Know how of question bank development

Question Bank Development: A Probe into its Theoretical and Practical Connotation Faculty Professional Development Programme (FPDP) of UOU Dr. Rajani Ranjan Singh School of Education Uttarakhand Open University

Why we move to Question ? Question is the index of cognitive Ignition and hence the reflection of Personality as a whole. It is the question which changes the way of perceiving the world and consequently the course of your life. "To make my contribution I must Ask Questions, Speak the Truth, Think for Myself, and Care for My Soul,“ "It is better to be a human being dissatisfied than a pig satisfied; better to be Socrates dissatisfied than a fool satisfied. And if the fool, or the pig, are of a different opinion, it is because they only know their own side of the question," says John Stuart Mill in Utilitarianism , Ch.2 Question as catalyst begins the cognitive turbulance.

Take a pause & Think Question development or item writing is a work of great contemplation which consists a good planning and better execution for sound and objective results concerning with the prognosis and diagnosis of the human potential. So, if you want to have objective result of measurement and evaluation regarding the abilities of an individual, then you must know the technicality of item engineering which is the vital part of test construction and its standardization.

Assumption of Measurement, Assessment & Evaluation Whatever exists at all, exists in some amount E.L.Thorndike,1918. It provides the criteria of measurement & assessment. Anything that exists in amount can be measured or assessed, Mc Call,1939. That is why, Educational Achievement can be assessed.

Glossary what to be understood before the session Educands’ Behaviour and their types Cognitive, Affective and Conative Objectives and their types Educational and Instructional Objectives Taxonomy of Instructional Objectives As Per B.S.Bloom Knowledge Understanding (Comprehension) Application Analysis Synthesis Evaluation

Knowledge Dimension Factual Discrete bits of information CONCRETE Conceptual More complex, organized knowledge Classifications, categories, principles Procedural Steps to take, how to do something Determining when to do what Meta-Cognitive Personalize understanding for the user Strategic and contextual ABSTRACT

The Cognitive Process Domain The Knowledge Dimension Remember Understand Apply Analyze Evaluate Create Factual Conceptual Procedural Meta Cognitive

How Might This Look? Map out Objectives Instructional activities Assessments Activities and tests should align in order to meet objectives

Question and its relationship with Normal Probability Curve Qu. Battle of Haldighati was fought between Mughals and ………….

Question and its relationship with Normal Probability Curve Qu. The name of the first president of India was……….

Question and its relationship with Normal Probability Curve Q. The first president of India belonged to…………….district of Bihar.

Connotation of Question Bank Question Bank – A series of questions of different types, on the basis of which some information is sought. Question Development is a standardized procedure to measure quantitatively or qualitatively one or more than one aspect of traits, by means of sample of verbal or nonverbal behaviour. A question bank in the form of a test is an organized succession of stimuli designed to measure quantitatively or evaluate qualitatively of some mental processes, traits or characteristics.

Types of Test Objective test and subjective test Speed test and power test Individual test and group test CRT and NRT Verbal, Nonverbal, and Performance test Achievement, Personality, Aptitude, Attitude, and Intelligence test Diagnostic and Prognostic test Formative test and summative test Standardized and Teacher-made test

Tool and Techniques of Educational Assessment The assessment process produces the data for cognitive, affective and psychomotor objectives. All techniques of assessment can be broadly classified into two categories: (a) Quantitative and (b) Qualitative (A) The Quantitative techniques are mainly used in educational assessment. These are highly reliable and valid They can be classified into three types (i) Oral (ii) Written and (iii) Practical. (B) The Qualitative techniques are used for continuous and comprehensive assessment. These techniques are subjective and less reliable, but they are used for assessing the affective objectives. These techniques are like cumulative records, anecdotal records, observation techniques and check list and rating scale.

