A Practical Introduction to Extracting Linguistic Variables from Text
Victoria Yaneva, PhD, NBME
Christopher Runyon, PhD, NBME

Come to this three-hour workshop if you want to learn how to extract a variety of linguistic variables from text. We are going to present practical ways to do so and provide an example of how these can be used in a simple machine-learning model for predicting variables of interest (stay tuned for details). More broadly, this workshop will also be an introduction to techniques from the field of Natural Language Processing (NLP), which allow extracting rich linguistic data corresponding to multiple levels of linguistic processing. 

Quasi-Experimental Research Designs within the Educational Context
S. Jeanne Horst, PhD, James Madison University
Beth A. Perkins, MA, James Madison University
 
It is the fortunate educational researcher who has the privilege of randomly assigning students to experimental conditions. Thus, within the context of educational research, quasi-experimental research designs are common. In this three-hour webinar, we will explore quasi-experimental research designs. The first hour will offer an overview of quasi-experimentation, including pros and cons of several quasi-experimental methods (e.g., regression discontinuity designs, propensity score matching, and generalized boosted models). The remaining two hours will offer applied examples of traditional and current quasi-experimental approaches. Resources, including R code, will be provided for participants’ use following the workshop.
 
New to R? A beginner's workshop starting with the basics
Derek Sauder, PhD, American Board of Internal Medicine
 
In this workshop, participants will be introduced to R assuming no previous knowledge. As such, the workshop is geared towards R novices. The workshop will cover topics such as: 1) what is R and why to use it, 2) how to get data into R, 3) how to manipulate data in R, 4) R packages, and more! Participants will be provided all R code used in the demonstration and be given the opportunity to practice with R during the workshop. A laptop with R installed will be required.

Using Critical Qualitative Methods and Research to Examine Daily Life 
Maleka Donaldson, EdD, University of Hartford 
Aubry Threlkeld, EdD, Endicott College 
Chris Buttimer, EdD, Massachusetts Institute of Technology 
Wendy Sims-Schouten, PhD, University of Portsmouth 
  
Interested in expanding your methodological repertoire? Join this two-hour workshop that will introduce you to four applied qualitative approaches that can be used to explore the workings of daily life: portraiture, autoethnography, action research and critical realist discourse analysis. The workshop will first offer an overview of each method–including insights into study design, data collection, and analysis–that is anchored in examples drawn from past research studies. After a discussion of the particularities and the differences among this set of approaches and a Q&A session, workshop participants will be invited to field their own research ideas, receiving critical feedback and support for future projects from the facilitators and fellow attendees.
  

Panel: Validity Evidence Based on Testing Consequences
Kristen Huff, EdD (Panelist), Vice President, Assessment and Research, Curriculum Associates  
Keith Markus, PhD (Panelist), Professor, CUNY
Steve Sireci, PhD (Panelist), Professor, Distinguished University Professor, UMass Amherst
Debbi Bandalos, PhD (Moderator), Professor, James Madison University 
 
Coordinated Session: Using scores for multiple purposes in the professions
Carol L. Barry, PhD, (Panelist), Senior Psychometrician, American Board of Surgery  
Daniel P. Jurich, PhD (Panelist), Manager, Psychometrics, NBME
Pamela K. Kaliski, PhD (Panelist), Senior Measurement Scientist, American Board of Internal Medicine