President's Message
Deborah Harris, 2022-2023 NCME President
The President’s Corner
Greetings!
I hope you are having an enjoyable summer (or winter -- whatever season
it is where you are residing).
The 2023 Annual Meeting
As was previously announced, the 2023 NCME Annual Meeting will be held April 12 (training session day) through April 15, in Chicago in conjunction with the AERA Annual Meeting. The NCME Board of Directors and our management company Talley did investigate various configurations, and determined that holding the meeting in conjunction with AERA in Chicago was the best option for 2023.
In the Future Conference Survey we sent out to NCME members, in addition to the specific survey items, there were open response comment boxes. We received about 230 comments, which were extremely helpful in our understanding of what some members wanted and did not want. We are fully aware it is not possible to host a single Annual Meeting that will satisfy everyone’s preferences, and we do have logistical constraints, including time, space, and costs, but we are trying to move forward with the guidance those of you who responded have provided.
The distance between AERA sessions and NCME sessions in 2022 was an issue for some of you, and we believe we have at least partially addressed this for 2023. The majority of respondents preferred not having the meeting run over the weekend -we were able to somewhat address this by having the Annual Meeting end on Saturday, rather than Sunday or Monday (for logistical reasons, we are not able to end on Friday without shortening the duration of the meeting). Based on your feedback on both the Future Conference Survey and the 2022 post event survey, we are not planning to hold the traditional NCME breakfast. Instead, we are planning an afternoon business meeting followed by the Presidential Reception, which will be open to all NCME in-person attendees (as was done in 2022).
Finally, while the dates for the virtual training sessions and virtual conference sessions have not yet been set, we are trying to accommodate input we have received regarding avoiding Saturday and being considerate of time zone issues, especially for our international presenters.
Please feel free to contact me (deborah-harris@uiowa.edu) and/or the Program Committee (NCMEProgramChairs@talley.com) with thoughts and suggestions around the 2023 Annual Meeting. You are also strongly encouraged to submit proposals on the topics for sessions and trainings you want to see presented and discussed at the meeting.
Leveraging Measurement for Better Decisions- I chose this for the 2023 Annual Meeting theme for a number of reasons, a couple of which I would like to share with you.
First, I think it is important that we consider the utility of what we do. Second, I also think it’s
important to be open that we are trying to make better decisions using data; we’re not claiming that every decision we make will be perfect (however you define that). Rather, that decisions will be more likely to be effective with data based on our best methods than without it (in that we put a student in the level of course that is not to easy or too challenging for them, that we award a license to a candidate who does seem in practice to demonstrate they have at least the minimal level of skill, that the value add of the new reading program does seem to exceed that of the old reading program, that scores seem to be representing actual skill level of the construct we are attempting to measure and not extraneous
factors,…).
2-3 months in, how are the presidential initiatives coming along?
I had three initiatives for my presidential year.
1. Improve NCME mechanics- We are making progress on this one! We have drafted numerous updates for the governance handbook and should be releasing an updated version on the NCME website shortly. NCME members voted to approve the Bylaws revisions, so we are updating them. We are trying to be more intentional about transitions, given that many committee chairs and members, SIGIMIE chairs, as well as the NCME President and a third of the NCME Board, rotates every year.
To assist with continuity, the 2023 Program Committee has an attendee from the 2024 Program Committee invited to their planning meetings. We are working to improve the Annual Meeting experience for both in-person and virtual attendees. We know NCME sends out frequent emails, announcements, and surveys, but we are committed to sharing information with you, and at the moment, email seems the appropriate vehicle. There are a multitude of details to keep track of, and we are trying to ensure we have good documentation and processes around them. You all can help by ensuring your contact information is up-to-date – on the NCME member database, on any committee or SIGIMIE lists, and in the ScholarOne system for reviewers for JEM and EM:IP.
2. Increase resources available to graduate students and early career scholars- I am delighted to report many committees, SIGIMIEs, and individuals are working on webinars, placing videos on the website, planning a training session, and other initiatives to provide information and experiences for graduate students and early career scholars. Many of these plans have been in the works for some time, and a few are in the early planning stage as part of this initiative. I am also very grateful to those who contacted/met with me with suggestions on what would be useful to students and early career folks. Please keep your suggestions and volunteerism coming!
3. Establish and begin implementation of a strategic plan to increase NCME’s influence- The NCME Board discussed some options at our June Board meeting, and we are following up on those. Pipeline recruitment, better communication of what NCME has to offer, and some targeted pieces on assessment literacy seem like possible starting points. We plan further discussion and next steps for the September Board meeting. And, as always, we welcome your suggestions.
What’s it like being President of NCME?
Exciting, humbling, overwhelming, exhilarating, … often all on the same day…
I have been touched and immensely grateful at the number of past presidents and NCME members who have reached out with encouragement, offers of support, advice, and the willingness to take on tasks. The NCME Board and our Talley team (Ethan, Erin, and Brandon) are amazing. The Committees and SIGIMIEs are very active. The Program Team is deep into both the minute details and the overarching vision surrounding the upcoming Annual Meeting.
Some days the to-do list seems to consist of nagging or trying to get meetings on the calendars of very busy people. Other days it’s brainstorming how to implement some initiative or writing something for the NCME Newsletter. The best days are connecting with other NCME members on their ideas for making the measurement world a better place. In summary, it’s awesome. And I am very grateful to you for the opportunity to serve.
Sincerely,
Deborah
deborah-harris@uiowa.edu