Tools of the Assessment of Educational Achievement Diagnostic Test - It aims at identification of academic strengths and weaknesses in a particular content area. It is also helpful in isolation of children with mental handicap as different from other normal children. In a way, diagnostic test is test for identification. It follows a normative models to make comparative evaluations of individuals. Norm -referenced Test - It is used to determine how much overall knowledge of some subject a particular pupil has achieved. The basic report for a norm referenced test is a count of the number of test questions that are answered correctly. The ‘norm’ in a norm referenced test is the achievement of some specific groups of students on the test. An excellence or deficiency of a particular student’s achievement in learning is judged by that student’s standing among those in the specified group.

Tools of the Assessment of Educational Achievement Criterion- referenced Test - It is used to determine the certain specified objectives of instruction a particular pupil has attained. The ‘criterion’ in a criterion referenced test indicates the instructional objectives of a content. In contrast to NRT this approach is not concerned with comparison of individuals with a norm or standard. The point of reference is to an absolute standard within an individual rather than a population norm. In target populations, especially individuals with mental handicap, the individual differences are so great that group comparisons are futile. It is also classified as Domain and Objective referenced test as per the type of interpretations

Connotation of an Item Item- an item is defined as “ a single question or task that is not often broken down into any smaller units. An arithmetical problem, manipulative task, a mechanical puzzle may be an item. Lowest common denominator of a test, which is scored is an item. Structural and functional unit of a test.

General characteristics of an item Well phrased Should measure the significant aspect of the subject matter Should not encourage the guesswork by the subject Easy in deciphering the intended idea Incorporation of Independent items in the test

Technical characteristics of an item Incorporation of sufficient items to make the test reliable Moderate difficult High discriminating power

General Guidelines for Item Writing Clarity in writing items Absence of nonfunctional words Absence of irrelevant accuracies Moderate difficulty value Avoidance of the use of stereotyped words Avoidance of clues Interlocking or interdependent items should not be there

Item Analysis Item Analysis: A good question or item discriminates between high achiever and low achiever hence the filtration of items must be there while incorporating into question bank or in a test To analyze constructed test item in terms of effectiveness of the distractors, difficulty index and discrimination index To summarize the item analysis procedure in tabular form using the evaluation code

Determine the Upper Group (U) and Lower group (L) Upper group is the 27% of the 50 test papers from the highest score, i.e., 14 test papers from the highest score Lower group is the 27% of the 50 test papers from the lowest score, i.e., 14 test papers from the lowest score

Estimate Index of Difficulty I diff = (U + L)/ (N u + N L ) where U and L are the number of correct responses in the upper and lower groups respectively N u and N L are the number of test papers from the upper and lower groups

Index of Discrimination It might be positive It might be negative It might be zero Formula of DI : Ru/Nu-Rl/Nl Guessing formula :S=R-W/K-1

Distractor Analysis Good distractor- More examinees of the lower group Poor distractor- More examinees of the higher group Correct response should have positive discrimination index Distractor should have negative discrimination index

Determine the Index of Difficulty of an Item Interpretation of Index of Difficulty (Ebel, 1965) A test item is: If it has a difficulty index of: Very Easy 0.91 and above Easy 0.76 to 0.90 Optimum Difficulty 0.26 to 0.75 Difficult 0.11 to 0.25 Very Difficult 0.10 and below

Evaluation Code for Item Analysis Item Category is Fair Options Acceptable Discrimination level High or Moderate Difficulty level Optimum or Easy or Difficult Recommendation – Retain the test item

Questions to Ask yourself in Designing a Test What objectives will (should) I be testing? What types of items will be included in the test? How long will the test be in terms of time and number of items? How much will each objective be worth in terms of weighting and number of items?

Planning a Test First step: Outline learning objectives or major concepts to be covered by the test Test should be representative of objectives and material covered Major student complaint: Tests don’t fairly cover the material that was supposed to be canvassed on the test.

