The NPTE Quarterly Faculty Newsletter is published by the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy (FSBPT) to provide current information and updates on the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) for faculty in physical therapist and physical therapist assistant programs. Please contact communications@fsbpt.org for subscription information, feedback and comments.
The process of accreditation is one that we are all familiar with. Every physical therapy and physical therapist assistant program must go through an accreditation process to demonstrate that the program meets specific educational standards. Hospitals go through various accreditation processes that allow them to receive reimbursement for patients under CMS. Accreditation demonstrates to stakeholders that a program or institution meets strict standards.
Recently FSBPT went through a rigorous accreditation process through the division of the Buros Center for Testing responsible for accreditation (the Buros Institute for Assessment Consultation and Outreach, or BIACO). You may have read about this accreditation in a previous FSBPT Press Release. The intent of this short article is to provide more information on what was covered in the accreditation review.
The accreditation process was not dissimilar to the process that a school program goes through with CAPTE. Just as a program fills out the Annual Report, the Federation had to answer an extensive questionnaire and send pages of supporting material to the accrediting body. This was followed by a phone interview to provide clarification and request additional information. Finally, the Buros Accreditation review involved a site visit by the reviewers. This included further review of documentation and interviews with the staff involved in the NPTE process.
The accreditation review covered all stages of exam development and administration. The review looked at structure and resources of the testing program including the organization structure and staffing of FSBPT. Examination Development looked at all stages of how questions and forms of the exam are developed including the development of the test content outline, the establishment of the passing score, item development and form development. This review also looked at how the items and forms are analyzed and the results of these analyses. The accreditation review also looked at exam administration, which included how the test is delivered and how it is scored as well as how scores are reported. Security was reviewed throughout all phases of the accreditation process.
In early January, the FSBPT received notification of full Stage One accreditation. We are currently preparing to participate in Stage Two of the accreditation program, which will evaluate the psychometric characteristics of individual NPTE tests developed using these procedures.
As you must feel when you receive accreditation for your program, we were pleased with the results. However, now we start on the annual Stage Two accreditation and continue to work to assure we completely meet all industry standards, so we are ready for the next Stage One accreditation in five years. As we know, the accreditation process, while extremely valuable, comes around all too quickly.
Faculty Advisory Task Force Met in February
A group of three physical therapy program administrators and three physical therapist assistant administrators met in February to review the faculty survey that the FSBPT conducted last summer and make recommendations for improvements in communications and systems related to the FSBPT and school programs. Specifically, the group looked at six areas:
Content of school pass rate reports
Access to school pass rate reports, including the subscription process as well as pricing
The process for candidates to authorize release of scores to the school (FSBPT hopes to revise the process and eliminate the current bubble sheets.)
The FSBPT Faculty Website
The FSBPT Faculty Newsletter
General communications
The group spent two days going through each topic and reviewing the results of the survey, identifying issues, brainstorming ideas for improvements and making recommendations. The recommendations are currently being reviewed to analyze the cost and value of implementation. Some of the suggested changes may be implemented this year. Others require further research and involve long-term planning and budgeting. All the recommendations will be reviewed by the FSBPT Board of Directors.
The Federation would like to thank the Faculty Advisory Task Force for their dedication and input during the two-day meeting. The suggestions provided by the task force will allow ongoing improvement in products and services the FSBPT offer to schools. Members of the Faculty Advisory Task Force:
Name
Program
Jim Carey, PhD, PT
University of Minnesota
Barbara Connolly, EdD, PT
University of Tennessee Health Science Center
Janice Haas PTA, BA
Mercyhurst College
Jim Kelley, PT, EMMDS
Villa Maria College
Carol Patnode, MA, PTA
North Iowa Area Community College
Richard Segal, PhD, PT
University of North Carolina
2006 NPTE Workshops for Faculty
FSBPT continues to provide workshops for faculty on how the NPTE is developed. These workshops are intended to not only provide an understanding of the NPTE but also provide some practical applications that faculty can take back and use with their students and programs. The workshop is designed for both PT and PTA faculty.
On the first day, participants receive expert psychometric training on writing multiple-choice questions that more accurately test their students’ understanding of the material. Writing good multiple choice questions is not an easy task and day one focuses on practice and feedback. Because the NPTE comprises multiple-choice questions, it may be helpful for students to be exposed to this type of testing at appropriate points throughout their education.
The second day of the workshop includes more detailed information on how the NPTE is developed: starting with creating the content outline to constructing the exam, establishing the passing score and finally, to administering the test forms. This understanding may give you some ideas on how to use the content outline to prepare your students for the exam. Another session covers reading, interpreting and using school pass rate reports. This program shows how the content area report may be useful in doing program evaluation.
Historically, the FSBPT has received a very positive response to these workshops. Because of this, we are offering several during the year at various regions throughout the country. If you missed the March 31-April 1 workshop in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, two more are scheduled in 2006. Registration information for both workshops will be distributed beginning in May.
September 8-10, 2006 in Portland, OR (2½ days in conjunction with FSBPT’s annual meeting)
November 3-4, 2006 in Scottsdale, AZ (2 days)
Security Updates
Sharing of Exam Items on the Internet Expands
Caveon reported that a press release touted a website giving away a document containing 596 questions and answers for various IT [Information Technology] exams. One of Caveon’s Senior Security Directors, Jamie Mulkey said; “I must admit, I’ve never seem such blatant, “in your face” behavior from a brain dump site. Not only is the site giving away IT certification test items, but it has also announced the availability of those items through a press release. I don’t need to tell you how hard testing programs work to develop and deploy certification exams. Giving away test items devalues the certified professionals, the test, and the program.” In response to this continued threat, the Association of Test Publishers is initiating three subcommittees on Intellectual Property, Security Planning and Data Protection.
What Students Need to Know
Peak testing season is rapidly approaching. As you are preparing your students to take the National Physical Therapy Examination, the “Helpful Hints” below may help make their testing experience less stressful.
Review the NPTE Candidate Handbook or FAQs online
The candidate handbook and exam FAQs are available online at www.fsbpt.org. By reading through this information candidates will be more familiar with what to expect on the day of their examination.
Plan Ahead
If there is a major life event (marriage, birth etc) upcoming for a student, it makes sense for the candidate to schedule the examination well before or after the event to help reduce stress.
Confirm your Appointment Date & Time
Prior to testing students can go online to www.prometric.com to confirm their appointment information. Knowing that everything is in order prior to arriving at the test center is helpful for many students.
Directions to the test center
It is a good idea for students to know exactly where the Prometric test center is and how to get there. While directions provided online are helpful, they may not be current if an area is developing or under construction. The best way to be sure about how to get to a test center is to go to the test center. A “dry run” to the test center at the time of day the actual exam will be can help students see if the directions are current and how traffic may affect the travel time. Arriving at least 30 minutes prior to the exam will allow the student to check-in and gather their thoughts before starting the exam.
This Quarter’s Questions
Why does my listing of students keep changing? (AKA – A Candidate’s Travels through the FSBPT Database)
Imagine a program director’s frustration as a student appears and disappears from her school report when she specifically asked for a correction. This apparently spontaneous appearance and disappearance is related to the structure of the FSBPT database and the various sources of information for the database including the students, their schools and their respective licensing authorities.
When a student first enters the database, the information generally comes from one of two sources; the school scantron (blue bubblesheet) or from the student as he/she registers for the examination or another FSBPT product. As educators you are surely familiar with the challenges in students using scantron forms. The FSBPT routinely sees situations where a student has written the correct information on the scantron form but then did not correctly fill in the corresponding “bubbles.” This can cause a student to show up in the wrong school and/or in the wrong graduation class. When these errors are reported FSBPT staff makes the requested corrections.
Recently (December 2005), the FSBPT modified its database structure to prevent students from updating their school name and graduation date after it is entered in the system. Prior to December 2005, every time a student interacted with the FSBPT database to register for the NPTE or law exams, request PEAT, request transfers etc, the student was required to enter school information and graduation date. This allowed students to inadvertently make mistakes when inputting their information. Now when students come to the FSBPT database they are presented with the information that currently exists in their FSBPT record. The student can update address information or name info but cannot update their school or graduation date. If a change is required the student must call the FSBPT to make the update.
While the process has been tightened, there are still opportunities for information to be updated which can cause a student to move from a school or graduation year. A primary way is when a jurisdiction licensing authority supplies licensure information to the FSBPT. When the licensure information is received, the FSBPT updates the database with the jurisdiction’s data. If there are inaccuracies in the jurisdiction’s information or if a candidate has gone to school in more than one jurisdiction, this can create problems for school reports.
The FSBPT continues to evaluate the process for recording student information to try and reduce the complexity and potential for errors. One area currently being investigated is replacing the scantron process with an online process. Look for information on this evolving process in future newsletters.
