CATHERINE C.

SABADO
Master Teacher II
1.TO REASSESS ONE’S PRACTICE IN TEST
CONSTRUCTION
2.TO INCORPORATE NEWFOUND TIPS IN TEST
CONSTRUCTION
3.TO MAKE TOS AND TQS FOR THE 1ST QUARTER
EXAMINATION
 TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT!
DIRECTION: Determine whether each item possesses the good qualities of an effective test
question. Write TAKE IT if your assessment is YES and LEAVE IT if otherwise.

1. Janoa spends most of her waking hours checking the doors and windows and taking
showers is displaying ______.
a. generalized anxiety
b. obsessive-compulsive behavior
c. phobic disorder
d. autistic behavior

2. The mean is _____.

a. a measure of the average (correct)
b. a measure of the midpoint
c. a measure of the most popular score
d. a measure of the dispersion scores
3. A narrow strip of land bordered on both sides of water is called an __________.
a. isthmus
b. peninsula
c. bayou
d. Continent

4. How is the brain protected from injury?

a. It is enclosed with water.
b. It is enclosed with ribs.
c. It is enclosed with cartilage.
d. It is enclosed with a skull.

5. Two dice are tossed. How many possible outcomes are there?
a. 12
b. 24
c. 36
d. 42
DO YOU TEACH TO THE TEST?
 WHAT ARE TESTS FOR?
Inform learners and teachers of the strengths and
weaknesses of the process
Motivate learners to review or consolidate specific material
Guide the planning/development of the ongoing teaching
process
Create a sense of accomplishment

Determine if the learning competencies

have been achieved

Encourage improvement
▪ Ms. Alanganin - confusing statements
▪ Mr. Highfalutin - difficult vocabulary
▪ Ms. Madaldal - excessive wordiness
▪ Ms. Magulo - complex sentence structure
▪ Ms. Malabo - unclear instructions
▪ Mr. Pulpol - unclear illustrative examples
▪ Ms. Foringer – linguistically-bound words
▪ Ms. Colonial Mentality – culturally-bound words
“To be able to prepare a
good test, one has to have a
mastery of the subject matter,
knowledge of the pupils to be
tested, skill in verbal
expression and the use of the
different test format.”
-Evaluating Educational Outcomes (Oriondo
& Antonio)
General Steps in Test Construction
DRAFT
PRODUCE A
T.O.S.
ORDER

TEST ANALYZE

SUBMISSION
the unit learning objectives or
the unit content or major concepts to be covered by the
test
Table of Specifications (TOS)
▪ It is a tool used to ensure that a test or
assessment measures the content and
thinking skills that the test tends to measure.
▪ A representative sample of course content
▪ A representative sample of skills, cognitive
levels across content
Test items are proportionally distributed
to all topics in the grading period

Items are significantly scattered along

Blooms Taxonomy

It is easier to construct a test question

because the TOS serves a blueprint.
Place simpler items at the beginning to ease
students into the exam.

Group item types together under common

instructions.

If desirable, order the questions logically from a

content standpoint (e.g., chronologically or by
conceptual groups, etc.)
▪ PUT the questions away for one or two
days before rereading them or have
someone else review them for clarity.
▪ TEST the questions by actually taking
the test.
6. ANALYZE the items to give you
an idea whether the questions
were well-written or poorly written
as well as if there were problems
in understanding instruction.
PREPARING THE TABLE
OF SPECIFICATIONS
The TOS requires, as reference,
the budgeted lessons (allocation
of time per topic in every
grading period with respect to
the desired total number of days /
time to be spent for the grading
period.)

The TOS requires some simple

mathematical computations
that will result to proportional
allocation of test items per
topic.
The TOS requires that previous experiences are
recalled and to some extent, it requires likewise
the imagination of the teacher to concretize the
actual teaching-learning process based on
previous encounters in the classroom in order to
determine more or less the domain/s where he
would base on his questions

The teacher shall likewise prepare the budgeted

lesson to accompany the TOS from first grading to
fourth grading period.

The TOS requires a thorough knowledge of Bloom’s

Revised Taxonomy.
 WHAT IS BLOOM’S TAXONOMY?

