UNIT ONE THE MEANING OF ASSESSMENT The term assessment refers to the process of collecting information about students

and interpreting the likely meaning of the information for educational decision making. Assessment can also be seen as the process of collecting information about student learning and performance to improve education. Again, assessment can be defined as a process of collecting educationally relevant information about the learner to help in deciding the degree to which the learner has achieved the learning objectives. For instance, if a teacher conducts a test or uses any technique such as observation, interviews, assignments or when the teacher checks pupils exercise books to collect and interpret information about the learner in terms of his or her (i.e. the learners) knowledge, understanding or abilities, we can say that assessment has been conducted. It should be borne in mind that the term assessment is sometimes used interchangeably with testing, measurement or evaluation but they are not the same. TERMS ASSOCIATED WITH ASSESSMENT A) TEST A test is a special form of assessment. A test can be said to be a task or series of tasks used to measure specific traits or attributes in people. In

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educational

settings,

tests

include

paper

and

pencil

instruments which contain questions that students /pupils respond to. The goal of a test is to establish how well the learner can perform with respect to a specific task. Test Validity This refers to the appropriateness in the interpretation and use of assessment results. e.g. Memory and talent, . The following types of test validity are worth noting: 1 Content validity A test is said to have content validity if the questions are within the syllabus and more importantly if the test constitutes a representative sample of the syllabus. 2 Construct validity When a test draws out very well what it is meant to measure then it has construct validity. For example, if a teacher intends to test the creativity of his pupils he must set the questions such that they will bring out the creative abilities of the pupils. 3 Predictive validity A test is said to have predictive validity if it is set in such a way that, based on a students/pupils performance, one is actually able to forecast the future performance of that student/pupil. For example, a selection test is often conducted to select students for Colleges of Education. It is the students who pass this test who are often offered admission. If they perform well in college then the test they took before entering the college has got predictive validity Test Reliability
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The term reliability means the consistency with which a set of test scores measures what it is supposed to measure. If test scores cannot be assigned consistently, it is impossible to conclude that the scores accurately measure the domain of interest. A test score of 75% is reliable when there are reasons to believe that the score is stable and truthful. It shows the true ability of the learner free from chance, error or guessing. The following factors can reduce the reliability of a test 1 Cheating by pupils 2 Tricky questions (ambiguous) 3 Time allocated to the test 4 Physical environmental conditions, 5 Pressure from invigilators, 6 Inappropriate instructions 7 Scoring inaccuracies 8 Identifiabe pattern of answers METHODS OF ESTIMATING RELIABILITY OF TEST RESULTS

B) MEASUREMENT Definitions:
a) Measurement

is

process

of

assigning

numerical of

descriptions to the underlying characteristics or traits students

b) Measurement is the assignment of numbers (e.g. a score

on a test) to a testee/examinee.

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c) Measurement in education can also be defined as the

assignment of numerals to the traits possessed by learners such as achievement, aptitude, and performance. Measurement is limited to the quantitative descriptions of students achievement, attributes or traits. For instance when a teacher constructs 20 multiple-choice test items to fine out the amount of learning that has taken place after administering the test a student scores 12 items correct (12/20). This constitutes the measurement of his/her achievement.

STEPS INVOLVED IN EDUCATIONAL MEASUREMENT

1) Identify and clearly define the attribute you want to

measure.
2) Determine a set of operations which students must carry

out to prove that they possess the attribute being measured.

3) Draw a marking scheme to show how the marks will be

awarded.

SCALES OF MEASUREMENT Four (4) types of scales are commonly encountered in the behavioural sciences: nominal,

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ordinal, interval, and ratio. (NOIR). They differ in the number of mathematical attributes that they possess. A. Nominal Scales A nominal scale is the lowest level of measurement and is most often used with variables that are qualitative (categorical) in nature rather than quantitative (continuous). When a nominal scale is used, the variable is divided into its several categories. These categories comprise the units of the scale, and objects are measured by determining the category to which they belong. Measurement with a nominal scale really amounts to classifying the objects and giving them the name (hence, nominal scale) of the category to which they belong. It is important to note that because the units of a nominal scale are categories, there is no magnitude relationship between the units of a nominal scale. That is, there is no quantitative relationship between the categories. A fundamental property of nominal scales is that of equivalence. All members of a given class are the same from the standpoint of the classification variable. E.g. Tall and short,

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 A nominal scale does not possess any of the mathematical attributes of magnitude, equal interval or absolute zero point. It merely allows categorization of objects into mutually exclusive categories.

B. ORDINAL SCALES An ordinal scale represents the next higher level of measurement. It possesses a relatively low level of the property of magnitude. We rank-order the objects being measured according to whether they possess more, Less of the variable being measured. Thus it ranks or puts people or objects in order from highest to lowest; from most to least. For example, at the end of the school term, teachers often rank the academic performance of their students from the highest score to the lowest; 1st, 2nd, 3rd etc

C. INTERVAL SCALES The interval scale represents a higher level of measurement than the ordinal scale. It possesses the properties of magnitude and equal intervals between adjacent units but does not have an absolute zero point.

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 The interval scale possesses the properties of the ordinal scale and has equal intervals between adjacent units (predetermined equal intervals). The phrase equal intervals between adjacent units means that there are equal amounts of the variable being measured between adjacent units on the scale. Since with an interval scale there are equal amounts of the variable between adjacent units on the scale, equal differences between the numbers on the scale represent equal differences in the magnitude of the variable. Achievement tests, aptitude tests, intelligence tests all

represent interval scales. When scores have equal intervals, it is assumed that the difference between a score of 50 and a score of 60 is basically the same as the difference between the score of 70 and 80. Interval scales however, do not have a true 0 point. In other words, the 0 points are arbitrarily chosen. For example, if you administer an achievement test in mathematics and Adriana scores 0 while Bertha scores 10, you cannot say that Adriana has 0 intelligence and you cannot also say that Bertha has the ultimate intelligence. But say it with respect to the particular test (mathematics)

EVALUATION
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Evaluation could be described as the placing of a value on an attribute or judging the worth of an attribute. In other words, evaluation is the process by which quantitative and qualitative information are processed to arrive at a judgment of value and worth of the effectiveness of teaching and learning Note the following example: If a student scores 8/10 in a test, it is = MEASUREMENT but when you proceed to judge this score and give the student Excellent then is it = EVALUATION. According to Scriven (1967), evaluation may be formative or summative Formative Evaluation It is the process of judging the worth of teaching and learning constantly during the period of instruction.

Occurs during instruction Establishes whether or not student has achieved sufficient mastery of skills Establishes whether further instruction is needed in specific areas Concerned with students attitudes Helps determine what adjustments to instruction are needed Based on continuous informal assessment: such as listening to what students say ,using oral questions to probe comprehension and watching facial expressions and other behaviours
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Also Based on formally developed assessment including quizzes, seat work, and homework Summative Evaluation

This is the process of judging the worth of teaching and learning at the end of the period of instruction. Occurs at the conclusion of instruction such as end of unit and end of year

Used to certify student achievements Used to assign end-of-term grades Used as the basis for promoting or sometimes grouping students Help determine whether teaching procedures should be changed the next academic year It provides an overview of achievement across a number of skills Based on formal assessment

INTERRELATIONSHIPS OF THE TERMS TEST, MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION Test is an instrument for measuring traits/ behaviour. The process of using that instrument (test) to gather quantitative data constitutes measurement. The interpretations and value judgments made on the test scores constitute evaluation

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EDUCATIONAL GOALS, OUTCOMES AND OBJECTIVES In the educational enterprise, assessment focuses on

educational goals, outcomes, and objectives. What do these concepts mean? Educational Goals These are activities which contribute to the functioning of a society and which can be acquired through learning. By their nature, they are stated in broad terms that give direction and purpose to the overall planning and execution of educational activities. Examples of educational goals at the basic level of education include literacy, numeracy, and good citizenship. Educational Outcomes These are the products of learning experiences. That is, they are the things we acquire as a result of an educational experience. Examples of educational outcomes include knowledge, understanding, attitudes, interests, application of knowledge to situations, and skills. Educational Objectives These are the intended results of instruction. They are the specific things we expect our students to be able to do, value or feel at the completion of an instructional segment. Objectives are usually stated in behavioural terms and

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therefore require such action words as discuss, state, write, read, identify etc. In stating instructional objectives, they should be

specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timebound. Therefore action words such as describe, recite, draw, explain, state etc, must be used. NB: Words such as know, understand, appreciate or internalize should be avoided. The reason is that these words make it very difficult for your objectives to be measured.

TAXONOMIES OBJECTIVES Taxonomies by Benjamin are

(CLASSIFICATION) ranked schemes for

OF

ASSESSMENT learning of

classifying three

objectives into the various levels of complexity. A committee led Bloom (1956), identified domains educational objectives. These are:

Cognitive: mental skills (Knowledge) (See details of cognitive domain objectives in unit 2 ) Affective: growth in feelings or emotional areas (Attitude) Psychomotor: manual or physical skills (Skills)

TYPES OF ASSESSMENT Assessment can take any one or a combination of the following forms:
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i. ii. iii. iv. v.

formal informal achievement diagnostic continuous

i). Formal Assessment: These are the various means of classroom pencil and paper tests which are designed by the teacher. Such testing techniques may include essay & objective tests as well as group & individual tests. The objective tests are categorized as selection type items, and the supply questions. The selection type includes multiple choice, true false and matching questions. The supply questions, which are also known as the short answer items. ii). Informal assessment: This is a quick and casual way of finding out about the pupils performance. It gives a general picture of their achievement, attitudes, character and aptitude it does not usually involve pencil and paper tests. It includes observation, interviews, work sample analysis, assignments/ projects and quizzes.

Informal Assessment Techniques a) Observation

Use observation when the pupil is at play, in the class, As much as possible, the pupil should not be aware that

during break and when pupils are doing practical assignments

he/she is being observed

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Make mental notes Prepare and use a checklist Help the child overcome the problem observed
b) Interviews and Chats Collect information from the pupil by talking to him very

informally.
Probe into areas such as the pupil's physical problems,

how he is getting on with school work, family problems etc.

Use

this exercise as an opportunity to assess the

language skills of the pupil

Also assess the interpersonal relations of the pupil Ideally, engage the pupil before, after school or during

break. Work Sample Analysis (i) (ii) (iii) (iv)

(v)

Regular checks of pupils exercise books Check for pupils with untidy work Check for pupils who get most of their work wrong Check for pupils who have improved their work Put structures in place to remedy any problems detected

(d) Assignments or homework/Projects (i) Give pupils assignment or homework (ii) Assign projects to pupils

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(iii) Use individual assignments to develop a sense of independence among pupils (ii) Use group work to discover natural leaders in the class and also develop a sense of we-feeling amongst them.
(vi) Also assign each member of the group a specific task to

avoid the dominance of the brilliant pupils in case of mixed ability grouping Quizzes An informal quiz is a short oral or written test which demands very short answers. They are a quick method of assessing how well pupils have understood a topic. 1) Use quizzes for revising a previous lessons during the introduction stage or for starting a new lesson. This encourages pupils to learn previous lessons thoroughly before a new lesson begins. 2) Written quizzes must be promptly marked. The individual pupils may be trained to mark each others answers soon after the quiz is over. 3) Give oral quiz questions in the form of puzzles or riddles to pupils. This arouses and sustains their interest in the teaching/learning process. Example: What falls but never breaks and what breaks but never falls? iii) Achievement tests: Performance appraisal test that .These measure the degree of students learning in specific curriculum areas in which instruction has been given. They measure the extent to which
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students have acquired certain information or have mastered the required skills. They measure the present level of knowledge, skills and competence. Usually achievement tests are conducted at the end of a course of study, a term or a semester. iv) Diagnostic Assessment: This is done to identify specific

strengths and difficulties of learners. When it is well constructed, it indicates to the teacher specific areas in which an individual learner is having difficulty for the purpose of remediation.

Occur before or, more typically, during instruction Concerned with skills and other characteristics that are prerequisite to the current instruction

Used to establish underlying causes for a student failing to learn a skill

v)

Terminal

Assessment

(same

as

summative

evaluation): This is usually conducted at the end of an instructional segment to determine if learning is adequate. It focuses on end products, That is it involves making an overall assessment or decision with regards to the programme under study either at the end of the term, semester or the year. vi) Continuous assessment: This refers to the assessment of students' progress based on work they do or tests they take throughout the term or year, rather than on a single examination.
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The definition implies that a students final grade after a programme of instruction is a summation of all performance exhibited in the cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains during the period of the course. Characteristics of Continuous Assessment Six desirable characteristics are expected in a continuous assessment programme. It is expected to be cumulative, comprehensive, diagnostic, formative, guidanceoriented, and systematic (Ministry of Education, Ghana, 1988). 1. Continuous Assessment is Cumulative:This means the final grade awarded a student at the end of the term or year is an buildup of all the attainments throughout the term or year. Any decision on the student is based on all the scores obtained in all measurements during the period under review. For example if a student is declared to have attained the satisfactory level of mastery in Mathematics to warrant a promotion. This means that it take s account of the sum total of all his scores in class assignments, home work, weekly tests, mid-term tests, end of term tests, class tests and projects. The decision does not centre on only one score in an end of year examination. 2. Continuous Assessment is Comprehensive:Opportunities are provided for the assessment of the total personality of the student. This involves the assessment of tasks, activities and outcomes and demonstrated in the cognitive (knowledge), affective (attitude) and psychomotor
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(skill) domain. It must however be emphasized that these three domains must not always be include in the programme before the process is described as continuous assessment. In addition, many types of evaluation procedures are used. These include teacher made tests, classroom observation, class assignments and projects, oral questions standardized tests, interviews and autobiographies. The score obtained from using all these procedures are combined to arrive at a final grade or classification of the student.

3. Continuous Assessment is Diagnostic:Continuous assessment involves a constant and continual monitoring of a students performance and achievement. This process enables such students strengths and weaknesses to be identified. It also enables the teacher to identify which students have difficulties and problems and in what areas. With this knowledge, specific remedial actions are recommended and taken. 4. Continuous Assessment is Formative:This means it is administered at regular intervals of a student's progress with accompanying feedback in order to help to improve the student's performance. It allows for immediate and constant feedback to be provided to the student on his performance. The student, often with the help of the teacher and school counsellor, can analyse the feedback

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results. On the basis of the information derived from such an analysis, various strategies are adopted. 5. Continuous Assessment is Guidance oriented:It aims at helping the individual by giving him/her assistance on academic matters. He/she then works hard to consolidate the strong areas and improve upon the weak areas. As the student is actively involved in the teaching learning activities and tasks, his areas of weakness and strength are easily identified early, and from time to time. The teacher then helps the student to strengthen further his strong areas and improve upon his weaknesses to attain the level of mastery needed. The student is thus directed and motivated in his learning. Learning and taking tests is only a step to achieve the total growth and development of the student and continuous assessment provides the facts and figures and all the necessary school information needed to guide the student to achieve this growth and development. It also provides the necessary information for the student to decide his future career and his world of work. 6. Continuous Assessment is Systematic:This means continuous assessment is carried out in an organized manner; it operates on a well scheduled programme. Assessment is not spontaneous (unplanned). A plan is desirable at the beginning of each year, term and week. There could be long term, medium term and short term plans. The plan should spell out the types of traits and behaviours to be assessed, and procedures for assessing them.
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The procedures should indicate the types of class assignments exercises, homework and projects, class tests and non-test techniques to be employed to collect the relevant data. A decision needs to be taken on the dates and periods on which the various types of measurements will be made. It is also important to include in the plan the types of instruments to be used. These could be teacher made tests, standardized tests, interview schedules, questionnaires, project sheets, observation schedules and checklists. Specific times should also be stated regarding the filling in of the students score obtained on the appropriate forms. STRENGTHS
1.

It Measures the Three Important Domains

It enables the measurement of the three important domains in the taxonomy of education objectives via cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains. This is important because while the cognitive objectives are measured under test and examination conditions, affective and psychomotor abilities such as courtesy sociability, creativeness, leadership and responsibility, could only be measured over a reasonable time lapse, and over repeated occurrences of such abilities. In the traditional one shot examination system, the emphasis has always been on the cognitive abilities. This ultimately provides a biased outcome of the students educational attainment. The possibility of spreading the measurement net over the other

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areas (domains) makes the assessment of the students exhibited behaviour more total. 2. It Reduces Fears and Anxieties It helps to minimize the students fears and anxieties about failure in the examinations. The fear of performing poorly leads students to engage in examination malpractices such as copying and the exchange of answer scripts. Since the student is aware that several scores will be used to assess his final performance, tensions are often reduced. More desirable learning habits are developed. Rote learning is discouraged. Creativity and initiative are encouraged. A poor performance in one course is counter balanced by an improved performance in another. Failure in one aspect of the course of study does not spell the doom of the student. The student has a great advantage here in that he has several opportunities to demonstrate the behaviours and objectives being measured. 3. It Helps Teachers to Diagnostic Teaching Constant feedback is given and this provides the groundwork for teachers to engage in diagnostic teaching. Feedback enables the teacher to identify the weaknesses of individual students early and across tasks. He is then in a position to provide remedial and individual teaching. This corrective action reduces frustration, disappointment and disillusionment on the part of the students. The student is thus helped to progress. Continuous feedback guides the student to the most effective means of improving his performance
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4.

