Benjamin Brumley
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Dr. Benjamin Brumley is an educational researcher and critical quantitative methodologist whose scholarship examines how measurement practices shape educational opportunity. His work focuses on assessor variance and bias in educational assessments and on developing child-centered, culturally responsive, and equitable approaches to measurement particularly for children and communities affected by poverty and other forms of adversity.
A related strand of Dr. Brumley’s research investigates the historical connections among eugenics, concepts of normality, intelligence testing, and standardized educational assessment. By tracing how these ideas became embedded in educational and psychological measurement, his work challenges researchers and educators to reconsider the assumptions underlying norm-referenced testing and to pursue more equitable alternatives.
Dr. Brumley also uses large administrative and longitudinal datasets to study childhood adversity, protective experiences, and educational and developmental outcomes. His current collaborative work draws on the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) to examine maltreatment, benevolent childhood experiences, resilience, and adult well-being. These projects create opportunities for West Chester University graduate students to participate in data analysis, develop original research questions, and contribute to nationally relevant scholarship.
AREA OF INSTRUCTION
Dr. Brumley teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in educational assessment, research methods, and educational foundations. His teaching emphasizes the ethical use of data, the social and historical contexts of educational measurement, and the practical application of quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods research.
Selected courses include:
EDU 599: Workshop in Urban Education
ERM 500: Research Methods in Education
ERM 353/553: Ethical and Effective Assessment for Learning—Early Grades
ERM 354/554: Ethical and Effective Assessment for Learning—Middle Grades
FYE 100: First Year Experience
He also advises doctoral research and provides methodological support to graduate
students conducting quantitative and longitudinal studies.
PUBLICATIONS AND PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES
Dr. Brumley’s scholarship has appeared in peer-reviewed publications including Critical Questions in Education, Early Education and Development, Child Abuse & Neglect, Journal of Youth and Adolescence, Children and Youth Services Review, Applied Cognitive Psychology, and Advances in Social Work. His recent work includes a 2026 article examining eugenics and norm-referenced educational and psychological testing, as well as forthcoming scholarship on the continuing influence of eugenic ideas in education and higher education.
In July 2026, Dr. Brumley co-chaired the International Critical Quantitative Methods Work Week, a free, virtual, peer-reviewed conference that brought together 45 researchers from 11 countries. He is also lead guest editor of an associated special issue on critical quantitative methods in education, accepted for publication in Thresholds in Education and anticipated in 2027.
Dr. Brumley regularly presents his research at professional meetings, including the American Psychological Association, Eastern Psychological Association, American Educational Research Association, and Critical Questions in Education Conference. His work has received support from the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education Faculty Professional Development Council, the U.S. Department of Education, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
He was named an Outstanding Faculty member for the 2025–2026 academic year by the West Chester University Honors College, Honors Student Association, and Omicron Delta Kappa.