Writing Better Test Items for High IQ children

Section I – True/False

T/F items are popular because they are easy and quick to write – or seem to be; however, good T/F items are not that easy to write.

Instructions: Consider the following and use common sense to determine which are good (G) and which are poor (P)

__1. High IQ children always get high grades in school

__2. Will Rogers stated, “I never met a man I didn’t like.”

__3. If a plane crashed on the Mexican-US border, half the survivors would be buried in Mexico and half in the United States.

__4. The use of double negatives is not an altogether undesirable characteristic of diplomats and academicians.

__5. Prayer should not be outlawed in schools.

__6. Of the objective items, true/false items are the least time consuming to construct.

__7. The trend toward competency testing of high school graduates began in the late 1970s and represents a big step forward for slow learners.

Section II – Completion

Instructions: Consider the following and use common sense to determine which are good (G) and which are poor (P)

__1. The evolutionary theory of ______ is based on the principle of ________.

__2. Columbus discovered America in ______.

__3. The capital of Mexico is ______.

__4. In what year did William J. Clinton become president of the United States? ______

__5. ______ blanks cause much frustration in ______.

__6. ______ was the first American to ______.

Section III – Multiple Choice

MC items are unique in that they enable the teacher to measure at the higher levels of taxonomy as well as at the basic knowledge level.

Instructions: Consider the following and use common sense to determine which are good (G) and which are poor (P)

__1. U.S. Grant was an

president

man

alcoholic

general

__2. In what year did humans first set foot on the Moon

1975

1957

1969

1963

__3. The free-floating structures within the cell that synthesize protein are called

chromosomes

lysosomes

mitochondria

free ribosomes

__4. The principal value of a balanced diet is that it

increases your intelligence

gives you something to talk about with friends

promotes mental health

promotes physical health

improves self-discipline

__5. Some test items

are too difficult

are objective

are poorly constructed

have multiple defensible answers

__6. Which of the following are not associated with pneumonia?

quiet breathing

fever

clear chest X-ray

a and c

b and c

__7. When 53 American were held hostage in Iran,

the United States did nothing to try to free them.

The United States declared war on Iran

the United States first attempted to free them by diplomatic means and later attempted rescue

the United States expelled all Iranian students

__8. the square root of 256 is

14

16

4 x 4

both a and c

both b and c

all of the above

none of the above

__9. When a test item and the objective is intended to measure match in learning outcome and conditions, the item

is called an objective item

has content validity

is too easy

should be discarded

Dimensions of Learning II

EDU 503

Belhaven University

Unit 5, Part 2

Assessment

1

Class Introduction

Test-item development is a critical

component of classroom instruction. Test-

item development for day-to-day instructional

practice is often without blueprint specifics

and meeting the following targets:

Measuring desired skill(s) and objective

Minimum scoring time

Objective rather than subjective

Informing the daily instructional practice

2

Topics we’ll cover

Developing Good Test Items—learn and explore

rules for creating a better test item for a valid

assessment.

3

Class Objectives

Learn and explore rules for creating a better test

item for a valid assessment.

4

Biblical Foundation

And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do

everything in the name of the Lord Jesus,

giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Colossians 3:17

5

Deciding on a testing format

6

The choice of item format is sometimes

determined by your instructional objectives.

At other times, the advantages and

disadvantages of the different formats should

influence your choice.

What is the goal of your test?

Design items where guessing is minimized

Test items should be objective in scoring

Print the handout “Test Item Activity”; then record your answers on your printout

Pretest your knowledge: Determine whether each of the test items are good (G) or poor (P)

Interactive activity

True-False items

8

True-false items

require less time to construct

are most prone to guessing § have a variety of other faults

Faults include (features that make poor items):

Absolutes in wording (i.e., always, all, never, only)

Double negatives

Opinionated

Double-barreled statements (i.e., use of and, or)

Excessive wordiness

A tendency to reflect statements taken verbatim from readings (w/o context, or out of context)

Section I – True/False

T/F items are popular because they are easy and quick to write – or seem

to be; however, good T/F items are not that easy to write.

Instructions: Consider the following and use common sense to determine

which are good (G) and which are poor (P).

__1. High IQ children always get high grades in school

__2. Will Rogers stated, “I never met a man I didn’t like.”

__3. If a plane crashed on the Mexican-US border, half the survivors

would be buried in Mexico and half in the United States.

__4. The use of double negatives is not an altogether undesirable

characteristic of diplomats and academicians.

__5. Prayer should not be outlawed in schools.

__6. Of the objective items, true/false items are the least time consuming

to construct.

__7. The trend toward competency testing of high school graduates began

in the late 1970s and represents a big step forward for slow learners.

