Resource Center

Standard setting is a process used by testing professionals to determine the passing score on a test. It is an important step in establishing the validity and legal defensibility of an exam program. The NCLEX-RN and NCLEX-PN exams are re-evaluated for their respective passing standards triennially. In this session, NCSBN staff will discuss the steps involved in setting NCLEX passing standards.

The current NCLEX examinations score items using one of three scoring rules: 0/1 scoring rule, +/- scoring rule, or the rationale scoring rule. This session explores each of these three scoring rules by using examples that cover all eligible item types on the NCLEX exam. Additionally, the session will cover general information about using the Partial Credit Model to convert the item scores onto the NCLEX scale.

This session focuses on recent research projects related to clinical judgment.

Newly licensed nurses face a myriad of obstacles in the entry-level period, namely, difficulty making consistent, effective clinical judgments. This session will highlight several approaches to facilitating entry-level nurses’ clinical judgment behaviors in the transition-to-practice period.

In addition to developing the NCLEX, NCSBN provides daily operational, security and customer service support, dedicated by the Consolidated Services and Customer Experience departments, for NCLEX candidates, educators and nursing regulatory bodies (NRBs). During this session, we will explore the NCLEX registration process, online resources, exam security measures, highlighting what candidates can expect before, during and after the NCLEX. The session will conclude with a summary of the NCLEX testing accommodation process, including the roles of candidates, NCSBN, Pearson VUE and NRBs.

Learn about opportunites to volunteer as an exam item writer or exam item reviewer at NCSBN.

This session will give an update on a few NCLEX Examinations developments and trends.

NCSBN ensures fairness for different groups taking the NCLEX-RN and NCLEX-PN exams. Candidates with comparable nursing knowledge should perform similarly on exam items, regardless of their gender, ethnicity or other factors irrelevant to nursing practice. This session will describe how Sensitivity and Differential Item Functioning panel reviews contribute to the fairness and legal defensibility of an exam.

The NCLEX is a valid and reliable standardized exam that measures the minimal competency required to practice safe, entry-level nursing. To achieve this, the exam is developed using a multilayered process that includes an evidence-based content outline, item development using nursing content expert volunteers, several reviews and industry-standard exam principles. This session will describe the methods used to achieve the quality exam development and maintenance the nursing profession has come to rely on and trust.

The International Center for Regulatory Scholarship (ICRS) is an educational initiative, presented by NCSBN, that offers online and blended courses designed to cultivate and elevate nursing leaders and policymakers around the world. ICRS also provides unprecedented opportunities for global networking and collaboration. Learn more and enroll at icrsncsbn.org.