• Bloom’s Taxonomy is a classification of

thinking organized by levels of complexity. It gives
teachers and students an opportunity to learn and
practice a range of thinking and provides a simple
structure for many different kinds of questions.
Visual Comparison of Two Taxonomies

Evaluation Creating
Synthesis Evaluating
Analysis Analyzing
Application Applying
Comprehension Understanding
Knowledge Remembering

1956 2001
(Based on Pohl, 2000, Learning to Think, Thinking to Learn, p.8)
 BLOOM’S REVISED TAXONOMY Suggested Percentage
Allocation
CREATING
Generating new ideas, products, or ways of viewing things 10%
Designing, constructing, planning, producing, inventing

Higher-order EVALUATING
Justifying a decision or course of action 30%
Thinking 10%
Checking, hypothesizing, critiquing, experimenting, judging

ANALYZING
Breaking information into parts to explore understandings and
relationships 10%
Comparing, organizing, deconstructing, interrogating, finding.

APPLYING
Using information in another familiar situation 20%
Implementing, carrying out, using, executing

UNDERSTANDING
Explaining ideas or concepts 20%
Interpreting, summarizing, paraphrasing, classifying, explaining

REMEMBERING 30%
Recalling information
Recognizing, listing, describing, retrieving, naming, finding.
The learner is able to recall, restate and
remember learned information.

Recognizing, listing, describing, identifying,

retrieving, naming, locating……

Sample What is _____?

Questio Where is _____?
ns:
How did it happen?
When did?
Which one?
▪ The learner grasps the meaning of information by
interpreting and translating what has been learned.
▪ Interpreting, exemplifying, paraphrasing, classifying,
comparing, inferring, explaining…

▪ Sample Questions:
1. State in your own words..
2. Which are facts? Opinions?
3.What does this mean?
4. Is this the same as____?
5. Select the best definition.
6. What is the main idea of ____?
7. How would you compare ____..
▪ The learner makes use of information in a context different
from the one in which it was learned.
▪ Implementing, carrying out, using, executing

▪ Sample Questions:
1. How would you organize….to show…?
2. How would you show your understanding of ____?
3. What facts would you select to show what___?
4. What elements would you change?
5. What other way would you plan to?
6. How would you apply what you learned?
▪ The learner breaks learned information into its parts to best
understand that information.
▪ Comparing, organizing, deconstructing, attributing outlining,
finding, structuring, integrating

▪ Sample Questions:
1. Which statement is relevant?
2. What is the conclusion?
3. What does the author believed? Assumed?
4. Make a distinction between..
5. What ideas justify the conclusion?
6. Which is the least essential statement?
▪ The learner makes decisions based on in-depth reflection,
criticism and assessment.
▪ Checking, hypothesizing, critiquing, experimenting, judging,
testing, detecting, monitoring

▪ Sample Questions:
1. What fallacies, consistencies, inconsistencies appear?
2. Which is more important____?
3. Do you agree?
4. What information would you use?
5. Do you agree with the _____?
6. How would you evaluate?
▪ The learner creates new ideas and information using what
has been previously learned.
▪ Designing, constructing, planning, producing, inventing,
devising, making

▪ Sample Questions:
1. Can you design a_____?
2. What possible solution to ____?
3. How many ways can you ____?
4. Can you create a proposal which would ____?
REMEMBERING UNDERSTANDING APPLYING ANALYZING EVALUATING CREATING
List down Shown above Read the Analyze each As a student, As a student,
human are pictures of following text. If situation below. how can you you can help
activities that human the people in Then, help in prevent the
can trigger activities that the community determine the preventing occurrence of
landslide. cause continue to do human activity occurrences of landslide by
landslide. kaingin, what that led to the landslide in the advocating tree
Identify each will likely devastating community? planting
activity and tell happen? incident. activities. Make
how it causes an infographic
landslide. about the
benefits of tree
planting.
1. Determine the desired
number of test items.
 TABLE OF SPECIFICATIONS

Subject Grade Grading period School Year

DOMAINS Total Number
Time
Topic Spent/ Of Test items
Frequency Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating Actual Adjusted
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

TOTAL
50
2. List the topics/learning
competencies with the
corresponding allocation of
time.
 TABLE OF SPECIFICATIONS

Subject Grade Grading period School Year

DOMAINS Total Number
Time
Topic Spent/ Of Test items
Frequency Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating Actual Adjusted
1. 3
2. 4
3. 1
4. 6
5. 8
6. 5
7. 8
8. 2
9. 4
10. 4
45
TOTAL
50
 3. Determine the total number of items per
topic/competency by using the formula:

Time Spent / Frequency per topic divided by the total number of

frequency in the grading period times total number of items.