It

Gives

an

Excellent

Picture

of

Students

Performance Continuous assessment provides an excellent picture of a students performance over a period of time. In summative evaluation, a students attainment in a course of study for example is measured by a single shot examination. However several influences like, exam malpractices, illnesses and inability to follow instructions can all influence a students final score. The reliability of such scores is therefore doubtful. In continuous assessment, judgment on a students performance is based on several other previous performances.
5.

It Encourages Students to Continually Work Hard assessment encourages students to work

Continuous

assiduously (tirelessly) throughout the period of teaching and learning. The student becomes more alert in the class. He is punctual and attends classes regularly. This attitude comes about as a result of the fact that that every stage of the instructional process is assessed and this counts towards the ultimate grade or score he would obtain. He knows that complacency, absenteeism, laziness and malingering would prove disastrous to his goals in academic achievements, and he therefore works hard.
6.

Parents Get a Better Picture of Pupils' Achievements

in School Continuous assessment provides parents with a better and clearer picture of their wards performance and achievements in school over a period of time and learning
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experience. The one shot traditional examination in most cases colours the actual performance of the student because of the variety of influences that affect the performance of the student. The repeated performance of the student in various activities and tests in continuous assessment greatly minimizes the influence of these factors. Parents thus receive more accurate information on their wards and are put in a better position to plan more relevant programmes towards the future careers of their wards.
7.

It is an Avenue for Keeping of Up-ToDate Records It provides the opportunity for the collection,

on Students preparation and keeping of up-todate records on students. This data includes family and health data, academic interest and hobbies and special talents. Record keeping is an important aspect of the teaching and learning process. Records acknowledge the totality of what pupils have done in order to improve their motivation and help schools identify their needs more closely. These records provide a testimonial respected and valued by employers and colleges. Records also help to place students in appropriate stages when they transfer to another institution. Continuous assessment is a great instrument in the achievement of these goals.

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PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT Even though continuous assessment achieves much in terms of students and teacher evaluation of the instructional process and product, there are problems and weaknesses 1. It increases the workload of teachers: Continuous assessment brings about an increase in the workload of teachers. Since the process is systematic and comprehensive, the teacher is expected to be active in designing and producing a variety of assessment instruments. In addition, he is expected to be scoring the class tests, assignment, and projects and at the same time taking observations. He is also expected to provide up to date records on each pupil and simultaneously be involved in remedial and individual teaching. Where classes are large in size (as in Ghana, where most classes are large) the load becomes unbearable. The teachers then resort to unfair means in providing the requisite data for each pupil- manufacturing marks for pupils. 2. Unreliable continuous Test Instruments: programme, it To is implement assumed a that assessment

teachers have the requisite skills in test construction. However, in Ghana, most Ghanaian teachers lack the skills required for constructing tests because most initial teacher training programmes do not make provision for a course in testing. In cases where teachers undergo a course of instruction in testing and assessment few teachers use this knowledge in test
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construction. The effect is that, since each teacher designs his own instrument, the testing instruments yield unreliable information. Standards are also bound to vary from teacher o teacher, 3. Inadequate Materials and Equipment: In Ghana, one problem is the inadequacy of materials and equipment. Continuous assessment is costly in terms of materials. Finance is needed for the management of materials and equipment such as cumulative record cards, stationery for test administration, chairs and tables and wellbuilt classrooms. The sizes of the classes are such that huge financial outlay is needed. The experience in the Ghanaian classrooms is that these equipment and materials are woefully inadequate. This situation puts great inhibition on the success of any continuous assessment programme. 6. Problem of Supervision: Another assessment problem requires is that of supervision. and Continuous at co-operation co-ordination

different levels. Close supervision is needed at all levels. Unfortunately, supervisors in most cases who are heads of institutions are already laden with loads of work. They are therefore not effective in their supervisory roles. 8. Problem of Record Maintenance: There is also an additional problem of record maintenance. Continuous assessment requires the collection and storage
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of

records.

In

most

institutions,

adequate

storage

facilities are not available. Current storage and retrieval facilities like steel cabinets, personal computers and word processors are lacking in institutions. Handling continuous assessment data is therefore extremely difficult. USES OF ASSESSMENT 1. INSTRUCTIONAL MANAGEMENT DECISIONS Assessment enables the teacher to set realistic instructional goals and objectives for the class as well as individual pupils. It helps the teacher to discover the learning difficulties of the pupils and to provide remedial action. This diagnostic decision asks the questions: What learning activities will best adapt to this students individual requirements and thereby maximize the students opportunities to attain the chosen learning target? 2. SELECTION DECISIONS Assessment provides information to select the right quality of people for admission, promotion and award of prizes. Those not acceptable are rejected. 3. PLACEMENT DECISIONS Assessment provides information to place students in courses and classes where they are likely to succeed in the future. Assessment provides the basis for grouping individuals for instruction in view of their individual differences. Unlike selection, there is no rejected in placement.
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4. GUIDANCE AND COUNSELLING DECISIONS Assessment aids in providing guidance and counselling in social and psychological adjustment problems that affect the pupils performance in the classroom. Assessment is used to assist students to explore and choose careers and in directing them to prepare for the careers they select. 5. CREDENTIALING /CERTIFICATION DECISIONS Assessment enables students to acquire certificates that are needed for employment in the world of work.

6. FEEDBACK TO STUDENTS /MOTIVATION Test scores provide feedback to the student. The student gets to know his strengths and weaknesses. Where the student realizes that he is lagging behind; he puts in more efforts to improve his work. Tests also motivate students to learn. The fact that their efforts are monitored and assessed gives an incentive for learning. Also, the fact that tests motivate students to learn is attested by the cramming sessions in schools, during test periods.

UNIT TWO
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PLANNING AND CONSTRUCTING ASSESSMENT ITEMS The focus of this unit is on planning and constructing assessment items. However, to better understand the unit, it is necessary to first grasp the dynamics of the cognitive domain taxonomy and the workings of a table of specification (test blueprint). THE BLOOM TAXONOMY The cognitive domain (Bloom, 1956) involves knowledge and the development of intellectual skills. This includes the recall or recognition of specific facts, procedural patterns, and concepts that serve in the development of intellectual abilities and skills. There are six major categories, which are listed in order below, starting from the simplest behaviour to the most complex. The categories can be thought of as degrees of difficulties. That is, the first one must be mastered before the next one can take place. Category Knowledge: Recall data or information. Example and Key Words (verbs) Examples: Recite a poem. Quote historical dates from memory. Know the safety rules. Key Words: defines, describe, identify, label, list, match, name, outline, recall, reproduces, select,
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state etc Comprehension: Understand the meaning, translation, and interpretation of instructions and problems. State a problem in one's own words. Application: Use a concept in a new situation or unprompted use of an abstraction. Applies what was learned in the classroom into new situations in the work place or simply in everyday life. Analysis: Separates material or concepts into component parts so that its Examples: Troubleshoot a piece of equipment by using logical deduction. Recognize logical fallacies in reasoning. Gather information from a
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Examples: Rewrite the principles of test writing. Explain in one's own words the steps for performing a complex task. Translate an equation into a computer spreadsheet. Key Words: convert, defend, distinguish, estimate, explain, give an example, infer, interpret, paraphrase, rewrite, summarize, translate. Examples: Use a manual to calculate an employee's vacation time. Apply laws of statistics to evaluate the reliability of a written test. Key Words: apply, change, compute, construct, demonstrate, discover, manipulate, modify, operate, predict, prepare, produce, relate, show, solve, use.

organizational structure may be understood. Distinguishes between facts and inferences.

department and select the required tasks for training. Key Words: analyze, break down, compare, contrast, deconstruct, differentiates, distinguish, identify, illustrate, outlines relate, separate. Examples: Design a machine to

Synthesis: Builds a structure or pattern from diverse elements. Put parts together to form a whole, with emphasis on creating a new meaning or structure. Evaluation: Make value of ideas or materials.

perform a specific task. Put together training from several sources to solve a problem. Revise and process to improve the outcome. Key Words: categorize, combine, compile, compose, create, devise, design, explain, generate, modify, rearranges, reconstruct, relate, reorganize, revise, rewrite, summarize. Examples: Select the most effective candidate. Explain and justify a new budget. Key Words: appraise, compare, conclude, contrast, criticize, critique, defend, describe, discriminate,

judgments about the solution. Hire the most qualified

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evaluate, explain, interpret, justify, relate, summarize, support.

THE QUELLMALZ TAXONOMY Another author by name Quellmalz (1985) also proposed a cognitive taxonomy which has five categories. These are: Recall: This requires that students recognize or remember key facts definitions, concepts, rules and principles. It requires students to repeat verbatim or to paraphrase given information. Blooms levels of knowledge and comprehension are subsumed in this category. Examples: Who was the main character in story? Define the work ______________________________ What is a ___________________________________ ? Label the following ____________________________. Who did ____________________________________ ?

Analysis: This is not different from what Bloom explains. It has to do with dividing a whole into its constituent parts. In this operation, students divide a whole into component elements. Example: What are the different parts of the story?
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What are the basic elements (ingredients) in a _________________________? What is/are the function(s) of _____________________________________? Categorize the,,,, of _____________________________________________ Sort the _____________________________________________________ Analyze the following ___________________________________________ Comparison: This requires students to recognize or explain similarities and differences. Two forms of comparisons are identified. They are simple and complex comparisons. Simple comparison requires attention to one or a few obvious attribution while the complex comparison involves identification of the differentiation among many attributes. This category relates to some of the skills in the Bloom level of analysis. Example: How was this story like the last one? Compare Contrast. Differentiate the before the between and to after the and

_____________________________________. _____________________________________________ ________________________________________

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Inference: This requires that students give a general statement of a conclusion from given material or statements. It involves both deductive (i.e. general to specific) and inductive (i.e. specific to general) reasoning. Inference relates to Blooms levels of application and synthesis. Example: What might be a good title for this story? Hypothesize what will happen if ____________________________________ Predict what would be true if ______________________________________ Conclude what the result will be if __________________________________ What if ..had happened instead _____________________________________ ? What does this information suggest _________________________________ ? Given this situation (problem), what should you do ______________________ Evaluation: This category of intended learning outcome is concerned with judging the quality, credibility, worth or practically of a material. It is related to Blooms levels of synthesis and evaluation. So far we have discussed the various levels of cognitive domain objectives, which an assessor must know to be able to carry out a comprehensive and relevant assessment. These assessment objectives are possibly the most important things one must know to succeed in the conduct of
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assessment at all levels of education. It is related to Blooms levels of synthesis and evaluation. Example: To what extent are the gods to blame for the

tragedy of Odewale? What do you believe about ________________________________________? Decide if it was worth it. Explain _____________________________________. Judge the best way to solve the problem of ___________________ Why did you decide that ________________________? Evaluate whether you would or not in this situation ________________ . Why _______________________________________?

TABLE OF SPECIFICATION OR TEST BLUEPRINT Instructional objectives must be defined in terms of definite observable student behaviour and linked to what has been stressed in class. A test plan made up of table of specification or test blueprint must be made. This specification table matches the course content with the instructional objectives. Thus the table of specification is a two-way table, one dimension of which is a breakdown of behavioural changes or the instructional objectives, and the other dimension is the subject matter or course content. The behavioural changes can
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be classified into many categories. For example, the six principal categories of Blooms taxonomy of educational objectives for the cognitive domain ( knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, evaluation) The easiest way to ensure a representative sample of content and cognitive objectives on the test is to prepare a table of specifications. This table is simply a two-way chart listing the content topics on one dimension and the cognitive skills on the other. This ensures that content and skills are included in the same proportion as they were stressed during instruction. This table shows a simple table of specifications; it is intended to be illustrative, not comprehensive Content (%) Physical Properties Chemical Properties Preparation Uses Total Knowledg e 8 12 4 16 40 Comprehe nsion 6 9 3 12 30 Applicatio n 6 9 3 12 30 Total (%) 20 30 10 40 100

This table indicates the content topics and the objectives to be covered and the proportion of the test that will be devoted to each. Evidently, more class time was spent on the uses of oxygen because 40 percent of the test questions deal with uses compared with only 10 percent on preparation. The column totals indicate that 40% of the items will be written at the knowledge level with the remaining divided equally between
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comprehension and application. Using the percentages assigned to each cell, one writes the appropriate number of items. For example because 20% of the test is to cover physical properties and 30% is to be application, then 6% of the total test would measure the ability to apply knowledge about oxygens physical properties to new situations. Coordinating test content with instruction content ensures content validity of the test. Using a table of specifications also helps an instructor avoid one of the most common mistakes in classroom tests, namely writing all the items at the knowledge level. IMPORTANCE 1. OF THE TEST BLUEPRINT OR

SPECIFICATION TABLE It makes sure that items adequately cover all the topic/topics under consideration, the behaviours that were dealt with in the course/unit as well as the behaviour/cognitive activities level. 2. It helps in the determination of the content validity evidence of the test. Content validity in this sense means the items adequately sample the universe of content. 3. 4. 5. It facilitates meaningful weighting of the items in each cell of the table in accordance with the importance attached to them. It avoids overlapping in the construction of the test items. It helps students to detect the content and behavioural areas where they have difficulty. Teachers can also determine areas where the class has difficulty. Every assessor must know these levels of cognitive domain objectives to be able to carry out a thorough and relevant
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assessment. These assessment objectives are possibly the most important things one must know to succeed in the conduct of assessment at all levels of education. PLANNING AND CONSTRUCTING ASSESSMENT ITEMS The main objective of an achievement test is to produce a fair and representative indication of what pupils have learned from the instruction they were given. Since the results of the test will be to grade pupils and make important decisions about them, it is necessary that the test provide valid and reliable information about learning. If they do not, incorrect grades and poor decisions can result. A clear understanding of this unit will therefore, equip teacher trainees with the skills to be able to distinguish well-written test questions from poorly written ones. Constructing the Test There are eight steps in the construction of a good test. These include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Define the purpose of the test Determine the item format to use Determine what is to be tested Write the individual items Review the items Prepare scoring / Marking key/scheme Write directions Evaluate the test.

