Question for NHIE Advocates...

[Dan Bowers, CMI]

Damn - Thats amazing. As Scott said, if you got an annual cost of maintaining the exam of about $100,000 +/- and the costs of Noels salary, going to various trade shows, traveling to various states to pitch the test to their states legislative boards, rent, utilities, marketing, etc you easily got $200,000 or more per year to keep it running.

Then when you factor in the costs and the percentage of the $225 test fee that they pay the group(s) that give the thing - I would guess the NHIE has gotta have easily over at least 1,500 or more test takers a year to just break even.

No wonder they gotta keep pushing that puppy forward.

[Joseph Burkeson, CMI]

Originally Posted by dbowers

No wonder they gotta keep pushing that puppy forward.

I'll bet the International Code Council could do it cheaper & better by being a totally independent entity, as NHIE will be forever linked to ASHI regardless of what anyone claims.

[Dan Bowers, CMI]

Why do you say that, the guy said they cut all ties back in 2001. Its a completely neutral, 3rd party organization - not tied to any association.

[James H. Bushart]

Originally Posted by Scott Patterson

Hi Jim,

The NHIE maintains it's psychometric validity through a continuous process under the direction of Pearson VUE, they are the exam administrator for EBPHI. Every year four new exams go online, those exams (questions) are based on the current RDS (Role Delineation Study). This is a study of the profession (What is the job of a home inspector) that is done every 3-5 years, or as the profession changes. A new RDS has just been completed and this has generated a new "Exam Blueprint" that will guide the exam for the next 3-5 years. Around 3,000 home inspectors from all of the associations and 1,100 independent or non-affiliated inspectors participated in the RDS.

It is a very expensive task to maintain such a quality exam and one that must be undertaken for the NHIE to maintian its reliability and defensibility. The annual cost just for maintaining the exam is in excess of $100,000 once you average in the cost of performing the RDS.

The overhead and operational cost for EBPHI is very small , except for the maintaining of the exam. With EBPHI being a 501-C6 so profit is not an issue. This is how the EBPHI is able to afford to keep the NHIE updated. The last time that ASHI provided any funding to EBPHI was back in 2001. Since that time EBPHI has been completely self funded. It would be great if any of the other associations would offer monetary grants to EBPHI, and make the NHIE "The Exam" for the profession. With additional funding EBPHI could expand into specialized testing, true third party certifications and more that would not have any association biases. Yes, ASHI started the NHIE but now the exam has been completely independent of ASHI for many years and is open to all associations. Right now ASHI and AII are the only two associations that use the NHIE for their membership exam. With the NHIE being used in around 80% of the licensed states, it would make sense for all of the various associations to use it for their exam as well.

As for the exam being hard or easy? This all depends on the individuals skill sets and knowledge of the subject matter. The more a person knows the easier the exam will appear to be, and conversely the less knowledge the person has the harder the exam will appear to be. It is up to the individual state to set their pass ratio. EBPHI will tell the state that the exam has a projected cut score of X amount. This is based on an Angoff analysis that is done by the psychometricians at Pearson VUE and Castle World Wide. Castle is another testing company that is used for the RDS in addition to Pearson VUE. They specialize in performing this type of study.

Scoring is not a simple process, the scoring of an exam has many variable. A good example is if the test taker is answering all of the easy question but missing the hard questions, then the exam will adjust to that persons ability. The same goes if the person is answering all of hard and easy questions with ease, the exam will adjust and the score will reflect that this. In other words not all of the questions are scored the same in the exam, this is called a weighted score system. It is scored in the same manner as the ACT or SAT college entrance exams. This is why you have a score range from 200 to 800 with passing being anything over 500.

Yes, it is complicated and this is why EBPHI hires professional testing companies to take care of the technical aspects of maintaining the NHIE.

Anyway, I hope that this helps to answer some of your questions. I seldom visit this board but I do have an alert set for Google when topics pop up about the NHIE.

Best to all,

Scott

Thanks, Scott.

I visited the site and find where this group manages many aspects of testing, including safeguarding its security....but I do not see where this group is an entity qualified to determine the psychometric validity of a test.

When is the the last time that an independent agency has evaluated and determined the psychometric validity of the NHIE?

[Scott Patterson]

Originally Posted by jbushart

Thanks, Scott.

I visited the site and find where this group manages many aspects of testing, including safeguarding its security....but I do not see where this group is an entity qualified to determine the psychometric validity of a test.

When is the the last time that an independent agency has evaluated and determined the psychometric validity of the NHIE?

Hi Jim,

What agency do you have in mind?

EBPHI is a member of NOCA and follows their procedures as required. Pearson VUE is the largest testing company in the nation and follows all type of procedures for the verification of their clients exams. The VA approves the NHIE through a process every year for reimbursement for veterans and CLEAR also follows a similar procedure.

I guess that those would qualify as being independent, but I don't know what agency you have in mind.

I don't know why Pearson is not listing their psychometric services, but our other psychometric company Castle Worldwide I belive will list some of their accreditation's.

