ETS audits the Republic of Azerbaijan's National Testing Center exams - 19/10/2006

A team of research and measurement experts assembled by ETS's Global Institute, recently completed an audit of the Republic of Azerbaijan's State Student Assessment Commission (SSAC) Entrance Examinations that are administered through the National Testing Center.

The audit took place from June 5-15 in Baku, Azerbaijan, and involved a team of experts who specialize in test validity, research, and mathematics and education assessment. The audit was administered in conjunction with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and World Learning, a private, nonprofit international organization with both academic and field project capabilities.

The team concentrated its focus on technical aspects of the SSAC Entrance Examinations, including validity, reliability, cut scores, scaling, equating, test use, and test development guidelines established by ETS. In February, a delegation of education leaders from the SSAC, the Ministry of Education, and various universities in Azerbaijan visited the ETS Global Institute. The delegation participated in a course titled Issues in Large-Scale Assessment.

"This audit is not only a chance to measure and gauge student assessment examinations in this burgeoning country," says Paul A. Ramsey, Senior Vice President of the Global Division. "It is also an opportunity to fine-tune our own training efforts that are administered to local educators to achieve our ultimate goal of building internal capacity in Azerbaijan."

Education leaders in Azerbaijan have noted that an important first step in strengthening their overall national education system is strengthening their student entrance examinations. To further the ETS commitment to fair and valid assessments in Azerbaijan, Ray Nicosia, Executive Director, Office of Professional Standards and Compliance, will travel to the country in July to perform a security audit of the testing program.

Azerbaijan is a country with a population close to 8 million people, and is located at the crossroads of Eastern Europe and Western Asia.