Time Spent / Frequency per Topic Total Number of items

Total Frequency in the grading period

3
45
50 = 3.33
 TABLE OF SPECIFICATIONS

Subject Grade Grading period School Year

DOMAINS Total Number
Time
Topic Spent/ Of Test items
Frequency Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating Actual Adjusted
1. 3 3.33
2. 4 4.44
3. 1 1.11
4. 6 6.66
5. 8 8.88
6. 5 5.55
7. 8 8.88
8. 2 2.22
9. 4 4.44
10. 4 4.44
45 49.95
TOTAL
50
4. Round off the value to
become whole numbers.
 TABLE OF SPECIFICATIONS

Subject Grade Grading period School Year

DOMAINS Total Number
Time
Topic Spent/ Of Test items
Frequency Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating Actual Adjusted
1. 3 3.33 3
2. 4 4.44 4
3. 1 1.11 1
4. 6 6.66 7
5. 8 8.88 9
6. 5 5.55 6
7. 8 8.88 9
8. 2 2.22 2
9. 4 4.44 4
10. 4 4.44 4
45 49.95 49
TOTAL
50
5. Adjust or Balance by either adding or
subtracting (any of the topic totals) so that
the sum will amount to the desired number
of test items.
 TABLE OF SPECIFICATIONS

Subject Grade Grading period School Year

DOMAINS Total Number
Time
Topic Spent/ Of Test items
Frequency Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating Actual Adjusted
1. 3 3.33 3
2. 4 4.44 4
3. 1 1.11 1+1
4. 6 6.66 7
5. 8 8.88 9
6. 5 5.55 6
7. 8 8.88 9
8. 2 2.22 2
9. 4 4.44 4
10. 4 4.44 4
45 49.95 49
TOTAL
50
6. Scatter the items per topic per domain

Determine the number of items per level of cognitive

domain.

In this case, we have already a pre-computed value

of 30-20-20-30(10-10-10)
 TABLE OF SPECIFICATIONS

Subject Grade Grading period School Year

DOMAINS Total Number
Time
Topic Spent/ Of Test items
Frequency Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating Actual Adjusted
1. 3 3.33 3
2. 4 4.44 4
3. 1 1.11 1+1
4. 6 6.66 7
5. 8 8.88 9
6. 5 5.55 6
7. 8 8.88 9
8. 2 2.22 2
9. 4 4.44 4
10. 4 4.44 4
45 15 10 10 5 5 5 49.95 49
TOTAL
30% 20% 20% 30% ( Higher-order Thinking) 50
7. On the basis of your experience, start
allocating the items with respect to the
total number of items per domain and
the total number of items per topic
beginning with the higher-order
thinking domains down to
remembering. It is suggested that the
order of complexity from creating to
remembering is not altered.

Review the topics, reflect on previous

experiences, and imagine the teaching
learning processes (TLP) that can go
with the topics. You may use teaching
guides and other similar materials.

Be mindful of the total points per topic.

 TABLE OF SPECIFICATIONS

Subject Grade Grading period School Year

DOMAINS Total Number
Time
Topic Spent/ Of Test items
Frequency Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating Actual Adjusted
1. 3 3.33 3
2. 4 4.44 4
3. 1 1.11 1+1
4. 6 1 6.66 7
5. 8 2 8.88 9
6. 5 5.55 6
7. 8 2 8.88 9
8. 2 2.22 2
9. 4 4.44 4
10. 4 4.44 4
45 15 10 10 5 5 5 49.95 49
TOTAL
50
 TABLE OF SPECIFICATIONS

Subject Grade Grading period School Year

DOMAINS Total Number
Time
Topic Spent/ Of Test items
Frequency Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating Actual Adjusted
1. 3 3.33 3
2. 4 1 4.44 4
3. 1 1.11 1+1
4. 6 1 1 6.66 7
5. 8 2 8.88 9
6. 5 2 5.55 6
7. 8 2 8.88 9
8. 2 2.22 2
9. 4 1 4.44 4
10. 4 4.44 4
45 15 10 10 5 5 5 49.95 49
TOTAL
50
 TABLE OF SPECIFICATIONS

Subject Grade Grading period School Year

DOMAINS Total Number
Time
Topic Spent/ Of Test items
Frequency Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating Actual Adjusted
1. 3 1 3.33 3
2. 4 1 1 4.44 4
3. 1 1.11 1+1
4. 6 1 1 6.66 7
5. 8 2 2 8.88 9
6. 5 2 5.55 6
7. 8 2 8.88 9
8. 2 2.22 2
9. 4 1 4.44 4
10. 4 1 4.44 4
45 15 10 10 5 5 5 49.95 49
TOTAL
50
 TABLE OF SPECIFICATIONS