Step 1 Define the Purpose of the Test

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The test construction process begins with describing the purpose for testing. The basic question we ask at this stage is, Why are we testing? You must ensure that the test items are related to the classroom instructional objectives. Good classroom tests serve several purposes. Step 2 Determine the Item Format to Use The test items could either be essay or objective types, the two common types we use in our classrooms. The essay type, together with the other forms of objective type is what we call item format. The choice of format must be appropriate for testing particular topics and objectives. Sometimes, it might become necessary to use more than one format in a single test. In other words, there could be a combination of the multiple choice and the true-false type items in a particular testing situation. Step 3 Determine what is to be Tested At this stage, you must ask yourself, What is it that I wish to measure? You have to decide what chapters or units the test will cover as well as what knowledge, skills and attitudes to measure. Step 4 Write the individual items a. Keep the table of specification before you and continually refer to it as you write the items so as to cover important content and behaviours.
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b. Items must match the instructional objectives.

c. Formulate well-defined items that are not vague and

ambiguous and should be grammatically correct and free from spelling and typing errors.
d. Avoid needlessly complex sentences. Avoid excessive

use of words in constructing the items

e. The test items should be based on information that the

student/examinees should know f. Write the test items simply and clearly g. Prepare more items than you will actually need h. The task to be performed and the type of answers required should be clearly defined. i. Include questions of varying difficulty. j. Write the items and the scoring guide /keys as soon as possible after the material has been taught k. Avoid textbook or stereotype language l. Write items in advance of test date to permit review and editing. Step 5 Review the items This is another important step in test construction. Since the purpose of an achievement test is to provide a fair and representative indication of how well pupils have learned the things they were taught, faulty items are undesirable regardless of whether they inhibit or enhance pupils test performance. If pupils get lower scores because test items are
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poorly

written

or

ambiguous,

fair

and

representative

indication of learning will not be obtained. If on the other hand, clues in items help pupils do better than they would have without the clues, a fair and representative indication of pupils learning will not be obtained. The simplest way to identify and correct most of the faults in your test items is by reviewing the test items before testing. Having written or selected the items for a chapter or unit, you should critically examine (re-read) each item at least a week after writing the item. This review will help to identify ambiguous, confusing and vague words inappropriate vocabulary level clues as well as items that do not match the objectives so that they can be corrected, reworded or removed before test administration. You must make sure that items are not too difficult or too easy. Check the length of the test (i.e. the number of items) against the purpose, kinds of the test items used and the ability level of students. The items must discriminate between the low achievers and high achievers. Who are the low or high achievers? After all the above considerations, assemble the test in the final form. Step 6 Prepare the Scoring Key / Scheme Many classroom teachers fail to score pupils work accurately. This is not a good practice for obvious reasons. In scoring test items the ideal way is to compare a key which
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contains the correct answer to each question, to the answers the pupils have given. In the case of essay tests an elaborate marking scheme is required. In preparing the scoring key or marking scheme, assign marks to the various expected qualities of response. You must also assign values to each item and ensure that representative sampling of content is covered. The scoring key or marking scheme should be prepared while items are fresh in your (the teacher) mind. Step 7 Write Directions How do you make sure that your pupils answer the items the way you want it or answer the same number of questions, start and stop work at the same time etc. during test administration? The instructions / directions must be clear and concise for the entire test as well as, all the sections of the test students take should be explicitly stated. The limit of the number of items to respond to, how the answers will be written, penalties for undesirable writing must be spelt out. Also the amount of time available, credits for orderly presentation of materials (where necessary) and mode of identification of respondents. Step 8 Evaluate the test This is the last stage of the test construction process. A test should be evaluated for its worth before administration. It

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should be evaluated using the following five criteria clarity, validity, practicality, efficiency and fairness. Clarity: Clarity in this context refers to how the items are stated and phrased while at the same time considering the ability and the level of the testees. To ascertain the clarity of each item of a test, the following questions must be considered. Who is being tested? What material is the test measuring? What kinds of knowledge, skills and attitudes is the test measuring? Do the test times relate to content and course objectives? Validity: In considering validity, the test constructor finds out whether the items are a representative sample of the material presented in the chapter, unit, section or course? He asks the question, Does the test faithfully reflect the level of difficulty of material covered in class? If the answer is yes then the content related evidence of validity is satisfied. Practicality: The practicality is concerned with the necessary material and the time allotted to the test. The tester should consider the following questions: Will students have enough time to complete the test?
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 Are there sufficient materials such as answer booklets or answer sheets, tables, and chairs etc. available to present during the test to complete it effectively? Efficiency: Here the test writer should ask himself whether the way he presented the test is the best way to present whatever is being tested i. e. the desired knowledge, skill or attitude. He must also ask, What problem might arise due to material difficulties or shortage? Fairness: To ascertain this, the test writer must answer the following questions: Were the students given advance notice? Have I adequately prepared students for the test? Does the student understand the testing procedures? How will the scores affect the students lives?

TYPES OF OBJECTIVE CLASSROOM TESTS . Classroom tests are sometimes called teacher made tests. They are tests constructed by a classroom teacher for use in a particular class under conditions of his/her choice. A single test cannot serve all the purposes of teachers hence

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different tests are constructed based on the purpose and relevance. The objectivity of any test is the effectiveness of the procedure by which one can determine the correctness of the responses. It mainly refers to the scoring of the test. When a test is said to be objective, it means there is a mechanism to accurately determine the best or correct answer so that subjective opinion or judgment in the scoring procedure is eliminated. In sum, objective test is a test for which the correct responses are set out in advance and testees need not organize and write any lengthy responses. They are widely used by classroom teachers. Two basic categories of objective tests can be identified. These are: 1. The selection and supply types The selection type This refers to those type of objective tests whereby a student selects the correct answer from among a number of options presented in the question, Within the general category of selection items are multiple choice, true-false and matching. The supply type These are those in which the student writes or constructs a word phrase, symbol etc as an answer to a question or in completion of a statement. Short answer or completion (also called fill in-the blank) items are examples of supply type THE MULTIPLE CHOICE ITEM (The selection type)

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This is the most common objective-type item. The multiplechoice item is a test question which has a number of alternative choices from which the examinee is to select the correct answer. It is generally recommended that one use 4 or 5 choices per question, whenever possible. Using fewer alternatives often results in items with inferior characteristics. The item choices are typically identified on the test copy by the letters A through E. Terminology Regarding Multiple-Choice Test Questions Stem: This is the part of the item in which the problem is stated for the examinee. It can be a question, a set of directions or a statement with an embedded blank. Options/Alternatives/responses/choices: choices given for the item. Key /keyed alternative: This is the correct choice for the item. Distracters, foils or misleads: These are the incorrect choices for the item. Guidelines for Writing Multiple Choice Items.
1.

These

are

the

The essence of the problem should be in the stem.

The stem should contain the central issue of the item so that the student will have some idea as to what is expected of him and some tentative answer in mind before he/she begins to read the options. It should be concise and should be easy to read and understand. At the start of the item we want the testPage | 44

taker to know what we are getting at or targeting. The basic concept should, therefore be laid out directly Poor: Ghana a) became independent in 1966 b) has the largest population in West Africa c) is the worlds leading producer of cocoa d) has the largest-man made lake in the world e) is a land locked country 2) Avoid repetition of words in the options. The stem should be written so that key words are incorporated in the stem and will not have to be repeated in each option. Poor: Socio-biology can be defined as a. the scientific study of humans and their relationships within the environment. b. the scientific study of animal societies and communication. c. the scientific study of plants and their reproductive processes. d. the scientific study of the number of species in existence. Better: Socio-biology can be defined as the scientific study of a. humans and their relationships within the environment. b. animal societies and communication. c. plants and their reproductive processes. d. the number of species in existence.
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Another similar example is as follows; Poor: An island is

a) b) c)

a piece of land surrounded by water a piece of land where no human beings live a piece of land where there is no water desert oasis

Better: A land surrounded by water is known as a /an a) b)

c) island 3. When the incomplete statement format is used the

options should come at the end of the statement. All test items should present the problem to the student as early and clearly as possible. Example of Poor Item: a) Barometer b) Thermometer c) Anemometer is an instrument used for measuring temperature Better: An instrument used for measuring temperature is called? a) barometer b) thermometer c) anemometer

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4.

All the options or distracters should be probable and

identical in content form and grammatical structure. Distracters must plausibly attract uniformed testees. If one option is short other options should be similarly short. If one option is in the plural form other options should also be in the plural form. Example of Poor Item The largest city in Nigeria is a) Accra b) Kumasi c) Lom d) Ibadan Good: The largest city in Nigeria is a) Ibadan b) Lagos c) Kano d) Abuja 5. Specific determiners which serve as clues to the best or correct option should be avoided. Specific determiners are features or words of test items that help students answer questions correctly even if they do not know the content being tested. Many types of clues appear in test items. For example clues in which the stem does not grammatically match all the options provided occur mostly in multiples choice items. Multiple choice items as well as matching or completion items are susceptible to clues resulting from the improper use of the
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article a and an in

all cases, clues serve to artificially

improve pupils performance in the test. Poor Item: A fraction whose numerator is greater than its denominator is known as an ..fraction a) Vulgar b) Proper c) Improper d) Decimal Good Item: A fraction whose numerator is greater than its denominator is known as a/an ..fraction a) Vulgar b) Proper c) Improper d) Decimal 6. To i. ii. facilitate easy reading and clarity of work, the

options/responses in agreement must be Parallel in form i. e. sentence must be about the same length In a logical form alphabetical, chronological or sequential order iii. Itemized vertically and not horizontally 7. Items should be stated in positive terms. However, items in a negative form should be used sparingly, and the word not should be bold faced, underlined capitalized or use all three to emphasize. An example: Which of the following football teams has NOT won the African club championship?
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8.

Avoid textbook wording. Sentences should not be

copied from textbooks. Copying sentences word for word from textbooks must not be encouraged because: i. ii. In most cases a sentence loses its meaning when it is taken It encourages rote memory of textbook material instead of out of context. comprehension. 9. Create independent items: The answer to one item should not depend on the knowledge of the answer to a previous item. Try to avoid linking and clueing. Linking means that the answer to one or more items depends on obtaining the correct answer to a previous item. 10. The correct alternative should be of the same overall length as the distracters. Do not make the correct option consistently longer than the incorrect answers/options by phrasing it in a more completely explained or more qualified manner. 11. Avoid using all of the above as an option but none of the above can be used sparingly if at all. None of the above as an option should be used only when an item is of the correct answer type and not the best answer type. 12. Vary the placement of the correct options. The correct options should be placed randomly throughout the
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test. This is important so that no discernible i. e. easily learned pattern of the correct /best answers /responses should be noticed. Checklist for Reviewing Multiple-Choice Items 1. Has the item been constructed to assess a single written objective? 2. Is the item based on a specific problem stated clearly in the stem?
3.

Does the stem include as much of the item as possible, without including irrelevant material?

4. Is the stem stated in positive form? 5. Are the alternatives worded clearly and concisely?
6.

Are the alternatives mutually exclusive?

7. Are the alternatives homogeneous in content? 8. Are the alternatives free from clues as to which response is correct? 9. Have the alternatives all of the above and none of the above been avoided?
10. Does the item include as many functional distracters as

are feasible? 11. 12. 13. Does the item include one and only one correct or Has the answer been randomly assigned to one of Is the item laid out in a clear and consistent manner?
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clearly best answer? the alternative positions?

14. 15. 16.

Are the grammar, punctuation, and spelling correct? Has unnecessarily difficult vocabulary been avoided? If the item has been administered before, has its

effectiveness been analyzed

Advantages of Multiple Choice Test The advantages of multiple-choice test items are much more impressive than the limitations. 1. One of the outstanding or major advantages of the multiplechoice tests is its veracity. The multiple choice format is widely used in achievement tests of all types to assess a variety of learning outcomes. Multiple choice questions do not only measure factual recall, but can also measure the students ability to reason and to exercise judgment. 2. 3. Multiple-choice test affords excellent content sampling which generally leads to more content valid score interpretations. They can be scored quickly and accurately by machines, clerks, teaching assistants, and even students themselves. This is so because the element of subjectivity in scoring is totally absent in the multiple choice test. 4. Compared to true-false items, multiple-choice questions have a relatively small susceptibility to score variations due to guessing. In other words, there is less chance for a student to guess the correct answer to a multiple choice item than to a true false or to poorly constructed matching exercises. This is so because the probability of guessing a

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correct answer is reduced by the introduction of a number of options. 5. They are amenable to item analysis. Item analysis is a procedure by which weaknesses are detected within test items. This would be made possible by the use of a number of plausible implications on their understanding and misunderstanding or whatever is being measured. Thus, the distracter a student chooses may give the tester diagnostic insight into difficulties the student is experiencing. Items of relatively high quality will discriminate between better and poor students. 6. Multiple choice items do not require students to write out and elaborate their answers. This minimizes the opportunity for less knowledgeable students to bluff or up their answers. Limitations of Multiple- Choice Test 1. The selection format of the multiple-choice items does not allow pupils to construct, organize and present their own answers. Student must choose from a fixed list of options rather than creating their own ideas or solutions. 2. The construction of multiple-choice test items is time and energy consuming. It is difficult to write good multiple choice tests with equally plausible alternatives 3. The error introduced by guessing is only reduced by the use of multiple-choice items but not entirely overcome. The chance element is still present.
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dress

THE TRUE FALSE ITEM The True false test item consists of a statement or a proposition, which the student must place in one of two response categories. The categories may be true-false, yes or no, correct incorrect or right wrong. A respondent is expected to demonstrate his/ her command of the material by indicating whether the given statement is true or false. In sum, a true false item consists of a statement or proposition that a student must judge and mark as either true or false. They yes no variety asks a direct question, to which a student answers yes or no. the right wrong variety presents a computation, equation or language sentence that the student judges as correct or incorrect. Suggestion for Writing Better True False Items True false items can be used effectively if a few guidelines or suggestions are followed in writing them. If you want to make use of true false tests, here are some things to keep in mind when you write the items. 1. You should make sure that the statements are clearly true or clearly false Statements, which are not entirely true or false, should be avoided. Also avoid statements that are too general Poor Item. The value of Pi is 3.14 a) b) True False

Good Item. The value of pi expressed as a fraction corrected to 2 decimal places is 3.14
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a) b) 2.

True False Avoid the use of specific determiners or qualifiers. In other

words avoid expressions or words that tend to give clues to the correct answer. Specific determiners are words or expressions that frequently identify a statement containing them as true or false.. Words often found in false statements are only never, all, every always and no Words often found in true statements are usually often, generally typically sometimes, customarily therefore be avoided. Example of poor items a) None of the people of the Volta Region is engaged in farming a) True b) False Plants usually require sunlight for proper growth. a) True b) False 3. Include the same or approximately the same number of true and false statements. Approximately, half (50%) of the total number of items should be false because it is easier to construct statements that are true and the tendency is to have more true statements.

may could many, some and most. These words must

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4.

If true false tests are used regularly, be certain that the

percentages of test items requiring a true answer and the percentages of test items requiring false answer are not relatively constant from test to test. If noticeable consistency is detected the student may use it as a basis for guessing the answers of some of the test that baffle them. 5. Avoid copying statements or sentences verbatim from textbooks, test questions or any other written materials. All textbook materials should be rephrased or put in a new context to discourage rote learning. 6. Try to keep the true false test items reasonably short and restrict each to one central idea or theme. Do not include more than one idea because if one idea is true and the other is false, the item becomes artificially difficult and it will favour the more test wise students. Example of a Poor Item: By one year the majority of babies can say two words and take at least three unaided steps. a) b) 7. True False Word the item so that superficial knowledge suggests

a wrong answer. This does not mean that the wording should be ambiguous or complex. It means, to anyone who lacks the knowledge being tested, a wrong answer should appear more reasonable than the correct one. Example of poor item:

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More sugar can be dissolved in a glass of warm water than in a glass of cold water. a) b) True False

The test case is that the temperature of water is more important than the volume in the dissolution of sugar. 8. Do not present true-false items in a repetitive or easily learned pattern. Arrange the items such that the correct responses do not form an easily learned pattern like TTTT, FFFF, TTTT etc. It will be easy for test wise students to identify such discernible pattern in the arrangement of correct responses. This will affect the validity of the test. 9) Let pupils write the correct items in full. Pupils should not be asked to write T for True and F for False Advantages of True False Items 1. Among the advantages of the true or false test is the fact that it can cover a large amount of subject matter in a given testing period than can any other objective item. In other words more questions can be asked. 2. The construction of the items is relatively easier. It takes less time to construct the true false items than the matching or multiple choice tests. 3. 4. 5. The items can be scored quickly reliably and objectively They are adaptable to most content areas. The items are good for young children and /or pupils by scorers.

who are poor readers.

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The major disadvantages of true false items are that: 1. They are subject to gross error as a consequence of rampant guessing. Pupils scores on especially short true false tests may be unduly influenced by good or poor luck in guessing. 2. True false items are more susceptible to ambiguity misinterpretation than any other selection type and 3.

objective item. They lend themselves mostly to cheating. If a student knows that he is to take a True False test, the better students may easily work out a means of helping the poor student by signaling a True versus False answer. 4. 5. They tend to be less discriminating item for item There are many instances when statements are not compared to the multiple choice tests. unequivocally (completely clear) true or false, but rather there are degrees of correctness MATCHING TEST The matching type of objective test consists of two columns. A series of questions or statements is listed down in column A or 1 (the left hand column of the test paper) and a series of options or choices are also listed in column B or 2 (the right hand column). The respondent is then required to select and associated an item in column A or 1 with a choice in column B or 2. This is preceded by directions for matching

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Column A or 1 consists of the questions or problems to be answered. These are known as a list of premises. Column B or 2 contains the possible answers, which are known as the responses or options. 1. 2. 3. Directions for matching A list of premises and A list of responses A matching exercise therefore presents a student with three things.

Example: Directions For each definition in column A below, select the most appropriate term from the set of terms in column: Column A Definitions 1. The process of collecting information about students and interpreting the likely meaning of the information for 2. A educational series of decision tasks or making problems 3. Test used to compare individuals 4. Specification of what a child must do to indicate mastery of a skill. 5. Determination of the
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Column B Terms. A. Behavioural objectives B. Criterion references test C. Evaluation D. Measurement E. Norm referenced F. Assessment G. Test

amount of a skill or trait Much learning involves association type of learning. Suggestions for constructing the Matching Test Items If the matching test is to be retained among the teachers assessment tools, we must do a much better job of constructing this test than is often done. Here are some ways we can make the matching test a better instrument.
1.

of

things. The

matching test is, therefore most applicable to assessing this

Make

lists

of

premises

and

responses

as

homogeneous as possible. For a single matching exercise to be valid, it should consist of items that deal with only one single concept, classification or area. For example do not include mathematical symbols, book authors and names of important personalities in a single matching exercise. An example of a poor matching exercise is as follows: Direction: Match each description in the first column with one of the names in the second column by writing the letter identifying the name in the blank to the left of the description Description 1. The first black President of America 2. The only liquid mental 3. Designed the Ghana National Flag Name A) Madam Theodosia Okoh B) Gold C) Barrack Obama D) Mercury E) Kofi Wayo

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The item is poor because of the heterogeneous (mixed) nature of the premises and the responses. 1. Do not use perfect matching: Avoid having an equal number of premises and responses. If the student is required only to make a one-to one match, it is possible that for a five item matching the student who knows four of the five answers can get the fifth answer correct solely on the basis of elimination. There should be at least two or three more responses than premises. 2. Arrange the premises and responses in some systematic fashion. For the convenience of the student, words should be listed in alphabetical order, dates and numbers in increasing / ascending or decreasing / or descending order. This also reduces the amount of unnecessary searching on the part of the student who knows the answer. 3. The left hand column of the paper, column A, called the premises should contain the list of longer phrases. The shorter items should constitute the responses. Both of these actions will tend to simplify the examinees finding the correct match and may eliminate irrelevant difficulty. 4. Make the list of premises and responses relatively short. Thus, limit the number of items in each set. It is easier to keep short lists homogeneous. For each set the number of premises should not be more than six per set, with responses not more than ten. 5. Provide complete directions that clearly explain the intended basis for matching. Every effort should be made to clarify the
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task the pupil is asked to perform by improving the direction and the titles of the list. It is not the purpose of a matching test item to find out if a pupil understands the basis for matching, but rather to see if he / she can accurately match each premise with a response after he/she understands the basis of matching. 6. 7. State clearly what each column represents. Always write a heading on each column. All responses must be placed (or typed) on the same page and should function as plausible options for each premise. Crafting of 8. homogeneous premises and responses will minimize plausibility problems. If possible, identify premises with numbers and responses with letters. Remember, each premise is a separately scored item. Therefore premises should carry numbers, which indicate their position in the sequence of items.

Advantages of the Matching Test Matching test items are well suited to those situations where one is interested in testing the knowledge of terms, definitions, dates, events and other matters involving simple relationship. The major advantages of matching exercises are as follows:

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1.

Many questions can be asked in a limited amount of testing time because they require relatively little reading time. This affords the opportunity to have a large sampling of content.

2.

Scoring can be done accurately by machines, students and teaching assistants Disadvantages of the Matching Test 1. 2. It is restricted to the measurement of factual material or It is sometimes difficult to get clusters/groups of questions rote learning. that are sufficiently alike so that a common set of responses can be used. SHORT ANSWER ITEMS/ SUPPLY/COMPLETION/ FILL IN THE BLANKS. This type of objective test is also known as the supply, completion or fill in the blanks. The short answer item is classified as supply type objective item. A short answer requesting test item assesses knowledge by a student to respond to each item with a word,

short phrase, number or symbol, etc. it is easily recognized by the presence of one or more blanks in which the student writes his / her answer to fill or complete the blank. The three common varieties of the short answer form are: 1. The question variety in which the item is presented as a direct question

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2. 3. 1.

The

completion

variety

in

which

an

incomplete

statement is used and The association or identification variety Question variety What is the capital city of Ghana? How many metres make 2 kilometres? 2. The Completion Variety capital city of Libya is Examples of each variety are:

4+ (6 2) = 3. Identification or Association Variety Direction: On the blank next to the name of each chemical element, write the symbol used for it. Element Oxygen Gold Potassium Zinc Symbol .. .. .. ..

Suggestion for Writing Short Answer Items

1. Avoid excessive blanks in a single item. Keep the number of

missing words or blank spaces low i. e. two blank spaces. Do not eliminate so many elements of a statement that the sense / meaning of the content is lost. Omitting too many key words turn an achievement test into an intelligence test or a guessing

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game. An example of poor item: The ratio of _________ to the _________ is called the __________. A better item: The ratio of the opposite sides to the hypotenuse is called the __________ 2. Avoid lifting statements directly from the textbook. Use original statements which are carefully constructed. 3. Avoid giving clues to the correct answer in the structure of the item. 4. Omit important words. Avoid writing trivia words to trick students. A completion item should require a student to respond to important facts and knowledge. In other words, the teacher or examiner should use the item to assess a students knowledge of an important fact or concept. Example of Poor item: Radios and tape recorders are ________ as audiovisual aids Good item: Radios and tape recorders are regarded as _____ aids in the classroom 5. Word the item so that the required answer is brief and specific. That is if at all possible items should require a single word answer. As stated earlier the answer should consist of a word, phrase, symbol, number, or short sentence. 6. Think of the intended answer first before constructing the item. 7. Put the blanks in the end or towards the end of the sentence. When the blank is at the beginning or middle of the sentence, the essential point of the question may be overlooked or forgotten by the time the student reads the item.

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8. Specify the degree of precision you expect in your answer. For example in a short answer test involving date or numerical answers, you should specify the numerical units and how precise or accurate the students should be. Poor item: The value of (pi) is _____________ Better item: The value of (pi) to two decimal places is _________________ Advantages of the Short Answer Item 1. 2. The supply form minimizes the likelihood that the pupil will guess the correct answer. Short answer items are useful in areas such as spelling and language evaluations, where specific or bits of information are usually tested. It is useful in assessing students knowledge of definitions and technical terms. Limitations of the Short Answer Item 1. Scoring may not be quick, easy routine, and accurate because of the variety of acceptable answers. For example the scorer must at any point in time decide whether a given answer is right, wrong or partially right. 2. It is almost impossible to write good short answer items that require the student exhibit synthesis and interpretation so that one and only one answer will be correct.

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CRAFTING ESSAY ITEMS Essential terminology

Carry over effect: This is the situation where the quality

of the response to one essay question influences the examiners evaluation of the quality of the response to subsequent questions.
Halo effect: This is where the marking of an essay is

influenced by extraneous factors such as the relationship between examiner and the examinee and the examinees handwriting etc
Intra Rater Variability(Reliability): This is where the

same rater scores the same essay twice and awards marks which vary significantly.
Inter Rater Variability (Reliability): This is where

two or more raters score the same essay and award marks which vary significantly
Rater Drift: This is the situation where an examiner fails

to pay attention to the marking scheme over time and thus tend to interpret the answers differently as time passes Description and Characteristics of Essay Items Essay test to the lay person, may mean writing extensively on a topic especially in an English Language test. For example, a
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topic like My favourite food may be considered as an essay test. How would one explain the concept essay test to the lay parson? An essay test item is a test which gives the student / testee the freedom to compose his/her own responses to the items usually in the form of a number of logically arranged and related sentences. Its nature is such that no single response or pattern of responses can be listed as correct. The length of essay tests depends on the demands of each item. Therefore an essay may take many pages, a page or half a page. The accuracy and quality of a response or pattern of responses can be judged subjectively only by a person skilled and well informed about the subject matter. CLASSIFICATION OR VARIETIES OF ESSAY ITEMS Essays type tests are sub divided into two major types depending on the amount of freedom given to the student to organize his/her ideas and write his answer. An essay item can be a) The restricted response type or b) The extended or open ended response type. The restricted response essay items restrict or limit what you will permit the student to write. In other words, the restricted response type tends to limit the content, form or the number of words of a students response. The limitation in terms of content and form of responses is generally indicated

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in the statement of the item or question. The items tend to be specific and task related. Example of restricted response essay items 1. 2. 3. In not more than 200 words explain the causes of the 2010 List and discuss five suggestions for writing good true Ivorian electoral crisis. false test items. Write a brief essay comparing and contrasting the terms. Measurement and Assessment in relation to a) The degree of quantification of students responses b) The process of obtaining information, and c) The way in which the students responses are recorded. The above examples of the controlled response essay items have given the student the limits in the form and scope within which he/she should respond to the items. By restricting the students response, we minimize somewhat the problem of unreliable scoring. Scoring also becomes relatively easy and objective. However, by restricting the students response one major advantage of the essay question a measure of the students ability to synthesize his ideas and express them in a logical, coherent fashion suffers. In any event, the restricted response type of essay is of greatest value for measuring learning outcomes at the comprehension, application and analysis levels. Its use is therefore, reserved for this purpose. In the open or extended response type of essay item, virtually no bounds are placed on the student as to the point
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(s) he /she will discuss and the type of organization he /she will use. Students are free to express their own ideas and interrelationship among their ideas. The student responds to the item in a way he deems appropriate. This freedom makes it possible for the student to demonstrate his competence in particular areas such as selection organization and integration of ideas. However, the flexibility and freedom of choice associated with this type of essay contributes to the essay being an inefficient format for measuring specific instructional objectives / learning outcomes. It is subject to scorer inconsistency. Examples of the extended response item: 1. 2. Discuss the factors that led to the formation of the United National Organization What keeps a piece of log afloat in the river? Advantages and Limitations of the Essay test Item Note that most of the weaknesses of the objective test items are the strength of the essay test items and vice versa. ADVANTAGES 1. It is easier to prepare an essay test than to prepare a multiple- choice test. Time spent in writing the items is comparatively less as compared to objective test 2. It is the only means of providing the respondent with the freedom to organize his /her own ideas and response within unrestricted limits. Thus students or testees have a greater degree of freedom to respond to the item.

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3. 4.

Guessing is reduced to a greater extent. Therefore is are no options from which students can select. It measures some complex learning outcomes which objective type tests fail to cover. They are best for testing higher order behaviours and mental processes such as analysis, synthesis and evaluation. In other words, essay test items which express divergent thinking.

5. 6.

Skills such as ability to organize material and ability to write and arrive at conclusions are improved. Essay test encourages global learning. In other words, encourage good study habits as students learn materials in their wholes. This is so because since the essay test is holistic in subject matter it covers whole facts and processes rather than parts. This in turn discourages learning by rote and ensures comprehensive learning. LIMITATIONS

1.

They are difficult to score objectively. Thus a major weakness of an essay test is the subjectivity of scoring. There is a good deal of inconsistency between scores obtained from successive administration of the same test. Intra rater and inter rater variability could be very high. In fact Elliot cited by Etsey (2001) reported that inter rater variability could be as high as 68%.

2.

Essay test provides opportunity for bluffing where students write irrelevant and unnecessary material. Students who do not have much to write may rely on the power of vocabulary to attempt to convince the assessor.
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3.

Since students cannot be made to respond to so many essay items at a particular testing time, only a limited aspect of students knowledge are measured

4. 5.

Essay tests suffer from limited sampling of subject matter content. Several content areas or topics may be omitted. A premium is placed on writing. Students who write faster, all things being equal are expected to score higher marks than the slower writers.

6. 7.

Essay test is time consuming to both the student who writes the response and the teacher who scores the response. They are susceptible to the halo effect, where the scoring is influenced by extraneous factors such as the relationship between scorer and respondent and the respondents handwriting etc.

8.

The degree of correctness or merit of a students response can be effectively judged only by a critical reader, a teacher skilled or informed about the subject. Suggestions for Preparing Good Essay Tests You will recall that the essay test places premium on the students ability to produce integrate, and express their ideas and allows them to be original and creative. These are in fact the major distinguishing features between the essay and objective type items with regards to their purposes. A well prepared essay item that should give the student the opportunity to reveal these skills and abilities we are interested in measuring should therefore, be craved for. Merely writing a question in the essay format does not guarantee that these
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skills would be tapped. In writing essay test items therefore the following suggestions are worth noting. 1. Plan the test. Give sufficient time and thought to the preparation of essay questions. The test items must be constructed well in advanced of the testing date. This will give enough room for reviewing the test items which will ensure that: ii. iii.
iv.

The intended objectives are being measured by the test The wording of items is simple and clear to students The complexity of the questions will match the maturity The students will know the intent of the teacher. A test

level of the student. v. specification table may as well be used. 2. The breadth of the essay item should be clearly limited for specificity of response. A well-constructed essay question should establish a framework within which the student operates. Give enough instructions and guidance to the students. Ways in which a framework to guide the student may be established include: i. ii. Delimiting the areas covered by the question Using clear, descriptive words like define, outline, select, illustrate classify, and summarize, which are reasonably clear in their meaning. Items must not be ambiguous. In fact, they must have only one interpretation.

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iii. Direct the student to the desired response. Write the question so that the students task is defined as completely and specifically as possible. iv. Indicate the value of the question and the time to be spent answering it. If all questions carry equal marks let the student know. Here are examples of questions without any framework for students to operate. Write brief notes on the following. a). Ghana, 54 years of freedom b) The Environmental Protection Agency c) Ghana school feeding programme d) The AIDS menace 3. Use the novel type of questions wherever possible. The items should be based on novel situations and problems. Do not copy directly from textbook or past questions. 4. Adapt the length of the response and the difficulty to the maturity level of pupils. An item like evaluate x3+2x2+x = 0 would be too difficult for first year JHS student 5. To a greater extent, options in essay tests must be avoided. This is because I II III It is difficult to construct questions of equal difficulty Students do not have the ability to select those questions The good student may be penalized, if he/her is challenged

upon which they will be able to do best. by the more difficult and complex question.
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IV

Valid comparisons of achievement among students may be

inappropriate 6. Use a relatively large number of restricted questions or items requiring short answers (about one-half page) rather than just a few questions involving long answers (more than three pages). This is so because. i. They will provide for broad sampling of content thereby reducing the error associated with sampling. ii. They tend to discourage biases on the part of the teacher who grades for quantity rather than quality. iii. It is easier to direct the student to the desired response. iv. The teacher will be able to read responses more rapidly and more reliably because he/she is guided by a concise marking scheme. 7. Start essay tests with words that are clear and simple as possible and which require the student to respond to the stimulus expected. Dont start essay tests with such words as list who what. These words tend to elicit responses that require only reproduction of factual information. SCORING ESSAY The preceding session dealt with crafting essay items. We looked at the nature and characteristics of essay items, their classification, advantages and limitations and suggestions for crafting good items. We saw that essay items require the examinee to write a somewhat lengthy response to a question
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or a problem. The restricted response essay restricts or limits both the content and form of written response while the extended response permits a fuller use of written verbal reasoning and writing skills. We also learnt that essay questions sample a more narrow range of content than brief objective questions but generally require students to show more in-depth understanding of specific content. In this session we shall take a look at how essay tests are scored. The session deals with the two general methods for scoring subject matter essay, their advantages and disadvantages. The principles for scoring essay tests will also be discussed. We shall finally compare the essay and the objective tests. Analytic and Global Methods of Scoring Essays Two commonly used methods have been developed for grading essay examinations. These are:
a)

The analytic (also known as scoring key, point score

or trait score) method In analytic scoring the ideal or model answer is broken down into specific points. This scoring method requires the tester to develop an outline or a list of major elements that students are to include in the ideal answer. Then he / she decide on the number of points / marks to award to students when they include each element. The students score is based upon the number of quality points contained in his/her answer. The analytic scoring rubric is best

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for restricted response essays. The scoring rubric is the same as a marking scheme. The major advantages of the analytic method of scoring are as follows: 1. 2. It can yield very reliable scores when used by a critical reader. The process of preparing the detailed answer may frequently bring to the teachers attention such errors as faulty wording, extreme difficulty of the question and unrealistic time limits. This will cause the teacher to redesign such items with problems. 3. The subdivision of the model answer facilitates the provision of effective feed back to students as to their strengths and weaknesses. It is easier to discuss the grade given to the student Two major limitations of the analytic scoring methods are: 1. 2. It is very laborious and time-consuming. Scoring may be a little slower than the when using the global method. For some essays it might be difficult to come up with well defined elements in the scoring guide. Holistic (global) Scoring In holistic scoring the ideal answer is not subdivided into specific points and component parts. The model answer serves as a standard. Each response is read for a general impression of its adequacy as compared to the standard. The general impression as compared with the response of other students or in relation to the absolute standard is then transformed into a
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numerical score. Here each specific content element that a student included in the answer is not marked. The holistic method thus involves assigning a score to each response depending on the overall quality of the answer. Holistic scoring is more appropriate for extended response essay. One way of checking the consistency of scoring using the holistic method is to read each response quickly and place it on one of three or one of five categories depending on how that response compares with others that have been read. After the first reading is completed, papers in the high category or stack and shuffled, re-read and sorted into grades (or numeric piles). Generally, holistic scoring is simpler and faster than analytical scoring. It also helps to review papers as a working whole. It is effective when large numbers of essays are to be read. LIMITATIONS Its limitations include the inability to give specific feedback to students as to their strengths and weaknesses. Raters give overall marks and do not point out details to their students that might help them to improve. Scorers own bias and errors can be easily masked (go unnoticed) by the overall mark. Suggestions for Scoring Essay Test We have learnt that one of the major limitations of essay test is the inconsistency in scoring. Much of the unreliability of essay tests stems from the difficulty in their evaluation. The following

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suggestions /principles apply regardless of which scoring method is used. 1. Decide on your scoring method and prepare your scoring guide / and model answers depending on whether you are using the analytic or holistic method 2. Grade the responses item-by-item and not script by-script. Score each question for all students before going to the next question. This method improves the uniformity with which scoring standards are applied to each student. It also enhances familiarity with the scoring guide. It reduces the carry over effect where the quality of the response to one question influences the scorers evaluation of the quality of the response to subsequent questions. 3. Score students responses anonymously. In other words, score papers without knowing the name of the student writing the response. This reduces the halo effect. The halo effect occurs when the raters/markers general impressions of a person influences how he/she rates him/her later. To ensure anonymity candidates essay scripts should be identified by the use of numbers instead of names. 4. Randomly shuffle the papers before starting to score each set of items. This will minimize the bias introduced by the position of ones paper. 5. Try as much as possible to score all responses to a particular question without interruption or at a sitting. Take a rest when fatigue sets in.

