MODULE 5

Development of Classroom Assessment Tools

INTRODUCTION

This module delineates the guidelines to observe in writing the actual test items
for multiple choice, true-false, matching, short answer and essay items. Every teacher
should be aware of the general principles of test construction in order to ensure that the
correct information is used assessment and decision purposes.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

After completing this module, you should be able to:

a. clarify the different types of teacher made test according to their nature
and use;
b. cite rules or guidelines in constructing tests as followed in sample test
papers;
c. constructs self-made test items based on the TOS and the guidelines in
writing test items; and,
d. match learning objectives with test formats.

LEARNING CONTENT

GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS IN WRITING THE TEST ITEMS

Both norm-referenced and criterion-referenced tests fall under the two very
general categories: (a) objective test, and (b) essay tests. Some objective tests
include: the true or false test, multiple choice test and matching type of tests, and
enumeration test. On the other hand, essay tests can be broadly subdivided into
composition tests or definition illustration tests.

Lesson 1: WRITING MULTIPLE-CHOICE ITEMS

The multiple-choice item is a selection-type item which presents students with

a set of possible options from which they are to choose the correct of the best answer. It
consists of a stem which presents a problem and several options (alternatives or choices)
which provide possible solutions to a given problem

The stem may be in a question or in an incomplete statement. The options

include the correct answer which is called the key and several plausible wrong options,
which are called the distracters, whose function is to distract students from the correct
answer.

Multiple-choice items are preferable to use than other type of items because of
the following reasons:
 1. They can measure simple and complex learning outcomes.
2. They can measure a broad range of achievement.
3. They are more objective and can be scored easily.
4. They are appropriate for diagnostic use.
5. They present the task clearly.

Guidelines for Writing Multiple-Choice Items

Writing Good Stems

1. Present one clearly stated problem in the stem. The stem should clearly state
only one problem.it must not be vague, ambiguous, or too broad. It should be
specific enough that there is no room for misinterpretation.
Example:
BAD: A table of specifications
a. specifies the weaknesses of student performance
b. indicates hoe learning can be improved
c. adequately samples the behavior to be tested*
d. reduces the amount of time to construct the items
BETTER: Why is table of specifications primarily important before
writing any test?
a. It indicates how learning can be improved.
b. It specifies the weakness of student performance.
c. It adequately samples the behavior to be tested.*
d. It reduces the amount of time to construct the items.

The improved stem presents one clear problem that the students will
surely understand. It is specific enough that the question can be answered even
without the options.

2. State the stem in simple, clear language. The stem should be written in simple
language devoid of any difficult word. The sentence structure must be in simple
form. Complex sentence structure should be avoided. Any unnecessary word/s
and irrelevant details in the stem must be eliminated.
Example:
BAD: To measure adequately the learning outcome that is to get
the main idea of a selection without giving chance to
ambiguity, the best type of item to use is
a. Short answer item
b. Completion item
c. Multiple-choice item*
d. Matching item
 The stem is wordy and contains a difficult word (ambiguity), unless the
word is introduced and explained during instruction. The stem needs that to be
shortened to make it concise and clear in defining the problem.
BETTER: To measure clearly and precisely the skill of getting the
main idea of a selection, the best type of item to use is
a. Short-answer
b. Completion
c. Matching
d. Multiple-choice*

The reason why the stem should be stated simply and clearly is to
measure the intended learning outcome and not any other skill or competency.
Remember, the item should measure only one intended learning outcome so
that it can be useful in diagnosing a learning difficulty.

3. Make the stem longer than the options. The stem should adequately cover
enough details to make it clear and precise. It is common error to load the
options with too many details so that the alternatives become longer than the
stem. The options should be shorter than the stem. In other words, the stem
should be longer than the options.
Example:
BAD: Objectives are useful when
a. Course content is clearly specified.
b. Student performance is precisely delineated.
c. Teacher behavior is definitely demonstrated.
d. Learning activities are made congruent and observable.

The options are too wordy. Brevity and clarity of expression must be
observed in writing an item. To shorten the options, the stem should contain
enough details to make it clear and definite.

BETTER: Objectives are useful in test construction when they are

stated in the point of view of the
a. teacher
b. student*
c. course
d. activity

4. Stress the negative word used in the stem. There are instances that the use of
a negative word is important in measuring a particular learning outcome.
Examples of negative words which may be used in the stem are no, not and
except. The negative word used can be emphasized by 1) underling it, 2)
capitalizing it, or 3) placing it at the end of an incomplete statement. Such
 emphasis can avoid the negative aspect of a stem being overlooked by a
student.

Writing Plausible Options

1. Make sure there is only one correct answer. The teacher should avoid writing
options that may be open to debate or argument. The correct answer must be
unquestionably correct which everybody should agree and accept.

2. Make the options homogeneous. Homogeneous options are those that belong
to one category or classification. If the key is a fruit, the distracters should also
be fruits. Homogeneous options are plausible alternatives. Plausible alternatives
have the possibility to be chosen by the uninformed students.