[James H. Bushart]

Originally Posted by Scott Patterson

Hi Jim,

What agency do you have in mind?

EBPHI is a member of NOCA and follows their procedures as required. Pearson VUE is the largest testing company in the nation and follows all type of procedures for the verification of their clients exams. The VA approves the NHIE through a process every year for reimbursement for veterans and CLEAR also follows a similar procedure.

I guess that those would qualify as being independent, but I don't know what agency you have in mind.

When the ASHI Board of Directors first paid for and received the first independent psychometric evaluation for the test now known as the NHIE...who did that independent assessment?

[Scott Patterson]

Originally Posted by jbushart

When the ASHI Board of Directors first paid for and received the first independent psychometric evaluation for the test now known as the NHIE...who did that independent assessment?

When ASHI started the NHIE, that would have been Castle Worldwide. I was not involved with EBPHI at that time, but that is who they used at the start. AMP, PSI, Promisour, Castle and Pearson have all had a hand in the NHIE at sometime.

[James H. Bushart]

Pearson does not advertise that it does assessments...but simply manages a test.

Has the test been assessed for psychometric validity since the first assessment made by Castle Worldwide who apparently had an outside agency evaluate the test after they developed it. Their services include "psychometric consulting" but not assessment or validation.

[Scott Patterson]

Originally Posted by jbushart

Pearson does not advertise that it does assessments...but simply manages a test.

Has the test been assessed for psychometric validity since the first assessment made by Castle Worldwide who apparently had an outside agency evaluate the test after they developed it. Their services include "psychometric consulting" but not assessment or validation.

Jim, I think I have already answered you about this.

You can contact Pearson VUE (610.617.5009) and speak with them, this is what they are paid for. The number I listed in for their regulatory services. They will be able to provide you with everything you are looking for.

Every year the test is assessed for it's validity. Pearson VUE is the company that conducts this for EBPHI, at this time.

[James H. Bushart]

Originally Posted by Scott Patterson

Jim, I think I have already answered you about this.

You can contact Pearson VUE (610.617.5009) and speak with them, this is what they are paid for. The number I listed in for their regulatory services. They will be able to provide you with everything you are looking for.

Every year the test is assessed for it's validity. Pearson VUE is the company that conducts this for EBPHI, at this time.

Thank you, Scott. I will post what they have to say after I contact them.

[Nick Gromicko]

Thanks Scott.

Can you confirm for us what the passing cut off score is?
Can you confirm for us what the passing rate is?

[Scott Patterson]

Originally Posted by gromicko

Thanks Scott.

Can you confirm for us what the passing cut off score is?
Can you confirm for us what the passing rate is?

Hi Nick,

Anything over a score of 500 is passing. This equates to around .89 logits. On a national average this is around 64% of the folks that take the exam and pass. Which is a low to fair passing percentage for a licensing exam under CLEAR and NOCA standards.

[Nick Gromicko]

Thanks Scott. Can you explain what you mean by "for a licensing exam" ???

[Frank M. Carrio, CMI]

Originally Posted by dbowers

Why do you say that, the guy said they cut all ties back in 2001. Its a completely neutral, 3rd party organization - not tied to any association.

Not Tied to any association?

Do a Google search on the "NHIE Trademark name", see who it REALLY belongs to.....Check out the "EBPHI trademark name".......better yet... on the following names of the Board of Directors of the EBPHI.

• See how many are tied to ASHI.

Also.... Check out the past "ASHI work history" on Noe Zak!

Exam Development - NHIE Clients - EBPHI Board of Directors - Special Information for Regulators
About Us
Board of Directors
The EBPHI Board of Directors is responsible for determination and implementation of all polices and programs of the organization such as test development vendor selection, hiring of the chief staff officer, approving and monitoring budgets, and strategic planning. The Board of Directors does not have a hands-on role in development and item writing processes for the National Home Inspector Examination.

2008 Board of Directors

President
Scott Patterson
Trace Inspections
Spring Hill, TN

Vice President
Brian Murphy
Murphy Home Inspection Services, Inc.
Highlands Ranch, CO

Secretary
Jim Funkhouser
Fairfax Home Inspections, Inc.
Manassas Park, VA

Treasurer
Don Lovering
Advantage Home Inspection, Inc.
Wellesley, MA
Directors

Fred Buck
King Inspections, Inc.
San Antonio, TX

Hugh Kelso
HKI, Inc. Building Inspections
Seattle, WA

Howard Pegelow
H.A. Pegelow Inspections
Milwaukee, WI

Public Members {She gets a free pass}
Barbara Showers, PhD
Former Director of Examinations,
Wisconsin Department of Regulation & Licensing

Madison, WI

Now that you have checked the NHIE & EBPHI trademark names and the background of the Board of Directors for the EBPHI / NHIE can you really tell me that they and the NHIE have "No ties" to ASHI?

I want to make one thing clear..... I do NOT care that the NHIE and the EBPHI are part of ASHI.... I just do not like it when they deny the facts and lie about their past history!

[Greg Bell]

Yes it is kind of like saying that CMI is not a part of NACHI.