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6.

The mechanics of expressions should be judged separately from the content. Thus score penmanship, general neatness, spelling, use of prescribed format and English mechanics separately from subject matter correctness. Factors other than an answers content can effect ones evaluation.

7. 8.

Periodically, re-score previously scored papers. Provide pupils with feedback on the strengths and weakness of their responses. This could be done by providing comments and correcting errors on the scripts for class tests /exercises to facilitate learning.

9.

Score the essay test when you are physically sound, mentally alert and in an environment with very little or no distraction. the grading decision is crucial arrange for an

10. When them.

independent scoring of the responses or at least a sample of 11. Keep scores of previously scored items out of sight when evaluating the rest of the items 12. Preparing a marking scheme is one thing and sticking to it in scoring the essay is another. To avoid the scoring of extraneous factors, one has to go by the marking scheme or procedure adopted. Constantly follow the scoring guide as you score. This also reduces the rater drift, which is the tendency to either not pay attention to the scoring guide over time or interpreting it differently as time passes. Do not be influenced by the first few scripts read, this could make you either too harsh or too lenient.

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Comparison of Essay and Objective Tests Similarities 1. Either an essay or an objective test can be used to measure almost any important educational achievement that any test can measure. 2. They can both be used to encourage students to study for understanding of principles, organization and integration of ideas and application of knowledge to the solution of problems 3. The value of scores from either type of test is dependent on their objectivity and reliability. DIFFERENCES Essay Tests Requires students to plan Objective Tests Requires students to choose among answer Consists several designated alternatives or write a short of many items

their own answers and to express them in their own words. Consists of relatively fewer questions lengthy but and calls for extended

requiring only brief answers (one or two words or a short phrase). The student spends a lot of his time reading and thinking when taking the test Quality of the test is

responses The student spends most of his /her time thinking and writing while taking the test Quality of the test is dependent largely on the skill of the rater/test scorer Relatively easy to prepare but more difficult and tedious

determined largely by the skill of the test constructor. Relatively tedious and difficult to prepare but rather
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to grade accurately Affords both the student and grader the opportunity to be individualistic Are more susceptible to

easy to grade or score. Affords freedom expression only to constructor (item writing) Are more susceptible guessing Score test Amenable distribution

of the to is

bluffing The score distribution may vary from one scorer to another Less amenable to item and statistical analysis Sampling is limited hence content validity is low Reliability of test scores is low Can measure and of both complex However complex is on

determined largely by the to item and

statistical analysis Sampling is usually extensive hence content validity is high Reliability of test scores could be high Can measure both but

knowledge achievement measurement achievement

measurement of knowledge and comprehension is more common

recommended Emphasizes primarily larger units of material

Emphasis is often on factual details

INTERPRETATION OF TEST SCORES We are now going to pay attention to the various methods of interpreting the performance of our students in a test. We are going to look at how teachers can make students test scores

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useful and meaningful to them, their parents and others who need to know about the students progress. Norm Referenced Interpretation of Scores An important task that teachers are expected to accomplish is that of reporting on students progress in learning. This process begins with testing which provides the teacher with an indication of students performance in the form of raw scores. What is a raw score? Counting up the number of right answers that a student earns on a test provides a raw score. It is difficult to tell from raw scores whether a students performance is good or not. For example is a score of 30 on a mathematics test high or low? Even if we know that a test has 50 items, we cannot be sure of how good it is to attain a score of 30. In short the raw score must be referenced and interpreted before it can become meaningful. The most common approach to the problem of interpreting test scores is norm referencing. When we interpret test performance of individuals by comparing a single students score with the scores earned by a group to obtain meaning, we are making a norm referenced interpretation. Assigning grades to a pupil based on a comparison of his or her performance to other pupils in the class is referred to a norm- referenced grading. In this case the class is the norm group. The group therefore

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provides the norm which is used to interpret the scores of members. The grade a pupil receives in norm-referenced grading provides an indication of how well that pupil performed compared to the other pupils in the class. A high grade means a pupil did better than most of his or her classmates, while a low grade means the opposite. Now going back to the task of evaluating a score of 30 in a fifty item test, we are likely to ask what the average student scored on the test. If the median score for the group tested was 25, then we know that a score of 30 places the student in the upper half of the class. Thus, if we talk of an average score, then we are referring to the average of the group the norm. Forms of Norm Referenced Interpretation The simplest form of norm-referenced comparison in the classroom situation is ranking. If you look at the results of a test or any class exercise and rank the student in your class from highest to lowest, you are using the norm-referenced approach. When the teacher says things like Doreen is above average in reading, Kofi is at the bottom of the class in Mathematics and Daniel completes her science class work faster than anyone else in the class the teacher is making normreferenced comparisons. Here, the quality of a pupils

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performance is being defined in terms of how that pupil performed compared to others in the class. Similarly, when a class teacher asks who should get the best grade or score? And answers by deciding that those few students who performed better than most of their classmates should get the highest grades, the teacher is adopting the norm- referenced grading system. In this system all the students cannot be at the top, the grade a student gets depends on how he/she stands in comparison to his /her classmates. Limitation of Norm referenced Interpretation It is worth nothing that in the norm referenced system, the grade obtain is not an indication of how well a student did in terms of mastery of what was taught. For example, a student gets an A grade for performing better than his /her classmates. If this student answered only 40 out of 100 test questions correctly but was the highest scorer in the class, he or she would receive an A grade in a norm-referenced grading system, despite the low mastery level over what was tested. This is true at the other end of the scoring range as well.

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CRITERION REFERENCED INTERPRETATION OF TEST SCORES Criterion Referenced Interpretation of Scores We have noted that the distribution of scores obtained by a group gives us a yardstick against which we can assess a particular students performance in the norm referenced interpretation. But teachers often need more information than this. A students status ranking or position in a group tells us a little about the specific tasks he or she can perform. For instance lets us look at the statement Kofi gets the best score in a mathematics test in a group of 50 JHS 2 Students. What does this tell us about the specific mathematics skills Kofi exhibited? Instead of grading or interpreting test score by comparing a students performance to that of other pupils, the teacher can compare the student performance to pre established performance standards. Performance standard is defined as the level of mastery of performance a student must attain to receive a particular grade. For example, a teacher may decide that answering 90 percent of the items is required to be passed before one could go on to the next unit or finish the course of study. Grading systems that compare a students performance to a pre-defined performance standard are called criterion referenced grading. Criterion referenced tests provide measures that can be interpreted in terms of the ability to perform clearly defined tasks. For example, a teacher using a
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criterion referenced test for reading skills would be able to examine a score and then state that Ama has mastered eye movement skills in reading. NB: In a criterion referenced interpretation of scores, the focus is on what the individual can do rather than on his relative position with respect to others. It must be noted that each students performance is compared to the same performance standard in order to determine a grade in the criterion referenced interpretation. Here each student is graded on the basis of his /her own work, independent of the work of other pupils. Also, since pupils are not compared to one another, it is possible for all students to get high grades on a test. Conversely, no student may get a high grade if all do poorly in comparison to the performance standard. Uses of Criterion Referenced Interpretation Do you remember some of the uses of the norm-referenced interpretation? Now let us look at that of the criterion referenced interpretation of scores. Criterion referenced is used to ascertain a pupils status with respect to some criterion for instance an established performance standard. Here, we want to know what the pupil could do, rather than how he / she compares with others. A criterion referenced interpretation system is used to indicate how much a student has learned the things that were taught. For instance an A grade in a criterion referenced
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approach is intended to signify that a student mastered all or almost all of the things taught. B grades mastery of the majority of things taught, and D grade might indicate difficulty with most things taught; and F grade might show little or no mastery of things taught. Criterion referenced grades are interpreted by many people in terms of the amount of subject matter a student has mastered hence the majority of the uses of the criterion referenced measurement have been in mastery tests within the classroom. Benefits of CRT. Criterion Referenced Test offers certain benefits for instructional decision making within the classroom. The CRT enables us diagnose specific difficulties of students upon which some prescription of instructional treatments necessary are given. The criterion referenced interpretation can be used in broad surveys of educational accomplishment such as our educational progress under the New Educational Reforms.

MARKING SCHEMES 2010 QUESTIONS

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SECTION A 1. The process of assessment in education involves A. Conducting continuous assessment in order to counsel students B. Evaluating how well teaching and learning are progressing C. Imparting to students curricular and teaching D. Obtaining information for school decision making
2.

Which type of evaluation involves obtaining evidence to guide in improving the instructional process in an in-service training programme?

A. Criterion-referenced B. Formative C. Norm-referenced D. Summative 3. Which of the characteristics of continuous assessment provides a procedure for the total personality development of the pupil? A. Comprehension B. Cumulative C. Diagnostic D. Systematic
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4. A constant and continual monitoring of a students performance is done during continuous assessment in schools. This implies that continuous assessment is ... A. Comprehension B. Cumulative C. Diagnostic D. Systematic

5.The principal of Might Training College at Asempakrom interviewed 200 applicants for admission into Training College. Eighty of them made the grade and were admitted. What type of decision did the principal take? A. Counseling and guidance B. Instructional management C. Placement D. Selection 6.Which of the following variables represent an interval scale? A. Age B. Leadership C. Qualification of worker
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D. Socio-economic status 7.What is wrong with the item below? Mount Kilimanjaro is I. II. III. IV. The highest mountain in Africa The highest mountain in west Africa The only mountain in East Africa A mountain located in East Africa

A. The content of the option is not homogenous B. The core issue is not in the stem C. The item is ambiguous D. The key in the potion is obvious 8.To what percentage is all continuous assessment scores currently converted at the end of each term in Ghanaian basic schools? A. 30% B. 40% C. 60% D. 70% 9.What principle underlies the practice of continuous assessment in Ghanaian schools? A. Ensuring relevance assessment procedure
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B. Obtaining a more comprehensive information on pupils C. Making assessment appropriate D. Specifying what is to be assessed 10. Which of the following question when answered by a

teacher will first ensure a good instructional objective? A. Did the objective indicate relevance? B. Did the objective indicate time bound? C. Did the objective indicate what the child can do? D. Did the objective indicate what the child should do? 11. Which of the following methods of estimating test

reliability measures stability of the scores over a period of time? A. Coefficient alpha B. Equivalent forms C. Split-half D. Test-retest 12. The best assessment techniques used to evaluate

pupils attitude is A. Assignment B. Interview

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C. Observation D. Questionnaire 13. Clues to the best or correct answer in an objective

test are known as A. Foils B. Key options C. Responses D. Specific determiners 14. The process of assigning numbers to the attributes or

traits possessed by a person according to specific rule is . A. Assessment B. Evaluation C. Measurement D. Test 15. A table of specification in test construction matches

the course content with the A. Choice of appropriate format B. Direction of the test C. Instructional objective D. Scoring key
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16.

Which term refers to the process of monitoring pupils

progress to find out how they can be helped to learn? A. Diagnosis B. Evaluation C. Guidance D. Measurement 17. After testing her students in mathematics in Basic

schools, the teacher reported that the class mean was 65%. This can be described as .. A. Assessment B. Evaluation C. Measurement D. Testing 18. A teacher in JHS 2 scored pupils responses to the end

of term examination, script by script. Which of the following effects is enhanced A. Bluffing B. Carryover C. Halo D. Rater drift

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19.

The method which involves observing specific

instances and then making generalization is A. Authority B. Deduction C. Experiment D. Induction 20. Which stage in a research process does a researcher

gather relevant information for solution to a problem? A. B. C. D. Data analyses Data collection Instrument development Questionnaire

21.

As a teacher, how best can research help you to

improve your practice? By A. Acquiring research skills B. Establishing knowledge C. Helping students know what they are taught D. Indicating what works

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22.

Which of the following is a general purpose of

research in education? To A. Assemble knowledge B. Enable people earn higher qualification C. Encourage authorship D. Generate new pedagogical knowledge

23.

One problem of the structured interview is that

A. All interviewees may not be asked the same questions B. All interviewees are often too long C. All question are asked in the same order D. Answers are not recorded in the interviewees own word

24.

The following are characteristics of scientific methods

except, A. Control of biases B. Precision C. Unwilling to alter beliefs D. Verification

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25.

Which of these sampling procedures is likely to

produce the most biased sample? A. Cluster B. Convention C. Stratified D. Systematic

26.

A teacher conducted a study to determine which

grouping procedures result in the highest achievements for all students in a class. Which type of research did the teacher adopt? A. Action research B. Analytical research C. Applied research D. Evaluation research 27. Which section of the research proposal considers the

aspect of the problem that the study is going to focus on and those that will not be covered? A. Delimitation B. Limitation C. Preliminary definition of terms

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D. Significance of the study

28.

Which of the following is not a role of related

literature in research project? A. Avoiding unintentional replication B. Clarifying contradictory results C. Defining the frontiers D. Placing the question in perspective 29.What is the value of the mode in the following set of sources;8,6,2,10,8,5,8,4. a) 2 b) 4 c) 5 d) 8 30. The most important of the measures of location is a) median b) mean c) mode d) none of the above Item 31-33 are True or False type. Draw a circle around the appropriate option. 31. Announcement regarding the time remaining or used by students may distract students attention . a) False b) True
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32. Where educational system is devoid of assessment it is likely to be more motivating to students in learning than the one with assessment. a) False b) True 33. The recommended sequence for reviewing related literature in research is locating secondary sources, searching for index, and identifying key terms. a) False b)True

Complete the following statements with the appropriate answer 34. The target group about which the researcher is interested in obtaining information and drawing conclusion is known as POPULATION 35. The two basic categories of objective test are .SELECTION/M.C.and.SUPPLY/COMPLETION. 36. A carefully selected subset of the units that comprise the study population is theSAMPLE. 37. A test which assesses what the teacher has taken pupils through in terms of topic and contest is ACHIEVEMENT. 38. If the variance of a set of scores is 25 then the standard deviation is.FIVE(5).

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39. What activity facilities the sharpening of specific research questions to be answered in a studyLITERATURE REVIEW.

SECTION B 1. a) As a teacher one of your responsibilities is to craft good items for your pupils. State and explain FIVE guidelines that will help you to achieve this. b) Discuss five instructional management decisions SOLUTION 1 (a)
i.

Define the purpose of the test i.e. good question writing or test construction process begins with describing the purpose of the question or test is Why are you testing or writing the question?

ii.

Determine the item format. Choose the appropriate format

iii.

Determine what is to be tested. To be able to write good questions the test constructor should determine what he/she wishes to measure.

iv.

Write the individual items.

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v.

Review the items.

vi.

Prepare the scoring key.

vii.