3. Make all the options grammatically consistent and parallel in form with the stem
of the item. Options should be consistent in tense, article, or grammatical form
with the stem. If the stem calls for a future tense, the key and the distracters
should also be stated in the same tense to make the options parallel in the
form. If the stem calls for a word that begins with a consonant, then the article
“a” should be used. The other options should be words which have initial
consonants in order to make the parallel.

4. Vary the length of the key to avoid giving a clue. Most of the times, the correct
answer tends to be longer than the distracters. To avoid length as a clue, make
the correct answer shorter, sometimes longer, other times of equal length with
the rest of the options. As long as there is no predictable pattern as regards
the length of the key, giving length as a clue is eliminated.

5. Place the position of the correct answer in random order. The positions of the
correct answer should not appear about the same number most of the times.
Randomly assign the key so as to avoid giving a clue.

6. Avoid using “all of the above” as an alternative. Most of the time, the item
writer has difficulty of thinking any option so that “all of the above” is used. If
the option all of the above is the correct answer, any of the two alternatives
detected to be correct by the student can give a clue as to the key. If this
happens, the student need not read the remaining alternatives. The distracters
lose their function in distinguishing a good performer from a poor one.

7. Avoid using two options that have similar meaning. If two options are similar
in the meaning, the student can eliminate them as a possible answer.
Lesson 2: WRITING TRUE-FALSE ITEMS

True-false items require students to identify statements which are correct or

incorrect.

Rules for Writing True-False Items

1. Each statement should include only one idea. The idea should be stated in the
main point of the item rather than on some trivial detail.
Example:
POOR: True False* The true-false item as seen by
Newton takes little time to prepare.
BETTER: True* False The true-false item takes little time to
prepare.

The “poor” example is marked false because Newton is a scientist not

an expert on test construction. The falsity of statement is based on a minor
detail not on the major idea, which is takes little time to prepare.
The “better” item focuses on a major idea. The main idea which is takes
little to prepare should be judged true or false.

2. Each statement should be short and simple. The item becomes clear when the
statement is short and is expressed in a simple sentence.
Example:
POOR: T* F True-false items provide for adequate
sampling objectives and can be scored rapidly.
BETTER: T* F True-false items provide for adequate
sampling of objectives.
T* F True-false items can be scored rapidly.

The “poor” example has two central ideas. It can be separated into two
statements each of which carries one main idea. The “better” items are
improvement of the “poor” items.

3. Qualifiers such as few, many, seldom, always, never, small, large, and so on
should be avoided. They make the statements vague and indefinite.
Example:
POOR: T F* True-false items are seldom prone to
guessing.
BETTER: T* F True-false items are prone to guessing.

The qualifier “seldom” makes the “poor” example a false item. When
“seldom” is deleted, the item becomes true.
 4. Negative statements should be used sparingly. If such statements cannot be
avoided, emphasize the negative word used by underlining it or capitalizing all
the letters in that word. This practice will preclude negative statements to be
read as positive ones.

Example:
POOR: T F* True-false items are NOT prone to guessing.
BETTER: T F* True-false items are not prone to guessing.

5. Double negatives should be avoided. Double negatives can be interpreted as

affirmative. However, they may be understood as emphasized negative. Double
negatives tend to make statements ambiguous.
Example:
POOR: T F True-false items cannot be scored by an
untrained person.
BETTER: T F* True-false items CANNOT be scored by a
trained person.

The “poor” example uses double negatives. To improve this item, delete
one of the negative words and use capital letters to show emphasis.

6. Statements of opinions or facts should be attributed to some important person

or organization.
Example:
POOR: T F Pneumonia is one of the leading causes of
death.
BETTER: T* F The Department of Health reported that
pneumonia is one of the leading causes of death.

7. The number of true and false statements should be equal whenever possible.
Example:
POOR: 1. True 2. True 3. False 4. True 5. True 6. False
BETTER: 1. False 2. True 3. True 4. False 5. True 6. False

The “poor” example has 4 “true” answers and 2 “false” keys. The
“better” example has 3 “true” answers and 3 “false” keys.

Lesson 3: WRITING MATCHING ITEMS

The matching item is a selection-type of item consisting of a series of stimuli

(or stems) called premises, and a series of options called responses. The premises
and responses are arranged in columns. Usually, the premises are placed in the left
 column while the responses are set in the right column. Directions provide the basis
for matching.
When the number of items in one column equals the number of items in the
second column, we have a perfect match. Otherwise, when the premises column has
less items than the options column, then we have an imperfect match. In the perfect
match case, when pairs are present, knowing the (n-10 pairs will automatically answer
the match for the last pair even if the student is completely ignorant of the last match.

The General Principles for Writing Matching Items

1. Be sure that the materials in the test are homogenous. This is the general
principle in all test types but we often find ourselves violating this. In layman’s
term, this means that we should be testing a concept at a time for each item.
In the matching case, we should specify the concept-pair we are trying to test.
Example:
Direction: For each province in column A, find the corresponding capital
in column B. Write the letter corresponding to the capital in the blank provided
for in column A.
Column A Column B
___1. Misamis Occidental a. Marawi City
___2. Agusan del Norte b. Ozamis City
___3. Misamis Oriental c. Butuan City
___4. Lanao del Norte d. Iligan City
___5. Lanao del Sur e. Cagayan de Oro City

2. