Modern ICTs are making international collaboration more feasible,
opening up new ways to learn from research conducted within other educational
systems. Such collaborations allow replication studies, a key process in scientific
research. However, it may be inappropriate to utilize a research tool and its statistical
model developed in another culture because these will not automatically be
admissible or equivalent in the new cultural context. Differences in context,
culture, and language can potentially shed light on why valid adaptation
processes did not result in equivalent statistical models. Thus, it is
essential that the equivalence of a research tool and its statistical model is
investigated to determine the validity of results and comparisons. This talk
will examine basic principles and tools of validating a translation and
statistical processes for evaluating equivalence of statistical models.
Examples will be given from Dr Brown’s research collaborations that contrast student
beliefs about assessment in China, Hong Kong, New Zealand, and Brazil.