EIPA Written Test and Knowledge Standards

The Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment® (EIPA) is a tool designed to evaluate the voice-to-sign and sign-to-voice interpreting skills of interpreters who work in the elementary and secondary school classroom setting.

Brenda Schick, Ph.D., working with the EIPA Diagnostic Center at Boys Town National Research Hospital, has developed the EIPA Written Test and Knowledge Standards. This comprehensive multiple-choice test evaluates the interpreter’s understanding of information that is critical to performing with students in an education setting. The test consists of 210 questions and takes approximately one and a half to three hours to complete.This computer-based test is administered through the Internet. A passing score on the EIPA Written Test is not needed in order to take the EIPA Performance Assessment.

Procedure for Registering for the Written Test

The EIPA Registration and Test taking period is now closed until July 23rd. Registration will re-open July 23rd at 8 a.m. Central Standard Time for the August/September Test taking period. Please check back then.

Preparing for the Test

The EIPA Written Test is based on a set of knowledge standards that was developed by a group of experts, including deaf consumers, interpreters, interpreter trainers, deaf educators, and ASL linguistics.

The test is not a factual memory test. In other words, memorization of the knowledge standards only, may not enable you to receive a passing score. Application of knowledge to situations is necessary in order to pass this examination.

The test is also based on the EIPA Code of Professional Conduct for Educational Interpreters. The RID Code of Ethics is not the basis for professional conduct in the EIPA Written Test.

The written test will be given during the months of March, May – June, August – September and November – December of 2008

For information contact:

Mary Patterson
EIPA Written Test Coordinator
Boys Town National Research Hospital
(402) 452-5059
Fax:  (402) 452-5028
patter@boystown.org

For information regarding test construction on psychometric validity, contact:

Brenda Schick, Ph.D.
EIPA Written Test Developer
University of Colorado at Boulder
(303) 492-7339 v/tty
Brenda.Schick@colorado.edu

The EIPA Written Test was developed with funding from the Office of Special Education, Programs of National Significance (H325 N010013), awarded to Brenda Schick, Project Director, Boys Town National Research Hospital, and with support from the Regional Assessment System establish by the Mountain Plains Regional Assessment Center, directed by Bern Jones.