Planning a Test Second Step: Create a test blueprint Third Step: Create questions based on blueprint Match the question type with the appropriate level of learning Fourth Step: For each check on the blueprint, jot down (might use 3x5 cards) 3-4 alternative question on ideas and item types which will get at the same objective Fifth Step: Organize questions and/or ideas by item types

Planning a Test Sixth Step: Eliminate similar questions Seventh Step: Walk away from this for a couple of days Eighth Step: Reread all of the items – try doing this from the standpoint of a student

Planning a Test Ninth Step: Organize questions logically Tenth Step: Time yourself actually taking the test and then multiply that by about 4 depending on the level of students Eleventh Step: Analyze the results (item analyses)

Translating Course Objectives/Competencies into Test Items Syllabus Specification table- what was taught/weight areas to be tested Creating a Test Blueprint (see handout) Blueprint- this is the test plan, i.e., which questions test what concept Plotting the objectives/competencies against some hierarchy representing levels of cognitive difficulty or depth of processing

Blue Print of a Question Paper Objectives Knowledge Understanding Application Total Form of Ques MC VSA SA MC VSA SA MC VSA SA No.Syst. 1(1) 3(1) 4(2) + & - 2(1) 2(2) 2(2) 4(1) 10(6) x 1(1) 1(1) 2(1) 2(2) 4(1) 10(6) Div. 2(1) 1(1) 1(1) 4(2) 8(5) Frac. 1(1) 2(1) 1(1) 4(3) Measures 1(1) 3(1) 1(1) 1(1) 6(4) Time 1(1) 2(1) 1(1) 4(3) Geo 1(1) 1(1) 2(1) 4(3) Sub Total 3(3) 3(2) 7(4) 5(5) 2(1) 8(4) 6(5) 4(4) 12(4) 50(32) Total 50

Design of a Question Paper Assigning weightage to objectives Objective (K+ U+A+A+S+E) with %age Marks Assigning weightage to content areas Topics with Marks Assigning weightage to different types of Questions Type of Ques./No. of Ques./Marks allotted/Time Assigning weightage to Difficulty Level Easy (20%)+Average (50%)+Difficult (25%)

Question Arrangement on a Test Group by question type Common instructions will save reading time Limit the number of times students have to change frame of reference Patterns on test must be logical Arrange from a content standpoint Keep similar concepts together Group by difficulty (easy to hard)

Selecting the Right Type of evaluation How do you know what type of question to use and when? It depends on the skill you are testing. Evaluation should always match as closely as possible the actual activity you’re teaching. Examples: Teaching Speech, should evaluate an oral speech If testing ability to write in Spanish, better give an essay. Testing reading –MC, TF Wouldn’t use MC to test creative writing

Question Types verses Cognitive Levels of Learning Knowledge Comprehension Application Analysis Synthesis Evaluation Multiple Choice (MC) True/False (TF) Matching Completion Short Answer MC Short Answer Problems Essay Performance MC Short Answer Essay

Constructing the Test Types of Test Questions: Multiple-Choice Items True-False Items Matching Items Fill-In, Completion or Short-Answer Items Essay Questions

Multiple Choice Items Advantages: Extremely versatile-can measure the higher level mental processes (application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation) A compromise between a short answer/essay and T/F item Can cover a wide range of content can be sampled by one test Disadvantages Difficult to construct plausible alternative responses

Types of Multiple Choice Items Four Basic Types Question Type Incomplete Statement Type Right Answer Type Best Answer Type Which Type is Best? Question Type vs. Incomplete Statement Right Answer vs. Best Answer Type

Multiple Choice Items Writing the stem first: Be sure the stem asks a clear question Stems phrased as questions are usually easier to write Stems should not contain a lot of irrelevant info. Appropriate reading level/terms Be sure the stem is grammatically correct Avoid negatively stated stems

Multiple Choice Items Writing the correct response Use same terms/reading level Avoid too many qualifiers Assign a random position in the answer sequence Read the stem and correct response together Generate the distractors/alternative responses

