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Bukidnon State University

College of Business
Government Affairs Department
Continuing Professional Development
Seminar-Workshop on Teaching Strategies and Test Construction

PAPER and PENCIL TESTS


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MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST

I. Standard multiple choice test parts


1. Stem – the complete statement, incomplete statement or question containing the problem or point in
question
2. Alternatives or options – the choices of answers which contain the correct answer and distractors
II. Description of Advantages and Limitations

Feature Advantage Limitation


 Appropriate for different areas of  can’t measure other learning outcomes
knowledge such as:
 Measures a variety of educational  articulate explanations
objectives from simple to complex  thought processes
such as the following:  furnish information
 analyze phenomena  organize thoughts
1. Versatility
 apply principles  perform specific task
 comprehend concepts/principle  produce original ideas
 interpret charts and graphs  provide examples, illustrations,
 judge relevance of information etc.
 make inferences from given data
 solve problems
 Could be applicable to broader course
content
2. Validity  Most likely the test score would be
more representative of student’s
overall achievement in the course
 If well-written, it compares favorably  Guessing factor (to address the guessing
to other test types because it is factor, increase the number of items)
3. Reliability less susceptible to guessing;
therefore, more capable of
producing reliable score
 Rapid scoring  Difficult to construct
4. Efficiency  Expedites reports  Time-consuming to formulate
 Needs study, practice and experience
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III.Indicators of poorly-written multiple choice items


1. Contain clues
2. Worded ambiguously
3. Alternatives or options contain two correct answers
4. Some alternatives are shorter; some longer
5. No parallelism of the alternative statements/choice
6. Grammar, spelling and punctuation errors
7. Trivial questions
8. Only two alternatives or options
IV.Guidelines in writing the multiple choice item
1. Formulate an item based on a single objective
2. Express the stem in a question form, incomplete or complete statement.
3. Base the item on a specific problem, phenomena
4. State the stem in positive form
5. Choose clear and concise words
6. Avoid giving clue/s such as repetition of a word found in the stem or in the alternatives
7. Use simple vocabulary
8. Have only one correct answer among the alternatives or option
9. Make sure the distracters are believable and functional
10. Avoid “all of the above,” “none of the above,” “a, b and c,” and the like in the alternatives or options
11. Choose alternatives/options that belong to the same category or classification
12. Make the length of the alternatives, more or less, the same.
13. Be sure the grammar, punctuation and spelling are correct
14. Construct items that range from lower level thinking to higher levels
15. Have questions that target not only the cognitive but also the affective domain
V. Checklist for reviewing Multiple Choice Item
______ Has the item assess a single objective?
______ Is the item based on a specific problem that is clearly stated in the stem?
______ Is the stem expressed in a question from, complete or incomplete statement?
______ Is the stem stated in a positive form?
______ Are the alternatives/options worded clearly and concisely?
______ Are the alternatives/options, more or less, written in the same length?
______ Are the alternatives/options mutually exclusive?
______ Are the alternatives/options homogeneous in content?
______ Are the alternatives/options free from clues as to which response is correct?
______ Have the alternatives/options “all of the above,” “none of the above” been avoided?
______ Are the distracters plausible or functional?
______ Do the alternatives/options contain only one correct and clearly best answer?
______ Has unnecessarily difficult vocabulary been avoided?
______ Are the alternatives/options written in parallel forms?
______ Are the grammar, punctuation, spelling correct?
References:
Burton, Sudweeks, Merrell, Wood (1991)
Https://testing.byu.edu.handbooks
How to prepare better multiple choice test items: Guidelines for University Faculty
Ebel, R. L & Frisbie, D. A
Gronlund. N. E

TRUE OR FALSE TEST

Applicable in…. Not applicable in…


 Testing recall, comprehension of simple  Testing ability to read or interpret complex
logic or understanding such as “if- sentences or understand complex
then” and “causal/because” thoughts
statement  Testing creativity and performance
 All levels of cognitive ability