Subject Grade Grading period School Year

DOMAINS Total Number
Time
Topic Spent/ Of Test items
Frequency Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating Actual Adjusted
1. 3 1 1 3.33 3
2. 4 1 1 1 4.44 4
3. 1 1.11 1+1
4. 6 2 1 1 6.66 7
5. 8 2 2 8.88 9
6. 5 2 5.55 6
7. 8 2 2 8.88 9
8. 2 1 2.22 2
9. 4 2 1 4.44 4
10. 4 1 1 4.44 4
45 15 10 10 5 5 5 49.95 49
TOTAL
50
 TABLE OF SPECIFICATIONS

Subject Grade Grading period School Year

DOMAINS Total Number
Time
Topic Spent/ Of Test items
Frequency Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating Actual Adjusted
1. 3 1 1 3.33 3
2. 4 1 1 1 4.44 4
3. 1 1 1.11 1+1
4. 6 2 2 1 1 6.66 7
5. 8 2 2 2 8.88 9
6. 5 2 2 5.55 6
7. 8 2 2 2 8.88 9
8. 2 1 2.22 2
9. 4 2 1 4.44 4
10. 4 1 1 1 4.44 4
45 15 10 10 5 5 5 49.95 49
TOTAL
50
 TABLE OF SPECIFICATIONS

Subject Grade Grading period School Year

DOMAINS Total Number
Time
Topic Spent/ Of Test items
Frequency Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating Actual Adjusted
1. 3 1 1 1 3.33 3
2. 4 1 1 1 1 4.44 4
3. 1 2 1.11 1+1
4. 6 2 1 2 1 1 6.66 7
5. 8 3 2 2 2 8.88 9
6. 5 2 2 2 5.55 6
7. 8 3 2 2 2 8.88 9
8. 2 1 1 2.22 2
9. 4 1 2 1 4.44 4
10. 4 1 1 1 1 4.44 4
49.95 49
TOTAL 45 15 10 10 5 5 5
50
Validity – the extent to which Reliability – the consistency Usability – the test can be
the test measures what it with which a test measures what administered with ease, clarity
intends to measure it is supposed to measure and uniformity
Scorability – easy to score Interpretability – test results Economical – the test can be
can be properly interpreted reused without compromising
and is a major basis in making the validity and
sound educational decisions reliability
Number test Keep your test Make your layout Do not put too
questions question in each presentable. many test
continuously. test group uniform. questions in one
test group.
T or F: 10 – 15
questions
Multiple Choice: max.
of 30 questions
Matching type: 5
questions per test
group
Others: 5 – 10
questions
 DISADVANTAGES
ADVANTAGES
• Multiple-choice ❑ Multiple-choice tests
tests measure a evaluate recognition
variety of learning (choosing an answer)
levels. rather than recall
• They are easy to (constructing an answer)
grade. ❑ They allow for guessing.
❑ They are fairly difficult to
construct.
 DESIRED QUALITIES
OF MULTIPLE-CHOICE
TEST ITEMS
POOR: BETTER:
Janoa spends most of her waking hours Identify the disorder displayed by the
checking the doors and windows and taking subject below:
showers is displaying….
“Janoa spends most of her waking hours
a. generalized anxiety
checking the doors and windows and
b. obsessive-compulsive behavior taking showers.”
c. phobic disorder a. generalized anxiety
d. autistic behavior b. Obsessive-compulsive behavio
c. Phobic disorder
d. Autistic behavior
Poor: What is a claw hammer? Better: What is a claw hammer?
a. a woodworking tool a. a woodworking tool
b. a musical instrument b. a metalworking tool
c. a gardening tool c. an autobody tool
d. a shoe repair tool d. a sheet metal tool
Poor: Better:
The mean is . The mean is a measure of the ________.
a. a measure of the average a. average
b. a measure of the midpoint b. midpoint
c. a measure of the most popular score c. most popular score
d. a measure of the dispersion scores. d. dispersion of scores
Poor: Better:
A narrow strip of land bordered on both A narrow strip of land bordered on both
sides of water is called an sides by water is called
. a(n) .
a. isthmus a. isthmus
b. peninsula b. peninsula
c. bayou c. bayou
d. continent d. continent
POOR: BETTER:
That swimming pool which needs The swimming pool that will need the
cleaning most often is that swimming most cleaning is one with water filled
pool from an/an_________
a. Which is filled with water from a a. stream
stream
b. well
b. Which is filled with water from a well
c. ocean
c. Which is filled with water from the
ocean d. rainfall

