This course will introduce the unique design features of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and TIMSS data to researchers and provide guidance in data analysis strategies that they require, including the selection and use of appropriate plausible values, sampling weights, and variance estimation procedures (i.e., jackknife approaches). The course will provide participants with hands-on practice training in analyzing public-use NAEP and TIMSS data files using the R package EdSurvey, which was developed for analyzing national and international large-scale assessment data with complex psychometric and sampling designs. Participants will learn how to perform: 

• • data process and manipulation,
• • descriptive statistics
• • cross tabulation and plausible value means, and
• • linear and logistic regression

 The knowledge and analytic approach learned from this course can be applied to analyzing other large-scale national and international data with plausible values. This course is designed for individuals in government, universities, private sector, and nonprofit organizations who are interested in learning how to analyze large-scale assessment data with plausible values. Participants should have at least basic knowledge of R software (e.g., took an entry level training on R programming) as well as statistical techniques including statistical inference and multiple regression. Having working knowledge of Item Response Theory and sampling theory is preferred. Participants need to have a computer preloaded with the latest version of the R and RStudio software to participate in the hands-on portion.

Course Instructors

Emmanuel Sikali, U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics

Paul Bailey, American Institutes for Research

Ting Zhang, American Institutes for Research

Michael Lee, American Institutes for Research

Eric Buehler, American Institutes for Research

Martin Hooper, American Institutes for Research