Multiple Choice Items Other Tips for Constructing MC Items: Items should have 3-4 alternatives. Stem should present a single, clearly formulated problem Simple, understandable, exclude extraneous words from both stem and alternatives Include in the stem any word that are repeated in each response Avoid all of the above (can answer based on partial information) Avoid none of the above

Multiple Choice Items Alternative responses/distractors should be plausible and as homogeneous as possible Response alternatives should not overlap Two synonymous terms (arithmetic average/mean) Avoid double negatives None of the following are part of the brain except which one? Emphasize negative wording Each item should be independent of other items in the test Information in the stem of one item should NOT help answer another item.

True-False Test Items Best suited for testing 3 kinds of info.: Knowledge level learning Understanding of misconceptions When there are two logical responses Advantages: Sample a large amount of learning per unit of student testing time Disadvantages: Tends to be very easy 50-50 chance of guessing Tends to be low in reliability

Tips for Constructing True/False Items Tips for constructing True-False Items Avoid double negatives Avoid long or complex sentences Specific determiners (always, never, only, etc.) should be used with caution Include only one central idea in each statement Avoid emphasizing the trivial Exact quantitative (two, three, four) language is better than qualitative (some, few, many) Avoid a pattern of answers

Objective Test Item Analyses Evaluating the Effectiveness of Items.. Why? Scientific way to improve the quality of tests and test items Identify poorly written items which mislead students Identify areas (competencies) of difficulty Item analyses provided info. on: Item difficulty Item discrimination Effectiveness of alternatives in MC Tests

Examples Match the following: Group A Group B Classical Cond. (a) B.F. Skinner Operant Cond. (b) E.L. Thorndike Laws of Learning © R.L. Thorndike Father of correlation (d) I.P.Pavlov (e) Francis Galton 1. 2. 3. 4. 1. 2. 3. 4. (A) a b c d (B) d a b e © c d a b (D) b a c d

Examples Autonomous Investment is Functionally related to interest rate Functionally related to both income and interest rate Functionally related to income alone Independent of income and interest rate

Examples Write ‘Y’ for yes or ‘N’ for no as per your answer against the following statement: 1. Maulana Abul Kalam Azad was the first education minister of India ( ) Fill in the blanks: 2. ………. of the Nov. is observed as Education Day in India. 3. Education Day is celebrated on……….. Mark (T) for true or (F) for false for the following statements: 4. Teachers day and Education day, both the days are related with Dr S.Radhakrisnan. ( ) 5. Plato’s original name was Aristocle ( )

Examples Consider the following the following statements: The coefficient of correlation Is not affected by a change of origin and scale Lies between -1 to +1 Is a relative measure of linear association between two or more variables Which of the statements given above is/are correct 1 only (b) 2 and 3 only (c) 1 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3 only

Examples What is the correct sequence of the Marxian stage theory of growth? 1. Slavery 2. Primitive Communism 3. Socialism 4. Communism 5. Feudalism 6. Capitalism Select the correct answer using the code given below : 1-2—3-4-5-6 (b) 2-1-5-6-3-4 © 1-2-5-6-3-4 (d) 2-1-5-6-3-4 Select the odd one from the following concepts: Reliability, Validity, Norms, Measurement(--------------) Growth, Motivation, Maturation, Development (--------) Saturn, Mars, earth, Pluto ( ---------------)

Examples Directions: The following item consists of two statements one labelled as ‘Assertion (A)’ and the other as ‘Reason ®’. You are to examine these two statements carefully and select the correct answer using the codes given below: Both A and R are individually true and R is the correct explanation of A Both A and R are individually true and R is not the correct explanation of A A is true but R is false A is false but R is true Assertion (A) : Variance of X is always greater than the standard deviation of X Reason ® : Variance is square of standard deviation

Examples Analogy type item: There are two situations. The first situation is complete and second is incomplete. It should be completed on the basis of first situation. 1.Socrates : Aristocle :: Aristotle : 2. Mansarovar: Premchand:: Saket : 3.Kolkata: Hooghly:: Hydearbad: Simple Recall Items: 1.The term Blog has been derived from the word……….. 2.The expanded form of the term ‘Wiki’ is……………..