d. Which is filled with water collected

from rainfall
POOR: BETTER:
How the brain protected from injury? How the brain protected from injury?
a. It is enclosed with water. It is enclosed with
b. It is enclosed with ribs. a. Water
c. It is enclosed with cartilage. b. Ribs
d. It is enclosed with a skull. c. Cartilage
d. skull
POOR: BETTER:
These four pictures show______. These four pictures show______.
a. Heat and light a. Heat and light
b. Heating and sound b. Heat and sound
c. Lights and sound c. Light and sound
d. Sounds and colorful d. Sound and color
ALPHABETICALLY NUMBERS IN ORDER
The father of modern chemistry is Two dice are tossed. How many possible
outcomes are there?
a. Albert Einstein
a. 12
b. Andre Ampere
b. 24
c. Antoine Lavoisier
c. 36
d. Robert Brown
d. 42
DATES IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER LINES FROM A PASSAGE SHOULD BE
ARRANGED IN ORDER THAT THEY
In what year did the Japanese bomb the APPEAR IN THE PASSAGE.
American base at Pearl Harbor?
a. 1939
USE PYRAMIDING.
b. 1940
c. 1941
d. 1942
Instead of
▪ The capital of California is in _________________

It is more effective if
▪ In which of the following cities is the capital of California?
In the Mediterranean region, cattle raising is handicapped by _____.
a. A hot climate
b. Lack of demand for beef

c. A lack of sufficient productive pasturage

d. High labor costs

▪ The correct choice, "C," may be obvious from its length and explicitness
alone.
Use memory-plus application questions. These questions require students to
recall principles, rules or facts in a real life context.

MEMORY ONLY MEMORY PLUS

Which description best Sally’s breakfast this morning included
characterizes whole foods? one glass of orange juice (from
a. orange juice concentrate), one slice of toast, a small
b. toast bowl of bran cereal and a
c. bran cereal grapefruit. What “whole food” did Sally
d. grapefruit eat for breakfast?
a. orange juice
b. toast
c. bran cereal
d. grapefruit
Questions 1 - 10 are multiple-choice Questions 11 – 20 are multiple-choice
questions designed to assess your questions designed to assess your
ability to remember or recall basic and ability to think critically about the
subject. Please read each question
foundational pieces of knowledge carefully before reading the answer
related to this course. Please read each options. Be aware that some questions
question carefully before reading the may seem to have more than one right
answer options. When you have a clear answer, but you are to look for the one
idea of the question, find your answer that makes the most sense and is the
and mark your selection on the answer most correct. When you have a clear
sheet. Please do not make any marks on idea of the question, find your answer
this exam. and mark your selection on the answer
sheet. You may justify any answer you
. choose by writing your justification on
the blank paper provided.
ON QUESTIONS:
▪ Use negatively stated stems sparingly and when using negatives
such as NOT, underline or bold the print.
▪ The words EXCEPT, TRUE, FALSE and BEST should be highlighted.
▪ Use none of the above and all of the above sparingly, and when you
do use them, don't always make them the right answer.
▪ Keep all options either singular or plural.
▪ Have four or five responses per stem (question).
▪ When using incomplete statements place the blank space at the end.
ON QUESTIONS:
▪ Use good grammar, punctuation, and spelling consistently.
▪ Use pictorial materials that require students to apply principles and
concepts.
▪ Use charts, tables or figures that require interpretation.
▪ The position of the correct answer should vary randomly from item to
item.
▪ Avoid humorous items. Classroom testing is very important and
humorous items may cause students to either not take the exam
seriously, become confused or anxious.
ON ASSEMBLY:
▪ Items should be arranged according to type.
▪ Items should be arranged according to difficulty.
▪ Items of the same subject matter/content maybe grouped
together.
ON REPRODUCTION
▪ All items should be spaced on the page so that students could easily
read them.
▪ As a general rule, the item should be presented as a whole on one
page.
- T/F completely printed on one page
- Stem and options must be together
- Matching Types must be in one page
▪ When answers are to be written on test papers, space should be
provided in column at the left of the page.
ON ADMINISTRATION
▪ Readiness of the teacher
▪ Readiness of the learners
▪ Testing environment
▪ Teacher’s rapport with the learners
▪ Testing time
▪ Clear giving of directions
▪ Learner’s conduct during the test
WRAPPING UP: TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT!
DIRECTION: Determine whether each item possesses the good qualities of an effective test
question. Write TAKE IT if your assessment is YES and LEAVE IT if otherwise.