Write directions

viii. Evaluation B) Instructional management decisions i. Assessment provides knowledge about readiness of individual pupils. ii. Assessment enables to set realistic instructional goals and objectives for the class. iii. Assessment helps to discover the learning difficulties of pupils and provide remedial action. iv. Assessment aids the teacher in the selection of the best instructional techniques. v. Assessment helps in the valuation of degree to which objectives in the classroom are being achieved vi. Assessment enables the teacher to determine the progress made by each child. vii. Assessment serves as a source of motivation viii. Assessment provides feedback for knowledge of results to the students. ix. Assessment enables the teacher to assign grades to students.
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2. There are two major types of classroom achievement tests. These are the essay-type and the objective-type test. Discuss six characteristics that distinguish objective type test from essay type test

SOLUTION DIFFERENCES Essay Tests Requires students to plan Objective Tests Requires students to choose among answer Consists several designated alternatives or write a short of many items

their own answers and to express them in their own words. Consists of relatively fewer questions lengthy but and calls for extended

requiring only brief answers (one or two words or a short phrase). The student spends a lot of his time reading and thinking when taking the test Quality of the test is

responses The student spends most of his /her time thinking and writing while taking the test Quality of the test is dependent largely on the skill of the rater/test scorer Relatively easy to prepare but more difficult and tedious to grade accurately Affords both the student and

determined largely by the skill of the test constructor. Relatively tedious and difficult to prepare but rather easy to grade or score. Affords freedom of
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grader the opportunity to be individualistic Are more susceptible to

expression

only

to

the to is

constructor (item writing) Are more susceptible guessing Score test Amenable distribution

bluffing The score distribution may vary from one scorer to another Less amenable to item and statistical analysis Sampling is limited hence content validity is low Reliability of test scores is low Can measure and of both complex However complex is on

determined largely by the to item and

statistical analysis Sampling is usually extensive hence content validity is high Reliability of test scores could be high Can measure both but

knowledge achievement measurement achievement

measurement of knowledge and comprehension is more common

recommended Emphasizes primarily larger units of material

Emphasis is often on factual details

QN 3. a) Explain clearly when each of the following techniques in data collection is most appropriate for data collection i. Observation ii. Questionnaire iii. Interview b)
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State

and

explain

THREE

advantages

and

TWO

disadvantages of the collection. SOLUTION i. Observation

use of questionnaire

in data

It is appropriate when the phenomena being studied lends

itself to watching and recording events or incidents. When a researcher wants to understand the natural environment as lived by participants without altering or manipulation.
When you are dealing with young children

ii. Questionnaire a) When a question is descriptive survey b) When participants in a study can meaningfully read and write c) When sample is large and cannot be easily interviewed and are literate d) The study lends itself to specific issue that does not need any further explanation by respondents. iii. Interview a) When the participants are relatively small in number b) When participants in a study are not able to read and write c) When there is the need to probe further into issues with for their clearer understanding
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d) When interviewees can easily be reached for face to face

or telephone interview b) Advantages i. ii. iii. iv. v. Less expensive Can be used when respondents are scattered. Provide uniform questions to participants. Completed at respondents convenience Ensure anonymity.

Disadvantages i. ii. iii. iv.

v.

Not appropriate for illiterate population Less motivated due to lack of contact Do not allow for the collection of any additional information Low return rate Can produce results which are not credible

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2006-2009 SECTION A 1. Which of the following statements about measurement and assessment is true? a) Measurement is continuous but assessment is done at the end of instruction b) Measurement involves the pupils but assessment is done by the teacher only c) Measurement involves figures only and assessment involves words only
d) Measurement provides data for assessment.

2. Which of the following definitions is most suitable for a test? a) a list of written questions
b) a device used by teachers and others to ascertain a persons

achievement c) A set of questions used to find out the level of learning that has been achieved by a person. d) A systematic method of gathering data or the purpose of making intraor inter-individual
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comparisons. 3.
a)

Which of the following statements is most appropriate for The act of finding out the quality of a curriculum of It is a general process of making judgments and A means of determining the consistency of a learners A situation where performance is constantly measured and

evaluation? programme
b)

decisions c) d) performance assessed. 4. Which of the following statements best defines formative

evaluation? a) It involves a series of tests that are conducted at the end of a topic b) The type of evaluation that is used to form an opinion about the attitude of pupils c) It is used to gather information about a pupil along the way d) It involves monitoring the quality of tests administered to pupils so as to improve them

5. Which of the following statements best defines summative evaluation? a) It involves putting together all the evaluation made on a
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pupil
b) It

is

used

for

terminal

judgment

of

worth

or

appropriateness. c) It is evaluation that is designated to find out the quality of teaching d) It is an evaluation of the process rather than the product of teaching 6. Modern assessment is based on two approaches. These are .. approaches a) criterion referenced and norm-referenced b) process and product c) direct and indirect assessment d) internal and external 7. Which of the following concepts can be defined as a statement of desired change in pupils behviour, knowledge or effect? a) Learning b) Achievement c) Educational objective d) All of the above 8. Bloom (1956) proposed a taxonomy of objectives. List the hierarchy of cognitive objectives he proposed from the lowest (a) to the highest (f) Answers a. Knowledge b. Comprehension c. Application
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d. Analysis e. System f. Evaluation

9. State three characteristics that a good instructional objective must possess. ANSWERS Observable Measurable Achievable Specific Relevant etc 10. When a test specifically measures what was learned by the pupil, be... a) consistent b) reliable c) valid d) a precision instrument 11. When a test produces consistent results whenever it is used, it is said to be a) consistent b) reliable c) valid
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it

is

said

to

d) a precision instrument 12. One way to get a balanced assessment of topics you teach is to design a table showing the number of test items needed for each topic. What is the name of this table? a) Table of assessment b) Operational matrix c) Item analysis table d) Table of specification 13. In a multiple choice test item, the statement that poses the as .. a) the stem b) the base c) the premix d) the case 14. In the multiple choice objective item, the optional answers provided after the question are known as a) choices b) decides c) answers d) alternatives 15. In a multiple choice test, there is always one best answer and some incorrect answers. The incorrect answers are
Page | 109

question

is

known

referred to as a) spillovers b) distracters c) deviator d) wrong options 16. The form of objective questions where pupils are expected to provide their own answers instead of selecting from a list are called . items a) answering b) supply c) filling in d) written 17. Which of the following is most suitable as a purpose of a) it improves critical thinking b) it trains people in solving c) it aims at extending the frontiers of knowledge d) it is meant to ascertain the truth about social condition 18. There are several approaches to obtaining knowledge. The approach used in research is known as . a) the process b) the inductive c) the scientific approach d) the deductive
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research?

19.

The type of research that is based on theory or a) basic b) theory c) applied d) Evaluation

emphasizes the use of theory is known as . research

20. Which of the following is a general purpose of research in education? a) to enable people earn higher qualification b) to encourage authorship c) to assemble knowledge d) to generate new pedagogical knowledge

21. In research there are standards of honesty that must be followed, such as not using someones ideas without acknowledging the source. These standards are known as a) ethics b) rules c) conditionalties d) taboos 22. When a researcher or writer uses the work of someone

else without acknowledge it, it is known as ..

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a) academic dishonesty b) plundering c) plagiarism d) piggybacking

23.

Research that is based upon observable experiences or evidence is known as research a) quantitative b) qualitative c) inferential d) general

empirical

24. Research that is based on the collection of numerical data to test hypothesis using statistical analysis is known as ..research a) quantitative b) qualitative c) inferential d) statistical 25. There are two main types of variables that are typically used in research. These are . variables a) general and specific b) direct and indirect c) process and product
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d) dependent and independent 26. Variables are measured at a number of levels. Which of the following is not a level of measurement of variables? a) nominal measurement b) ordinal measurement c) interval measurement d) direct measurement 27. Which of the following can be described as the centre a) the questionnaire b) the research problem c) the research analysis d) the finding 28. There are two types of hypothesis in research. These are the null hypothesis and the. hypothesis. a) alternative b) non null c) variable d) general

around which the whole research effort turns?

29.

Sources of literature review are classified into two a) immediate and remote
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categories. These are sources

b) textbook and journal c) primary and secondary d) main and secondary 30. The diagram below depicts the relationship between a sampled population, a sample and a target population. Label the diagram with these names.

a. Target b. Sample c. Sampled population

31.

When a sample is selected by way of getting a few

respondents first who in turn put the researcher in touch with their colleagues, it is known as sampling a) purposive b) Stratified c) Random d) snowball

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32.

When the elements of a population are grouped into

subpopulations and samples selected from the subpopulations, it is known as . sampling a) Cluster b) Purposive c) Convenient d) Snowball 33. When questionnaire items are constructed in such as a

way that they call for a free response in the respondents own words, they are known as questionnaire a) free ended b) open ended c) fill in d) opinion 34. Which of the following instruments is not useful for a) Rating scales b) Anecdotal records c) Paper and pencil tests d) Checklist 35. One difference between criterion-referenced tests and norm-referenced are. a) absolute standards
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assessing a skill?

tests

is

that,

norm-reference

tests

b) classroom test standards c) raw standard d) relative standards 36. The part of the education of an individual which is concerned with emotions and attitudes is referred to as thedomain a) aesthetic b) affective c) cognitive d) psychomotor 37. When a teacher writes a lesson objective requiring pupils to summarize what has been taught in their own words what category of learning will you put this under? a) analysis b) application c) comprehension d) knowledge 38. Which domain of educational objectives do the following classifications refer to? Responding, Valuing and Organizing a) affective domain b) cognitive domain c) psychomotor domain d) none of these

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39. Testing in which attainment is measured in terms of specific levels of mastery is known as.. a) criterion-referencing b) norm-referencing c) post-testing d) pre-testing 40. Which of the following factors should we consider most when we are writing lesson objectives? a) Content of what we are going to teach b) Form or structure of the statement we write c) Length of the statement of objective d) Relevance of what we intend to teach 41. Which of the following question statements will be the best as an objective test item? a) Kwame Nkrumah was. b) The first President of Ghana was. c) The name of the first president of Ghana was.. d) Who was the first president of Ghana 42. In writing good True/ False items for a test, it is not advisable to use a) specific determiners b) positive statements c) your own words d) familiar language
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43. To judge the content validity of a test, we look at the relationship between the objective a) domain b) grade c) format d) item 44. When a test yields the same result when taken again by the same pupils under the same conditions, is said to be a) adequate b) consistent c) reliable d) valid 45. An objective test in which pupils select the most

appropriate answer from a set of alternate response is called a) matching b) multiple choice c) short answer d) supply
46.

A system of students assessment in which assessment

goes hand-in-hand with teaching and learning from the beginning of an instructional programme to the end of the programme is referred to as.
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a. c. d.

Summative assessment Measurement of assessment Evaluation of assessment

b. Formative assessment

47. The process of collecting quantitative data on a childs performance is referred to As. a. c. d. Evaluation Assessment Diagnostic test b. Measurement

48. The process whereby the data collected are analyzed and compared for value Judgment is known as a. Evaluation b. c. d. Summative assessment Formative assessment Diagnostic assessment

49. When an assessment is based on observation during lessons, quizzes, questioning during instruction etc, it is referred to as a. b. c. d. Formal assessment Summative assessment Informal assessment Formative assessment

50. An assessment can be said to be formal if it is based mainly on

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a. b. c. d.

Quizzes Assignments Tests Observation

51. The type of assessment which is primarily aimed at determining students Achievements as.. a. Summative evaluation b. c. d. Formative evaluation Diagnostic evaluation Measurement evaluation for grading purposes is referred to

52. The type of assessment which deals with a quick casual way of finding out about pupils performance and which gives a general picture of their attitudes, achievement, character and aptitude is referred to as. a. c. d.
53.

Formal assessment Observational assessment Checklists assessment An assessment in which the task requires the production

b. Informal assessment

of something concrete or original is termed as.. a. c. Creativity Invention

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b. Project

d.

Discovery

54. The action of watching somebody or something carefully so as to notice things about the person or thing is referred to as.. a. b. c. d. Diagnostic test Interview Observation Measurement

55. The process of assigning numbers to the attributes or traits possessed by persons, events or a set of objects, according to specific rules is referred to as. a. c. d. Tests Interview Observation human activities which contribute to proper b. Measurement

56. The

functioning of a society and Which can be acquired through learning is referred to as a. b. c. Educational outcome Learning goals Theoretical framework

d. Educational goals 57. The products of learning experiences, which are the things we acquire as a result of an educational experience are referred to as a. Educational goals
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b. Educational outcomes c. d. Educational objectives Educational products

58. The intended results of instruction or the specific things we expect our students to be able to do, value or feel at the completion of an instructional segment is referred to as. a. Objectives b. c. d. Products Achievement goals Instructional goals

59. The type of learning objective that produces outcomes which focus on knowledge a. b. c. and abilities requiring memory thinking and reasoning processes is referred to as Psychomotor domain objectives Affective domain objectives Diagnostic domain objectives

d. Cognitive domain objectives 60. The type of objective which focus on motor skills and perceptual processes is referred to as .. a. c. d. Cognitive domain objectives Affective domain objectives Learning objectives b. Psychomotor domain objectives

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61. The intended outcomes of learning that focus on feeling, interests, attitudes, dispositions, and emotional states is referred to as a. Affective domain objectives b. c. d. Psychomotor domain objective Cognitive domain objective Theoretical aspect of the domain

62. The skill of being able to take knowledge and using it in new and concrete situations in life, is referred to as. a. c. d. Analysis Knowledge Comprehension b. Application

63. The breaking down of complex issues into its constituents parts to make it understandable or intelligible to another person is referred to as a. c. d. Comprehension Explanation Diagnostic b. Analysis

64. The ability to put part together to form a new whole is referred to as a. b. Evaluation Analysis
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c. d.

Synthesis Inference

65. The type of tests that measures the degree of students learning in specific curriculum areas in which instruction research has been given is referred to as... a. b. c. d. Diagnostic assessment Terminal assessment Achievement tests Continuous assessment

66. The type of test, which is done to identify specific strengths and difficulties of learners, is referred to as a. c. d. Achievement tests Terminal assessment Continuous assessment b. Diagnostic assessment

67. Mr. Dabi observed his students during a science laboratory lesson to determine how effective the students can carry out experiments. This means that Mr.Dabi A. B. C. D. bisect angles
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Tested the students performance Measured the students performance Assessed the students performance Evaluated the students performance

68 Kofi was able to use measurements of units he learn in science to

in mathematics. Which of these levels of blooms taxonomy did Kofi use? A. B. C. D. Analysis Comprehension Synthesis Application

69 A test that provides consistent set of results across similar test situations, time periods and examiners is said to measure test A. B. C. D. Clarity Practicality Reliability Validity

70. In an examination, the teacher ranked Ben with respect to the marks obtained by other pupils of interpretation. A. B. C. D. Formative Assessment Criterion-Referenced Summative Assessment Norm-Referenced the class. This means the teacher used

71. The kind of research in which variables are manipulated and the effect of the manipulation upon the variables observed is referred to as.. A. B. Experimental research Spearmans research
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C. D.

Pearsons research Correlation research The process of gathering data about pupils and interpreting the information to make decisions is termed a) Assessment b) Evaluation c) Formative d) Test The assessment procedure that goes hand-inhand from the beginning of the instructional period to the end of the instructional period is a) Continuous assessment b) Formative assessment c) Summative assessment d) Measurement assessment An instrument for observing and describing characteristics of a student using a numerical scale is termed as a) Assessment b) Evaluation c) Measurement d) Test 75. a. b. c. d. What should the teacher first pay attention to before selecting a particular technique to use in assessment students? Content level of the class Difficulty level of the class Use of the assessment result None of the above 74. 73. 72.

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Under what criteria is the question, Is this the best way to test for the desired knowledge or skills?. , considered when evaluating a test. a. Fairness b. Efficiency c. Clarity d. Practicality 77. One of the most crucial decisions the test constructor has to make is related to the question Why am I testing ? This decision is taken when the test constructor is determining a. The purpose of the test b. The item format c. What is to be tested d. The directions of the test 78. A teacher gave a mid term examination to her pupils and used it to improve her students learning. The mid-term examination served as a. Formative evaluation of her methods b. Formative evaluation of students c. Summative evaluation of her method d. Summative evaluation of her methods For feedback to pupils on assessment to be every effective, the teacher should make sure that a. Feedback of assessment is provided to pupils promptly b. Parents and guardians receive reports on their wards c. Pupils receive the exercises to correct their mistakes d. Parents review their wards performance to correct their mistakes Which of the following is a representation of assessment result? a. Cumulative frequency b. Frequency distribution table c. Group frequency table d. Histogram of assessment result 80. graphical 79.

76.

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After an end of term test, a teacher compiled the result and found the average class performance in mathematics to be 46%. This action is best described as a. Assessment b. Evaluation c. Measurement d. Test 82. Why is continuous assessment comprehensive? a. It covers all subject taught in class b. It covers all the learners performance over period of time c. It involves all the three objective domains d. It provides all information about the learner 83. A cognitive level objective which enables learners to create new things from different knowledge acquired is a. Analysis b. Application c. Evaluation d. Synthesis Which of the following instructional objectives is behavioural? By the end of the lesson pupils will be able to: a. Compose a new song b. Listen to a conversation c. Recognize a fraction d. None of the above 85. All the following are formative evaluation except a. Assessment b. Class test c. Class work d. End of term test 86. Identify the defect of the item that follows: Multiple choice is an objective item format preferred by many teachers because it is easy to write. True or False. a. There are only two options b. The language of the statement is not clear
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81.

