveniently be described as the motivational period in the field of psychological measurement.
The Binet, in this period, developed his intelligence test in America. The development of different standardized achievement tests were also developed during this period. The group intelligence test was also developed during this period by Ottis.
1915-1930:
Motivated by the pioneers in the field of measurement, educationists and psychologists developed numerous tests during this period. Standardised tests were developed almost for all areas of school subjects.
It is the period when achievement batteries were developed. Several group intelligence tests were also developed during this period.
Hence the movement of group intelligence tests started during the first World War in the shape of ‘Army Alpha’ took momentum during this period. Woodworth’s Personal Data Sheet, which was the result of the effect of First World War, resulted in the development of several personality tests and inventories during this period.
1930-1945:
The rapidity with which development of testing movement took place during 1915 to 1930, was further stabilized during this period. The test developers were not interested in developing the test only, but they become concerned to their utility as well, during this period.
Intelligence tests and achievement tests were employed indiscriminately during this period. In the areas, where injustice was done to individuals due to wrong decisions, test results were accepted without any criticism and hitch. Encouraged by objective measurement, test developers, never evaluated their tests critically, nor they interpreted the results of their tests properly.
This attitude resulted in a severe criticism of objective tests. The well-known heredity vs. environment controversy became bitter during this period. The categorization and classification of school classes on the basis of test scores met a severe criticism during this period.This severe criticism left a healthy effect on testing movement. Now people started weighing their tests critically. The projective techniques to measure the whole personality were developed during this period.
1945-1960:
The main feature of this period was excessive use of Test Batteries and Test Programmes. Due to the success during the Second World War, a number of Aptitude tests and tests for special ability were developed during this period.
This period is a golden era in the field of psychological movement from the point of view of test administration and their use. It is in this period that Edward developed a personality inventory based on Murray’s personality theory.
1960-1981:
Similarly several tests were developed and standardized during 1961 to 1981. With the emergence of new problems in the field of psychology, tests were developed to meet these problems during this period. Specially tests were developed to measure frustration, creativity, different needs, self-concept and self-disclosure.
Today, measurement is common to everyday life. If we analyse a day’s activity we find that we use measurement in some form or other. It can be said that almost every aspect of human life, from birth to death, is touched by measurement.
In social sciences too, we employ measurement for better interpretation of data. In almost every research project in social sciences emphasis is laid on the use of statistics to quantify the data collected through various instruments. In psychology and education, measurement and quantification are very important.
When we think about tests in schools, we often picture students shuffling papers at their desks. They fill in short answers to questions, respond to multiple-choice style options, or write brief essays. The majority of their cognitive effort is focused on searching their memory to find appropriate responses to the test items, or applying formulae to familiar problems. This style of educational assessment targets the types of skills that were seen as important throughout the 20th century—the skills of storing relevant information and retrieving it upon demand, often as these processes related to literacy and numeracy.
However, from a measurement perspective, the issues are more complex. Meaningful measurement requires defining what one intends to measure, as well as a consistent system to define the magnitude of what is being measured. This is straightforward for physical measurements, such as weight in pounds and height in inches, but not for cognitive measurements. Although we have been assessing numeracy and literacy skills for over a hundred years, measuring these skills is not as simple as it seems.