1- always is an absolute and absolutes (all, always, never) cue student that the question is

false

2-G – in order to answer, students would have to know that Will Rogers made the statement

3-survivors are not buried, and students would suspect this is a trick question. This statement

should have perhaps used fatalities instead of survivors

4-not and undesirable are both negatives – a single negative in a test question is confusing

enough for students, make positive statements instead – The use of double negatives is an

altogether desirable trait of diplomats and academicians. However, this item is still flawed in

that it states an opinion, not a fact. It is better written “According to the National Institute of

Diplomacy, the use of double negatives is a desirable trait of diplomats and academicians.”

5-opinion – therefore not obviously true or false. Rewritten, “The ACLU has taken the position

that prayer should not be outlawed in schools” and Notice the negative not is italicized, when

using a negative, italicize!

6-G-this is factual information from the text

7-this is a double-barreled item…there are two parts, the learner has to determine if both are

true or both are false or is one false and one true … simply construct two items here

The trend toward competency testing of high school graduates began in the late 1970s

The trend toward competency testing represents a big step forward for slow learners

True/False key

Instructions for marking true or false should be explained

Construct statements that are definitely true or definitely false –

opinions must be attributed to a source

Use relatively short statements and eliminate extraneous material

Keep true and false statements at approximately the same length

and approximately of equal number

Avoid double negatives, absolutes and terms denoting indefinite

degrees (long time, regularly, never, only),

Avoid patterns TTFFTTFF OR TFTFTFTF and so on,

Avoid taking statements from the text and presenting them out of

context

And, always allowing the student the opportunity for a restricted

response to explain why the statement is false is good practice

How to construct good true/false items

Completion Items

Completion items (fill in the blank) § rival true-false items in ease of construction. § Since answers must be supplied, they are

least subject to guessing. § require more scoring time

Faults include: § Too many blanks § Lack of specificity (too many potential

responses) § Failure to state a problem

Section II – Completion Items

Instructions: Consider the following and use common sense to determine which

are good (G) and which are poor (P)

__1. The evolutionary theory of ______ is based on the principle of ________.

__2. Columbus discovered America in ______.

__3. The capital of Mexico is ______.

__4. In what year did William J. Clinton become president of the United States?

______

__5. ______ blanks cause much frustration in ______.

__6. ______ was the first American to ______.

Completion – Key

1-avoid more than one blank per question. The evolutionary

theory of Darwin is based on the principle of survival of the

fittest

2-most people would choose Good; however, a plausible

answer could be fifteenth century

3-poor as “is larger than the capital of Alaska,” or “is a

beautiful city” … rewritten, “The name of the capital city of

Mexico is _____.”

4-G because no other answer seems plausible here

5 & 6 too many blanks

Suggestions for Writing Completion (or

Supply) Items

If possible, items should require a single-word answer/brief and definite statement.

The answer required is factually correct.

Omit clue/key words Don’t eliminate so many elements that the sense of the content is impaired.

Write the blank near the end of the sentence rather than near the beginning.

This will prevent awkward sentences.

If the problem requires a numerical answer, indicate the units in which it is to be expressed (pounds, inches, etc.)

Multiple-Choice Items

Multiple-choice items § Measure behavior at higher levels of taxonomy (ex:

comprehension +) § most difficult of the objective items to construct § Should be used with caution on younger children

Faults included: § Grammatical cues or specific determiners § Multiple defensible answers § Unordered option lists § Stem clues § Opinionated statements § Lack of a problem statement in the stem § Redundant wording § Wordiness in the correct option § Use of “all of the above” § Indiscriminate use of “none of the above”

Section III – Multiple Choice

They are unique in that they enable the teacher to measure at the higher levels of taxonomy as well as at the basic

knowledge level.

Instructions: Consider the following and use common sense to determine which are good (G) and which are poor (P).

1-grammatical clue “an” eliminates options a, b, and d – better written

Grant was a/an and there are multiple defensible answers! Better

written … Who was elected president after the Civil War? A) U.S.

Grant B) Andrew Johnson C) Abraham Lincoln D) Andrew Jackson

2-G – always arrange dates in chronological order

3-stem clue – eliminate the word free

4-opinion- rewritten better is “The USDA states that the principal ….”

5-more than one defensible answer

6-gramatical clue – are – make substitute is/are AND always use this

format sparingly AND, italicize NOT

7-eliminate redundancy in options, also length of options is a giveaway

and test-wise students will be able to guess correctly – avoid where

correct answers are 1.5 times the length of incorrect options

8-“none of the above” should be used sparingly, test-wise students

tend to choose “none of the above” and the correct option is e

9-G

Multiple Choice – Key