84.

c. The statement contains more than one fact d. The options are not consistent with the stem The general products of learning outcomes are known as a. Educational goals b. Educational outcomes c. Instructional objectives d. Learning objectives 88. Which of the following is a limitation of completion or short answer type? a. It helps pupils to resort to role learning b. It is sometimes difficult to get clusters that are alike c. It is useful in assessing student knowledge of definitions d. It minimizes the likelihood of pupils guessing 89. What is the major disadvantage of using extended response essay item in the classroom? a. Difficulty in constructing items b. Elimination of guessing c. Results are difficult to interpret d. Subjectivity in scoring 90. Which of the following effects can be minimized by scoring essays without knowing the identity of the pupils whose essay is being scored? a. Bluffing b. Carry over c. Halo effect d. Rater drift 91. Which of the following best explains the meaning of educational research? a. A systematic method of gathering and interpreting information in education b. A way of generating solution to education problems c. Different methods applied to educational issues d. Empirical method of data generation in education 92. A process of obtaining knowledge in which ways of doing things or handling problems are passed on from one group to another is termed a. Authority
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87.

b. Logic c. Personal experience d. Tradition 93. A variable that affects the outcome of the independent variable but is not known to the researcher and therefore not controlled is termed a. Confounding b. Categorical c. Dependent d. Extraneous 94. The sample used by researchers in their research work is usually selected from a. Accessible population b. Available population c. Random number d. Target population 95. The sampling procedure which is used to select a sample based on a specific characteristic is known as a. Purposive sampling b. Simple random sampling c. Stratified Sampling d. Systematic Sampling 96. Delimitation of a study refers to the a. Confines of the study b. Current status of phenomena c. Geographical area of the study d. Limitation of the study 97. Objectivity, verification, control of bias and precision are characteristics of a. Generalization b. Scientific enquiry c. Theoretical explanation d. Theories 98. The sampling procedure whereby the researcher begins the research with a small number of individual who have characteristics that are required and are available to the researcher is a. Convenience sampling b. Purposive sampling c. Quota sampling
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d. Snow- ball sampling 99. Observers will vary in the degree to which they a) Are trained for conducting the study b) Are involved with participants in the setting c) Are influenced by experimental bias d) Interact with the participants 99. In the teaching learning process assessment is very necessary. a) True b) False 100. Measurement is always necessary for evaluation. a) True b) False 101. The difference between action research and applied research is that action research can be carried out on a large sample resulting in universally applicable findings. c) True d) False 102. What is the standard deviation of a class of thirty where everybody has 15 out of 20 items correct? e) 5 f) 0 g) 15 h) 35 103. Among the measures of dispersion, which one is the most important i) interquatile range j) range k) standard deviation l) variance 104. List two importance of the mean i. ii. Answers: It is based on all values It can be used for further statistical analysis It is the best estimate of the population average
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It provides a means for comparison 105. List the two basic categories of the objective test ANSWERS i) Selection type ii) Supply type List ONE importance of the median .......................................................................................... .................. ANSWER Select any ONE from the following: 1) It is the middle observation in a distribution of observations arranged in order from lowest to the highest or vice versa, i.e. it is the point that divides a distribution into two parts such that an equal number of scores fall above and below that point or it is a middle value in a distribution that can be used to describe the distribution. 2) It is used when a distribution of scores is extremely skewed (This is the best answer to the item.) 3) The median requires only an ordinal scale of measurement for its use i.e., it can be found for any distribution that can be ordered.
106.

107. The type of research in which a teacher determines which grouping procedure results in the highest achievement for all pupils in a class is termed a) b) c) d) action research analytic research applied research basic research.

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108.

Which

of

the

following

statements

about

measurement and assessment is true? a) Measurement is continuous but assessment is done at the end of instruction b) Measurement involves the pupils but assessment is done by the teacher only c) Measurement involves figures only and assessment involves words only d) Measurement provides data for assessment. 109. for a test? a) a list of written questions b) a device used by teachers and others to ascertain a persons achievement c) A set of questions used to find out the level of learning that has been achieved by a person. d) A systematic method of gathering data for the purpose of making intraor inter-individual comparisons. 110. Which of the following statements is most appropriate for evaluation? meme b) It is a general process of making judgments and decisions c) A means of determining the consistency of a learners performance d) A situation where performance is constantly measured and assessed. 111. Which of the following statements best defines formative evaluation? a) It involves a series of tests that are conducted at the end of a topic b) The type of evaluation that is used to form an opinion
Page | 133 a) The act of finding out the quality of a curriculum or program

Which of the following definitions is most suitable

about the attitude of pupils c) It is used to gather information about a pupil along the way d) It involves monitoring the quality of tests administered to pupils so as to improve them 112. Which of the following statements best defines

summative evaluation? a) It involves putting together all the evaluation made on a pupil b) It is used for terminal judgment of worth or appropriateness. c) It is evaluation that is designated to find out the quality of teaching d) It is an evaluation of the process rather than the product of teaching 113. a) b) c) d) Modern assessment is based on two approaches. These

are .. approaches criterion referenced and norm-referenced process and product direct and indirect assessment internal and external

114. Which of the following concepts can be defined as a statement of desired change in pupils behaviour, knowledge or effect? a) Learning b) Achievement c) Educational objective d) All of the above

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SECTION B ESSAY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS (MARKING SCHEME) Question 1: - For a test to be useful it must be reliable. (a) (b) (a) 1. pupils 2.
3.

Discuss any two reasons why tests should be Explain four characteristics you would consider Reasons why tests should be reliable To properly identify the strengths and weakness of to make an effective prediction of pupils capabilities to determine the consistency of a pupils performance as a reliable means of grouping pupils Groups teaching For comparisons of performances of pupils or groups of for more informal counselling Characteristics of test that make them reliable items should be valid items should be many enough as very few items reduce items should be of varied difficulty level to cater for the time allowed should be enough for the average pupils
Page | 135

reliable. when setting your class tests to make them reliable.

on a programme 4. 5. pupils. 6. (b) 1.

2.

activity.

reliability. 3. 4. needs of all or majority of the pupils.

5. 6. (a) (b)

the wording of statements of tests items should be clear items should mainly be objective types. Explain the term Informal Assessment: Discuss any four ways in which you would use

and unambiguous. Question 2:

informal assessment in assessing the pupils in your school. (a) informal assessment is a quick and casual way of finding out about the pupils performance. This assessment system gives general pictures of pupils achievement, attitudes, character and aptitude. It is an assessment system that employs analysis) analysis). (b) Ways of Conducting Informal Assessment Assessing pupils through observation Would use observation at play, in the class during break Make mental notes Prepare and use checklist Help child overcome problem observed observation, and interviews, on quizzes, assignment (i.e. or projects, checking pupils exercise books (i.e. work sample checking learning materials task

and when pupils are during practical assignments

(b) Assessing pupils through interview and chats (i) Collect information from pupils by talking to them very informally.
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(ii) Probe into items such as pupils physical problems, how they are getting on with school work, family problems causing observation etc. (iii) Assess the language skills of pupils (iv) Assess the interpersonal relations of pupils (v) Engages pupils before, after school or during break. (vi) Have interviews and chats when pupils are moving about from place to place.

Checking pupils exercise books (vii)Regular checks of pupils exercise books (viii) Check for pupils with untidy work (ix) Check for pupils who get most of their work wrong (x) Check for pupils who have improved their work (d) Using assignments or homework/Projects (i) Give pupils assignment or homework (ii) Assign projects to pupils (ii) Use group work to discover natural leaders in the class. (xi) Assign each member of a group a specific task to avoid the dominance of the brilliant pupils in case of mixed ability grouping (e) Use of Quizzes (i) Short and oral written test demanding very short answers

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(ii) Revise previous lesson at the introductory stage of the new lesson. (iii) Mark promptly and let pupils know their marks. (iv) Use puzzles and riddles Question 4 (a) i.
(b)

Explain the following terms in assessment. Measurement Discuss five advantages of formative evaluation in i. Explanation of measurement

ii. Evaluation basic schools. (a) Measurement is the process of systematically quantifying or attaching numbers to behaviours or performances of pupils. In itself, measurement does not evaluate pupils. iii. Explanation of Evaluation

Evaluation involves making judgement on the teaching and learning process which takes place in the school. It also makes judgments on the suitability of the curriculum and examines the methods to be used in the teaching learning process. (b) Advantages of Formative Evaluation in basic schools
(i) Formative evaluation is carried as teaching and learning

progress so that the instruction can be programmed to meet pupils level and educational needs.

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(ii)
(iii)

Formative evaluation enables the teacher to know if It gives the teacher the idea of the pupils general

the pupils are achieving the set goals rate of progress. Towards a mastery of the knowledge, skill and attitudes being taught at each level. (iv) pupils. (v) (vi) harder. (vii) (viii) It gives an indication of the teachers performance. It helps teacher to monitor pupils /progress and to Such evaluation identifies some of the pupils learning It shows the pupils that you are interested in their difficulties and allows for remedial action. achievement and this knowledge motivates then to work The assessment results are useful in grading the

find out what is being taught; specific action is instituted as a result of the diagnostic evaluation (ix) (x) (xi) It helps teachers to discover the potential abilities It helps to determine which are the most suitable It assists pupils in making decisions about the future future successes whether in school or outside (prediction ) candidates for a course, a class or an institution(selection) whether it concerns choice of subject or a course, or a whether it is to help in choosing a suitable career (Guidance) Question 5. (a) Explain the differences between validity and Reliability of a test.
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(b) (a)
(i)

Discuss five factors that can affect the Reliability Differences between Validity and Reliability of a test Test Reliability- Reliability refers to the consistency

of a test.

of a test administered on different occasions. This means how far the test would give the same results if it administered again to the same students under the same conditions. With reliability of classroom test, high scoring pupils tend to score high marks again if given a second chance to take the test, and low scoring persons tend to score low marks again. Their scores however need not be exactly the same, but they should be nearly so. (ii) Test Validity. A valid test is one which seeks to test what it is supposed to test. Validity tells us how well a test measures what it is intended to measure. There are several forms of validity. One of these is content validity which refers to the extent to which a test adequately covers the syllabus to be tested. To have a good content validity the test must reflect both the contents of the course and the balance in the teaching, which led up to it. It should be emphasized that before a test can serve as a useful evaluation tool, it must be reliable and valid. (b) Factors affecting Validity and Reliability of tests. If a teacher is to prepare tests which are acceptably valid and reliable, there are some important factors that should be considered. Some of these are:
Page | 140

(i)

Length of test. A short test is likely to be less reliable than a long test, although lengthening an invalid and unreliable test is unlikely to improve it.

(ii)

Choice of type of tests used: each type of test has certain

tendencies, for example, essay questions tend to be less reliable than short answer questions.
(iii)

Techniques of writing questions: Vaguely worded or ambiguous or ambiguous questions, tricky questions or questions using obscure vocabulary or complicated wording of the test will adversely affect both validity and reliability

(iv) (v) (vi)

(vii)

Method of test administration: inadequate time allowed for Pupils emotional reaction to the examiner Temperature and ventilation in the examination room Method of marking- subjectivity, halo effect, can adversely

majority of the candidates to complete the test.

affect reliability and validity of a test. Marking which depends upon the exercise of human judgement is subject to human fallibility. Question 6. (a) (b)
(a)

Explain the term assessment to your friend? Discuss any FIVE Importance of classroom

assessment. Meaning of assessment: it means measurement and evaluation of the individual traits, potentials and actual performance. The measurement aspect of assessment is the collection of quantitative and qualitative information on an individual
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through the use of instruments such as tests assignments, examinations, project work and checklist. The evaluation aspect of assessment involves making value judgement regarding the status of the individual relatives to some standards, expectations other individuals, on groups of individuals and instructional programme. Summary of the meaning of assessment (i) Assessment involves measurement and evaluation
(ii)

To

process

of

collecting

data

on

students

performance is known as assessment (iii) The process whereby the data collected are analyzed and compared for value judgment is known as evaluation. (b) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
6.

Importance of classroom assessment to screen or select an individual for admission, promotion, to motivate learners to improve their work to advise learners on how to direct their to advise individuals on their vocational choices/guidance to determine the effectiveness of instructions to determine the progress of each individual. to discover individual problems and weakness to determine how to group individual learners

certification and other honours

learning efforts/guidance and counselling and counselling methods and materials. 7. 8.

for instructional goals are achieved

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9.

to determine the extent to which instruction in view of

individual differences 10. to enable the teacher send terminal reports on pupils performance to their parents or guardians who would like to assess the work of their investments. Question 7 (a)
(b)

What is Continuous Assessment? Explain any FIVE Characteristics of Continuous

Assessment. (a) The meaning of Continuous Assessment

This is a type of assessment which takes place in more or less regular form throughout a course. It involves taking into account a learners performance over the whole period of study on a course or level of education in a variety of ways and situations in determining his final grade. It is also defined as a systematic collection of marks or grades over a period of time and their aggregation into a final grade. (b) 1. Characteristics of Continuous Assessment It is Cumulative in the sense that the childs

performance in assignments, class exercise, tests and projects over a period is noted and aggregated at the end of a given period. 2.
3.

it is comprehensive in terms of number of evaluation it is systematic in the sense that the assessment is well

instruments and procedures used scheduled during a term, a year or programme. It may be done
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in short predetermined intervals in orderly manner. E.g. Weekly, fortnightly or monthly. 4. 5. it is diagnostic since it helps in identification of the it is formative in the sense that the procedure leads to strengths and weakness of pupils. improvement of teaching and learning as regular information is obtained on the instructional process. 6. it is guidance oriented in that it helps the pupils to know their strengths weakness with the view of improving or maintaining them and however, it provides the guidance coordinator with the necessary information without which he/she cannot help the pupils. Question 8 (a)
1.

Discuss

any

SIX

advantages

of

Continuous

Assessment it provides a better picture of pupils performance over a period of time by minimizing the effects of extraneous factors like sickness. 2. the teacher is involved in the assessment of the pupils throughout the period and this helps him to provide guidance services to the pupils for a better performance
3.

it minimizes the over anxiety and fear associated with

the round examination since a poor performance in one unit is counter-balanced by improved performance in another.
4.

it

makes

teachers

pay

attention

to

the

total

development of the pupils instead of concerning themselves with only the examinable aspects of the curriculum.
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5.

its formative nature makes many pupils work hard and

consistently throughout the period of assessment since they are aware that every marks contribute to their final score.
6.

it makes it possible for teachers to keep up-to-date it is used for counselling, informing parents about Discuss any FOUR disadvantages of Continuous it increases the workload of the teacher. It is time there is the problem of comparability of standard from

records on pupils
7.

students' progress etc.

(b)

Assessment (1) (2) consuming school to school and to district. E.g. A student who scored 70% in a rural school may not get the same in urban school. .Most teachers lack the computation skills to add and convert the scores of pupils
(3)

Teachers biases in terms of favoritisms can affect the

validity of the assessment. Question 9 Explain five reasons why assessment should be continuous 1. it gives more detailed and wider judgement of a pupils performance both across and task varied) 2. it is fairer to the pupils because he has many chances to show the behaviour or the task being assessed (task assessment can be

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3.
4.

the tensions associated with one-shot examinations leading to fear, malpractices, etc are minimized. the pupils is compelled to make continuous efforts throughout the instructional programme because they know that each assessment counts

5.

it makes possible the measurement of all educational outcome especially those effective and cognitive abilities that can only be measured over some period of time.

6. 7.

it helps the teacher to assess the effectiveness on his teaching so as to improve it. it provides the basis for effective remedial and individualized teaching as the teacher gets to know the strengths and weaknesses to the pupils

8. 9.

it improves punctuality and help to reduce indiscipline in school the comprehensive information gather about their childrens performance Question 10 Explain any FIVE problems facing the implementation of the continuous assessment.
1.

Lack of understanding of the system by heads of schools Lack of training for classroom teachers in the techniques Lack of training for the use of continuous assessment in

as supervisors and by teachers as executors

2.

of continuous assessment 3. the teaching and learning process guidance and counselling.
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4.

Absence

of

suitably

designed

stationery

for

the

compilation of continuous assessment records as well as lack of storage facilities. 5. 6.

7.

Complains from classroom teachers that they have too Delay in supplying of continuous assessment records to truancy among students affects the consistency of the involvement of students in recording continuous lack of uniformity in test administration

much workload as a result of continuous assessment scheme. schools. assessment. 8. 9. assessment scores thereby making the unreliable Question 11 Explain any FIVE ways in which continuous assessment could be improved in our basic schools
1.

in service training on how to properly assess students reduction of class sizes number of columns for recording should be reduced to head teachers should monitor the recording of marks. workshops for teachers on test administration national service personnel should be designated to with the marking and recording of continuous

and how to keep the continuous assessment records 2. 3. 4. 5.