I. Guidelines in formulating good true and false test items


1. Use simple, direct language in declarative form
2. Present the correct part of the statement at the beginning and vary the true/false towards the end if the statement
expresses relationship
3. Paraphrase, do not directly quote
4. Include background and context as necessary
5. Write statements that are easy to read
6. Avoid the following:
6.1 unfamiliar vocabulary and concepts
6.2 long strings of statements
6.3 ambiguous statements and generalizations
6.4 right minus wrong scoring
6.5 “always,” “never,” “only,” “no,” “none,” “often,” “seldom,” “sometimes” and “usually”
II. How to develop the true/false items
1. Consider the objective of the test item
2. Make the true/false items equal in length
3. Randomize sequence of true or false responses to avoid a discernable pattern
4. Build up the items from easy to difficult
5. Group questions by content/topic
6. Supply the true/false (T/F) and have students encircle the answer
7. Avoid trivia statements: go for measuring comprehension, cause-effect identification and result/consequence
identification skills

III.Variation of True or False Test


1. Asking for short elaboration on why the answer is true or false
2. Asking for correction to false statements

IV.Limitation of the True/False Test


1. Scoring tends to be high because the answer is just either true or false
2. Cannot get informative diagnosis why the student got it wrong
3. Easy to cheat
4. Content can be simplistic or trivial
5. May not able to measure the intended objective

ESSAY TEST

I. Essay questions/tests require students to compose a response of several sentences or paragraphs


Advantages/applicability Disadvantages/Limitation
 Could assess higher order thinking skills such  Could assess only a limited sample of range of
as making judgment, synthesizing and content
evaluating in general  Less reliable rating/scoring (bias-prone)
 Could evaluate the student’s thinking and  Difficult and time-consuming to grade/rate
reasoning
 Could measure the student’s communication
and organizational skills
 Could provide authentic situations/experiences

II. Guidelines in constructing Essay questions


1. Clearly define the intended learning outcome to be assessed
2. Use directional verbs such as compare, contrast, develop, justify, formulate, explain
3. Avoid general or broad task verbs; be specific
4. Clearly define and situate the task within a problem situation
5. Present a reasonable task
6. Write the task as a question
7. Specify relative point value
8. State criteria for grading, use a rubric
9. Avoid giving an optional question
10. Ask essay questions where students could relate, connect or put together their knowledge/learning into a new
situation
11. Avoid questions that ask for a mere enumeration of things
12. Formulate essay questions that could be answered within a given timeframe

III.Checklist for Essay questions

______ Is the intended learning outcome discernable in the essay question?


______ Does the essay questions clearly define the task and situate the task in a problem situation?
______ Does the essay question specify the relative point value?
______ Does it require a reasonable task?
______ Does the essay question require composition of answer in paragraph/s?
______ Does the essay question do way from asking enumeration or naming ideas only?
______ Does the essay question requires higher order thinking skills such as analysis, synthesis and
evaluation?
______ Is the essay question easy to grasp?
______ Is the criteria for grading clearly defined?
______ Is a model or prototype answer formulated by the teacher?
BUKIDNON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF BUSINESS
Government Affairs Department
Continuing Professional Development
Seminar-Workshop on Teaching Strategies and Test Construction

Workshop
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Examples of Essay questions that need revision


Instruction
 Identify what makes each question short of fulfilling the standards of a good essay question.
 Revise the essay questions following the guidelines in writing essay questions.

1. List the 7-step paths to making an ethical decision in public governance.

2. Evaluate the impact of overseas Filipino workers.

3. What are the evidences that government agencies are meeting or not meeting their performance goals
BUKIDNON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF BUSINESS
Government Affairs Department
Continuing Professional Development
Seminar-Workshop on Teaching Strategies and Test Construction

Workshop

Examples of multiple test items that are faulty.


Instruction
 Identify what the test items they violate.
 Revise the test items by correcting what is faulty.

1. Drugs that depress the function of the nervous system are called…
a. Hallucinogen
b. Depressants
c. Narcotics
d. Stimulants

2. What does a hallucinogen do to a person’s mind?


a.Depress
b.Makes the mind sense things that are not real
c. Speeds up thinking
d.Slows down thinking

3. If a teacher believes that he/she is an agent of change and reform to improve and reconstruct society, what must be
his/her focus in the curriculum?
a. Literary analysis and development of intellect
b. National and international trends, issues and problems
c. Progress and development through democratic processes
d. Reforms and changes in the society

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