The NCLEX Process

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The NCLEX Process
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National Council of State Boards of Nursing
(NCSBN)

• Not-for-profit organization.
• Membership is comprised of the boards of nursing
  in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and
  four United States territories--American Samoa,
  Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, and the Virgin
  Islands.
• The Delegate Assembly serves as the
  organizations policy-making body.

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Purpose of NCSBN

• The purpose of NCSBN is to provide an
  organization through which boards of nursing act
  and counsel together on matters of common
  interest and concern affecting the public health,
  safety and welfare, including the development of
  licensing examinations in nursing. 

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The NCLEX-RN and NCLEX-PN Examinations

• Used by state and territorial boards of nursing
  to assist in making licensure decisions.
• Administered via computerized adaptive testing
  (CAT).
• Uses stringent industry standards to insure that
  the examinations are psychometrically sound and
  legally defensible.

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Contributors to the Development of the NCLEX
Examinations

• NCSBN NCLEX Examination Committee
• Provides general oversight of the NCLEX
  examination process including
• Item Development
• Examination Security
• Psychometrics
• Examination Administration
• Quality Assurance to ensure consistency with the
  Member Boards need for examinations.

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Contributors to the Development of the NCLEX
Examinations

• NCSBN NCLEX Item Review Subcommittee (NIRSC)
• The NCLEX Item Review Subcommittee supports the
  NCLEX Examination Committee in NCLEX item
  development responsibilities including
• Reviews new pre-test items.
• Reviews master pool items.
• Assists the NCLEX Examination Committee by
  providing committee representation at item
  development meetings.

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Contributors to the Development of the NCLEX
Examinations

• Item writers create the questions or items
  that are used on the NCLEX examination.
• Item Reviewers examine the items that are created
  by item writers to check for
• Accuracy
• Currency
• Job-relatedness
• Appropriateness for entry level
• Panel of Judges recommends potential NCLEX
  passing standards to the NCSBN Board of
  Directors.

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Contributors to the Development of the NCLEX
Examinations

• NCSBN NCLEX Examinations Department
• Manages all aspects of the development and
  administration of the NCLEX examination.
• Provides psychometric, nursing and operational
  expertise.
• Develops conducts the NCLEX-RN and NCLEX-PN
  practice analyses, test plans and candidate
  bulletins.
• Manages the NCLEX Program Reports program and the
  NCLEX Quick Results Service.
• Headed by the Director of the NCLEX Examinations
  Department and is composed of 16 full-time staff
  members organized into four functioning areas.

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Contributors to the Development of the NCLEX
Examinations

• Test Services - Pearson VUE
• NCSBN contracts with Pearson VUE for test
  development and administration of the NCLEX
  examinations.
• Pearson VUE has more than 40 years of experience
  and is a global leader in the testing services
  industry.
• Pearson VUE has over 200 test sites that
  administer the NCLEX Examinations.

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NCLEX Development Process
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NCLEX Development Process Practice Analysis

• Conducted every three years.
• Newly licensed nurses are surveyed to collect
  data on the current practice of the entry-level
  nurse.
• Practice analysis studies assists the NCSBN in
  evaluating the validity of the NCLEX-RN and
  NCLEX-PN Test Plans that guide content
  distribution of the licensure examinations.

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NCLEX Development Process Test Plans

• Based on practice analysis.
• Serves as a guideline for examination content.
• Reviewed by the NCLEX Examination Committee every
  three years.
• Approved by the NCSBNs Delegate Assembly.

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NCLEX Development Process Editorial Review

• Includes checking new items for
• Clarity
• Grammar
• Punctuation
• Spelling

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NCLEX Development Process Sensitivity Review

• Review all pretest items for
• Balance
• Stereotyping
• Cultural Bias
• Controversial Issues
• Elitism
• Language

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NCLEX Development Process Board of Nursing
Review

• Twice a year Boards of Nursing may request to
  review newly developed NCLEX items or simulated
  computerized adaptive exams to determine if
  items
• Reflect entry-level nursing practice
• Are consistent with the boards Nursing Practice
  Act (NPA)

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NCLEX Development Process Pre-Testing

• All items are pre-tested and must meet
  statistical criteria before placement in the
  operational pool.
• There are 15 pretest items on every NCLEX-RN
  examination and 25 on every NCLEX-PN
  examination.

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NCLEX Development Process Differential Item
Functioning (DIF) Review

• DIF Review of Items
• Items are identified as being potentially biased
  when the probability of answering an item
  correctly is significantly different across
  groups after adjusting the ability for those
  groups. These groups are typically the federally
  protected classes such as
• Ethnicity
• Gender

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NCSBN Resources

• Toll-Free 1-866-293-9600
• E-mail nclexinfo_at_ncsbn.org
• The following information is available at
  http//www.ncsbn.org/nclex.htm
• NCLEX Examination Tutorial - A tutorial to
  familiarize candidates with the way the NCLEX is
  administered.
• NCLEX Candidate Bulletin - Booklet issued to
  state boards of nursing the bulletin details the
  NCLEX examination process for NCLEX candidates.
• NCLEX Fact Sheet - Press release that
  includes NCLEX volume and pass rate data, as well
  as information on the top 5 countries of
  internationally educated candidates with respect
  to volume.