6.

the minimum

assist

assessment students' performance

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7.

regular

checks

on

teachers

records

on

class

assignments, projects, class tests etc to find out if teachers are doing the right things.
8.

provision of essential materials such as cards, books etc efficient administration of continuous assessment in

for 9.
10.

schools. GES should formulate proper guidelines for monitoring Allowances should be given to teachers to serve as an continuous assessment incentive for them to work diligently on the continuous assessment of students. Questions 12 (a) (b) What is educational research? Explain any four problems facing to burns (1994), a research is research in a scientific

Ghana According (a) investigation of find answers to a problem To Gut (1992) research has to do with the formal systematic application of scientific method to the study of educational problems Frankel and Wallen (2000) point out that, the term research can mean any sort of careful systematic knowledge, undertaken to discover or establish facts and principles. Amedahe (2004) says so as that to research increase involves the and systematic application of the scientific method to answer perplexing questions knowledge understanding of phenomena.
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(b) i. Illiteracy: In Ghana the proportional/rate of illiteracy estimated at 60% and 70% which is high. It is difficult for people who cannot read or write appreciate the need to supply relevant information due to suspension. Again effective communication with the illiterate folks is difficult. ii. Secrecy: Our social and political set-up make people secretive and hence try to be lip-tight over issues such as marital affairs, financial matters, health matters and like. People do not open up /responds to questions seeking information on such issues due to suspicion. iii. Lack of Statistics/Scanty Statistics: The basic statistics that form the bedrock of research are often not available and where they are available they may be outmoded and unreliable. iv. Lack of Financial Support There is lack of financial support and the capital equipped, lack of basic equipment either from the government or the private sector. Research centres and laboratories are poorly equipped, lack of basic equipments like computers due to lack of funds. As a result enterprises in Ghana are research-oriented. v. Neglect of Previous Researches. People would not want to take up research if previous researches are not being used. vi. Lack of Research Skills
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Research is not done anyhow. It requires certain skills which is not available to students in institution of high learning. The result is that many who may be carrying out research may lack the much needed skills. QUESTION 13 a) Explain the meaning of the term review of related literature b) Explain five importance of review of related literature. a) In the classical format, this is usually the chapter two of the report. It has to do with locating, reading, sifting and analyzing documents /books containing information related to the topic under consideration. In other words, it is the summary of the writings of recognized authorities and previous researches done on the problem under investigation. The review is in two parts, with each performing a unique function; i) ii) Theoretical review which sets the theoretical framework or Empirical review which puts the current research into base for the research study; and perspective to show the state of the art. b) Importance i) It helps to determine what has been done or others have said or written that relates to the problem under the study.

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ii) It helps the researcher to know how feasible the study is in relation to resources available to him or her. iii) It helps the researcher to interpret the significance of the studies. It shares with the researcher result of other study that are closely related to the study being undertaken. iv) It points out research strategies and procedures as well as measurable instruments that other authorities have used. This may give an idea to the researcher about how to organize his/her into a logical pattern. v) It helps in the identification of a research problem. By critically examining the process of a study a researcher is likely to exploit a loop-hole upon which he can develop a research problem. vi) It helps to delimit the research problem; the researcher gets to know the scope of other studies and this guides him/her to delimit his/her problem. vii) It provides a framework for establishing the importance of the study as well as serving as a benchmark for comparing the results of the study with other findings. QUESTION 14 i. Distinguish between formal and informal assessment. ii. Describe any four ways in which assessment scores can be presented to make them more explicit. i

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Formal assessment 1. Are usually by answers taken or to

Informal assessment 1. This assessment is usually done in 2. group, It has event to be or practical test situations. scored administrator most often the occurrence. 3. It is used to assess skills and other personal traits(attitudes, talent, interests, reactions, etc) 4. Used for specific and precise actions. 5. It is useful for assessing process 6. It is less valid 7. It is less structured. aptitude, during

individually selecting questions.

writing

2. Can be scored by someone else who has the answer key apart from the test administrator. 3. Often used to assess facts, concepts and other forms of cognitive knowledge. 4. The assessment instrument can be made to cover a wide range of material or content. product and achievement. 6.It is more valid 7. It is structured.

5. It is used for assessing and procedure.

iii) Ways in which assessment scores can be presented: 1. Frequency distribution This is the grouping of test scores into some pattern for a better interpretation and analysis.
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Ray scores are first ordered serially. Their frequencies are written by their scores Most typical scores, generally performance and individual

performance can then easily be seen and interpreted in the light of the distribution. 2. Frequency histograms:

This is a pictorial representation of the data constructed by Frequencies or performance are plotted against scores and It indicates pictorially the most typical scores obtained by It also shows the direction of pupils performance. Individual and group comparisons can be made. This is an alternative way of representing frequency Frequencies are plotted against scores and the points

drawing based on some established class interval. a histogram constructed. pupils which is a rough measure of the ability of the class.

3. Frequency polygon/curve. distributions in a geographical form. connected by lines to form a smooth curve. 4. Normal Distribution curve. A roughly bell shaped symmetrical distribution in which most of the scores are at or near the mean(x) and the number of score further from the mean progressively decreases. It is based on computing standard deviations from the In a normal distribution curve all the three measures of mean and standard score Z. location-mean, median, and mode are at the same point, which
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described a typical normal class situation and from which situations that deviate from the normal can be noted. In a normal distribution score 68% of the scores fall between -0.1 and +0.1 standard deviations from the mean QUESTION 15 1. Describe any TWO characteristics of a reliable test. 2. Explain any FOUR steps you will take to construct a reliable test. i) The characteristics of a reliable test are as follows: 1. A reliable test should be stable. This means that consistent results should be achieved in administering the test again on the same examinees. 2. A reliable test has equivalence. This means that if there are two forms of test that are parallel in content, item type and difficulty level, they must have a high degree of consistency, if administered on the same examinees. 3. A reliable test should be one in which the rating of two different raters or a raters at two different times should yield the same score. 4. A reliable test should have internal consistency. This means that if the test is split into two set, a correlation computation of the score between the whole test and the split ones should not yield any differences. There should be a high positive correlation. ii) Steps in constructing a reliable test.

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1.

Make adequate provision for measuring all the important

outcomes of instructions. This is done through the preparation of a table of specification. 2. 3. 4. Check that test items reflect the objectives for various Ensure that you will consider the nature of the group for Examining the construction under which the test is to be topics and the emphasis on each topic. which the test is being constructed. administered and take this into account in constructing the test and the items. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. The purpose of the test must also be taken into account. The items set should be set and unambiguous. Ensure that you follow the rules of punctuation and Use items that have an answer that can be agreed upon Avoid items whose comprehension can be disturbed pupils

grammar. without controversy. inability to understand the vocabulary or the construction. Avoid exoteric language. 10. Preparing scoring or marking scheme.

Question 16 Describe any three characteristics that a of good test item should contain under the following: a. b. completion items matching items
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c. Answer

true/false items

a. completion items b. they should require short, definite, clear-cut and Avoid multi mutilated statements i.e. blanks in a single item avoid explicit answers statements with several

Avoid lifting statements directly from textbooks Omit only important words Place the blanks in the end or towards the end of Specify the degree of precision you expect in your decimal places matching items

the sentence answer e.g. two

Make lists of premises and responses as homogeneous as possible. i.e. a should consist of items that deal with only one single area. Do not use perfect matching The left hand column of the paper, should contain the list of longer phrases All responses must be placed (or typed) on the same page State clearly what each column represents
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called the premises

c. true/false items Do not present true-false items in a repetitive or easily Write true false statements positively. If a negative learned pattern. statement must be used underline, italicize or capitalize the negative. Word the item so that superficial knowledge suggests a Try to keep the true false test items reasonably short and Avoid copying statements or sentences word for word from Avoid expressions or words that tend to give clues to the wrong answer. restrict each to one central idea or them textbooks correct answer. Question 17 b) education. CONTENT: a) Formative Conducted instruction Occurs early in during the for Summative Conducted after instruction Terminates the instructional process Provides information for a) Distinguish between formative and Discuss any FIVE uses of assessment in

summative assessment

instructional process Provides information

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correction Promotes objectives Useful for process

focus

on

reviewing Promotes objectives Useful for products

revision

of

evaluation

evaluating

b) Uses of Assessment 1. 2. Selecting, appraising and clarifying instructional objectives Determining the standard of pupils achievement of

education objectives grades 3. 4. 5. 6.

7.

Reporting pupils achievement Planning and deciding on instructional materials Improving the design of lessons /diagnosing Evaluating teacher accountability Determination of lesson / course /programme effectiveness Counselling / guidance Selecting pupils for grouping and special programmes

8.
9.

/placement 10. Feedback to students /motivation 11. Certification /awards MARKS DISTRIBUTION: a) Any two distinctions explained for up to 5 marks each: 2x5 = 10 marks b) Any five uses discussed for up to 4 marks each: 5x4
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=20 marks Total = 30 marks Question 18 a) Describe any THREE types of multiple choice items b) Explain any FOUR characteristics of good items in any ONE of the CONTENT: a) 1. Best answer items / multiple-choice. These consist of a stem, which is a question or an incomplete statement, plus alternatives which consists of a correct answer and several incorrect answers called distracters. Alternatives used are from three to five. They can be used to test all levels of Blooms taxonomy, including higher order learning and conceptual reasoning. 2. True /False items. True /false test questions are presented as statements that the learner judges as correct or incorrect. Only content material that lends itself to either/or answers should be written in this format. 3. Matching items: types you have described.

These require the learner to identify the relationship between a list of entries in one column with a list of responses in a second column. It is highly appropriate when each listing forms a category of related items e.g. regional capitals. It involves
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discrimination between definitions and terms, events and dates, functions and parts etc. b) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. Characteristics Best Answer items/multiple choice The stem should be a direct question. The stem should pose a clear definite, explicit and singular problem. Include in the stem any words that might otherwise be repeated in each response. Items should be stated simply and understandably, excluding all nonfunctional words from the stem and alternatives. Avoid interrelated items. Avoid negatively stated items. Avoid making the correct alternatives systematically different from other options, If possible, the alternatives should be presented in some logical numerical or systematic order. Response alternatives should be mutually exclusive. Make all response plausible and attractive to the less knowledgeable or skillful student. The response alternative None of the above should be used with caution, if at all. Make options grammatically parallel to each other and consistent with the stem. Avoid such irrelevant cues as common elements and part verbal associations. In testing for understanding of a term or concept, it is
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generally preferable to present the term in the stem and alternative definitions in the options. 15. Numerical values should be chronologically arranged. Items should be stated in grammatically correct forms 4. Re arrangement test the items are given to answers candidates and they are expected to produce should appear on the same page. Items should follow a common principle, idea or construct should not be haphazard. True /False items 1. 2. Avoid the use of specific determiners. Patterns Base true false items upon statements that are absolutely true or false, without qualification or exceptions. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Avoid negatively stated items when possible and eliminated all double negatives Use objective and precise rather than subjective language where possible. Avoid stereotypical and textbook statements. Avoid making the true items consistently longer than the false items Avoid the use of unfamiliar or esoteric language Avoid complex sentences with many dependant clauses. The crucial elements of an item should be placed at the end of
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according to a required specification /characteristics items

the statement. Matching items 1. 2. 3. Matching exercises should be complete on a single page. Use response categories that are related but mutually Keep the number of stimuli relatively small and let the premises responses exceed the number of stimuli by two or three. 4. 5. The directions should clearly specify how to match stimuli and responses. Keep the statements in the response column short and list them in some logical order. Question 19. a) What is research? Discuss any FOUR purposes of educational b) research CONTENT: a) 1. Research is a critical and exhaustive investigation or experimentation that has for its aim, the discovery of new facts and their correct interpretation, the revision of accepted conclusions, and theories or law in the light of newly discovered facts. 2. Research is the slow and laborious process of laying bare, the facts and truths of nature and which truths have definite bearing on fundamental principles involved in solving social
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exclusive. number of possible

problems. 3. Research also involves the manipulation of variables or concepts for the purpose of generalizing, extending, correcting or verifying knowledge. 4. For Gary and Atkinson (1996), research is a formal, systematic application of the scientific method to the study of problems. Educational research for instance, is the formal, systematic application of the scientific method to the study of educational problems. Key words Systematic scientific method Investigation problem solving 5. 6. Gay (1992) defines research as the formal system application of the scientific method to the study. Research is the systematic search for new knowledge. It is an intellectual endeavour pursued at the frontiers of knowledge for the enhancement of knowledge and the improvement of society in general. b) Purpose of Educational Research 1. Through research, teachers are able to develop or generate new pedagogic knowledge / advancement of knowledge about educational issues. 2. It helps teachers to test theoretical concepts in actual problem situations to see if they work e.g. comparing learning outcomes of students taught with student- centred and teacher centred
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approaches. 3. 4. Policy makers can use recommendations from research in designing new curricular to cover areas that are lacking. It is used to produce and provide information about what happens in schools, some of which sensitize the public about the quality and effectiveness of the education process. 5. It is used to predict what happens in educational settings, for instance, the effect of certain administrative practices, or the creditability of admitting students from deprived schools with weaker grades to universities. 6. It is used for improvement in educational delivery, for instance in determining the direction and effectiveness of intervention programmes in education. 7. 8. It provides explanations for several phenomena in schools. Building students research skills adds new knowledge to the educational enterprise. Question 20 a) What is a questionnaire? b) Explain FOUR advantages of using a questionnaire to gather data for research. CONTENT: a) The Questionnaire is a carefully designed instrument for collecting data in accordance with the specifications of the research questions and hypotheses. It consists of a set of questions to which the subject respond in writing
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 It may also be described as a self report instrument used

for gathering information about variables of interest in an investigation.

It is often a onetime data gathering device on the variables

of interest to the researcher. It is a form consisting of interrelated questions prepared by the researcher about the research problem under investigation, based on the objectives of the study. It is a set of questions distributed to a large number of people to respond to in writing. These are collected and analyzed.

b) Advantages 1. As a tool for data collections, it is less expensive compared to other methods. This is because the questionnaire can be mailed to the respondent to fill in, and also mailed back to the researcher for analysis.

2. 3.

Questionnaire can be filled at the respondents convenience. This increase the chances of getting valid information. Questionnaire can involve personal on- the spot administration and collection and thus produces quick results. This enables the researcher to complete the work within the stipulated time.

4.

Questionnaires offer greater assurance of anonymity. In the case where the researcher is handling a sensitive topic like
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corruption in an organization, the target sample can give sensitive information without fear, as their identify is not needed on the questionnaire. 5. Questionnaires may cover a wide geographical area since researchers 6. approach respondents more easily through questionnaires than any other method. It yields objective results compared to other data collection techniques. 7. 8.
a.

It is easier to administer in collecting data as compare to Problem of not contact does not exist. Describe the steps involved in the research process? Argue which is the most difficult step.

other techniques QUESTION 21 b. a. The research process includes the ff. steps Step 1: Step 2: Step 3: Identification of the problem to be investigated. Review of related literature. Identifying research questions and hypothesis (to problem) Step 4: Development of research designs for data collection, methodology and data gathering instruments. Step 5: Data analyses, interpretations, drawing conclusion form findings and
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clarify the research

including sampling

recommendation based on conclusion. Step 6: b. The chosen step should come from the first three. Reasons may include difficulty in. Delimiting the many factors in a problem to specific one. Defining characteristics and issues to e included and those Writing the research report.

to be assessed NB: When these steps are accomplished (or well executed) the others are methodological and may logically (naturally) follow. QUESTION 22
a.

Explain the difference between a population and Describe the following sampling procedures. Simple random sampling Cluster sampling Snowball sampling Purposive sampling A complete collection of all the elements that are of A totality of objects or people having one or more

a sample in research.
b.

a. A population is: interest in a particular study or investigation. characteristics in common that are of interest to the researcher and where inferences or generalization are to be made.

Not necessarily demographic (i.e., consisting of human),

but could be objects. A sample is:

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A collection of some (a subset) elements of population. A portion of the population whose results can be generalize An extraction of some subjects of the population for the

to the entire population. b. i. Simple random sampling: This is a sample obtained by the population in such a way that samples of the same sample size have equal chances of being selected. In other words, every element of the population is given and has an equal chance of being selected. Two commonly used methods are lottery and random numbers. ii. Cluster Sampling: Here elements of the population are grouped into clusters (i.e. partitioning the population into sub-groups) Sampling, random sampling or any type o sampling is then used on the clusters to obtain the sample required. iii. Snowball sampling (also known as network sampling): It involves a researcher asking a key to name other people who should be contacted in order to gather information to understand some aspect of an issue under study. It is used in cases where respondents are difficult and impossible to locate using other means. iv. Purposive Sampling (also called judgmental sampling): The researcher selects a sample based on his or her experience of knowledge of group to be sampled. She/he has in mind that the respondents have the information being
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purpose of studying certain characteristics of the population.

required. It is also an attempt to include a range of people or a variety of different situations in a study. E.g., Using some lower level and higher level for a study on leadership.

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