1. Janoa spends most of her waking hours checking the doors and windows and taking
showers isLEAVE
displaying IT!
______.
a. generalized anxiety
b. obsessive-compulsive behavior
c. phobic disorder
d. autistic behavior

2. The mean is _____.

a. a measure of the average (correct)
LEAVE
b. a measure IT!
of the midpoint
c. a measure of the most popular score
d. a measure of the dispersion scores
3. A narrow strip of land bordered on both sides of water is called an __________.
LEAVE IT!
a. isthmus
b. peninsula
c. bayou
d. Continent

4. How the brain protected from injury?

a. ItLEAVE
is enclosedIT!
with water.
b. It is enclosed with ribs.
c. It is enclosed with cartilage.
d. It is enclosed with a skull.

5. Two dice are tossed. How many possible outcomes are there?
LEAVE IT!
a. 12
b. 24
c. 36
d. 42
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES

❑ True/false items are ❑ True/false items can only test

for factual information
fairly easy to write ❑ They allow for a high
❑ They are very easy to probability (50%) of guessing
grade the correct answer
❑ They limit assessments to
lower levels of learning
(knowledge and
comprehension)
❑Each statement is clearly true or clearly false.
❑Trivial details should not make a statement
false.
❑Statements are written concisely without more
elaboration than necessary.
❑Statements are NOT quoted exactly from text.
❑The direction should clearly indicate the
method students should use in reporting their
answers.
❑Avoid using of specific determiners which
usually gives a clue to the answer.
❑False = all, always, never, every, none, only
❑True = generally, sometimes, usually, maybe, often

❑Avoid using negative statements.

❑Whenever a controversial statement is used,
the authority should be quoted.
❑Avoid using pattern for answers.
 ____ 1. Repetition always strengthens the tendency for a
response to occur.
(Using "always" usually means the answer is false.)
_____ 2. The process of extinction is seldom immediate but
extends over a number of trials.
(Words like "seldom" usually indicate a true statement.)
_____ 3. The mean, median, and mode are measures of central
tendency, whereas the standard deviation and range
are measures of variability.
(Express a single idea in each statement.) e. g.“The mean and
standard deviation are measures of central tendency.”
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGE

❑ A large amount of ❑ Matching tests cannot

material can be effectively test higher order
condensed to fit in less intellectual skills
space
❑ Students have
substantially fewer
chances for guessing
correct associations
than on multiple-choice
and true/false tests
❑Each matching exercise should contain homogeneous material.
❑The test-taking task is simpler if we arrange items in a systematic
order of some type.
❑Matching tests should not be too short or too long.
❑To cut down on random error from accidental markings, place the
stimulus column on the left, with each item numbered, and the
response column on the right, with the items lettered. There should
be more responses than there are stimuli so that the last choice
requires a decision, too.
❑Provide marking spaces for students to write their responses to the
left of the stimuli. Written instructions should be provided at the top
of the exercise.
❑The entire test should be on a single page so that students
do not have to shift back and forth across pages to find
matches.
❑Provide clear directions. Students should not have to ask,
for example, whether options may be used more than once.
❑Limit the length of the items to a word, phrase, or brief
sentence. In general, make the items as short as possible.
❑Provide one or two extra items (distractors) in the second
column. Their inclusion reduces the probability of correct
guessing. This also eliminates the situation that may occur
in equal- sized lists, where if one match is incorrect, a
second match must also be incorrect.
❑Have clearly in mind what mental processes you want the student
to use in answering before starting to write the question.
❑Use novel material in phrasing essay questions.
❑Indicate the stature of an item by listing either the approximate
amount of time students should take for the item or the number of
points it is worth in the total test.
❑Start essay questions with such words or phrases as "Compare,"
"Contrast," "Give the reasons for," "Give original examples of,"
"Explain how," "Predict what would happen if,“ Criticize,”
“Differentiate," "Illustrate."
❑Write the essay question in such a way that the task is clearly and
unambiguously defined for each learner.
 Teaching to the Test

“Superficial forms of
assessment tend to lead to
superficial forms of
teaching and learning.”

-- Edutopia: Success Stories for

Learning in the Digital Age