Short-Answer Items Two Types: (Question and Incomplete Statement) Advantages: Easy to construct Excellent format for measuring who, what, when, and where info. Guessing in minimized Student must know the material- rather than simply recognize the answer Disadvantages: Grading can be time consuming More than one answer can be correct

Short Answer Items Tips for Constructing Short Answer Items Better to supply the term and require a definition For numerical answers, indicate the degree of precision expected and the units in which they are to be expressed. Use direct questions rather than incomplete statements Try to phrase items so that there is only one possible correct response When incomplete statements are used, do not use more than one blank within an item.

Examples 1. Enumerate the five functions of measurement. 2. Write down the five examples of learning. 3. Write any five features of Indifference Curve. 4. Write five differences between language and literature. 5. Define term sonnet and differentiate with satire. 6. Indicate the levels or scales of measurement. 7. Enumerate the three technical charecteristics of good measuring tool . 8. What is the relationship between social work and psychology?

Essay Questions Types of Essay Questions Extended Response Question Great deal of latitude on how to respond to a question. Example: Discuss essay and multiple-choice type tests. Restricted Response Question More specific, easier to score, improved reliability and validity Example: Compare and contrast the relative advantages of disadvantages of essay and multiple choice tests with respect to: reliability, validity, objectivity, & usability.

Essay Items Advantages: Measures higher learning levels (synthesis, evaluation) and is easier to construct than an objective test item Students are less likely to answer an essay question by guessing Require superior study methods Offer students an opportunity to demonstrate their abilities to: Organize knowledge Express opinions Foster creativity

Essay Items May limit the sampling of material covered Tends to reduce validity of the test Disadvantages Subjective unreliable nature of scoring “ halo effect” – good or bad student’s previous level of performance Written expression Handwriting legibility Grammatical and spelling errors Time Consuming

Essay Questions Give students a clear idea of the scope & direction intended for the answer Might help to start the question with the description of the required behavior (e.g., compare, analyze) Appropriate language level for students Construct questions that require students to demonstrate a command of background info, but do not simply repeat that info. If question calls for an opinion, be sure that the emphasis is not on the opinion but on the way its presented or argued. Use a larger number of shorter, more specific questions rather than one or two longer questions so that more information can be assessed.

Essay Questions You might Give students a pair of sample answers to a question of the type you will give on the test. Sketch out a rubric (grading scheme) for each question before reading the papers OR randomly select a few to read and make up the grading scheme based on those answers Give students a writing rubric Detach identifying information and use code numbers instead to avoid letting personality factors influence you. After grading all the papers on one item, reread the first few to make sure you maintained consistent standards Be clear to student the extend to which factors other than content (e.g., grammar, handwriting, etc.) will influence the grade.

Essay Questions Tips for constructing Essay Questions Provide reasonable time limits for each question “ thinking and writing time” Avoid permitting students a choice of questions Will not necessarily get a representative sample of student achievement. Only be requiring all students to answer all questions can their achievement be compared A definite task should be put forth to the student Critical words: compare, contrast, analyze, evaluate, etc.

Examples Distinguish between criterion-referenced test and norm-referenced test. Which type of test should be preferred in educational measurement and why? How can the process of “Management by Learning Objective’s be implemented in the classroom teaching? Discuss the statement with examples. Describe the forms of objectives type items and illustrate their forms with suitable examples.

Scoring Essay Items Write an outline of the key points (use outline to design a rubric) Determine how many points are to be assigned to the question as a whole and to the various parts within it. If possible, score the test without knowledge of the student’s name Face Sheet Score all of the answers to one question before proceeding to the next question Consistent standard

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Know how of question bank development

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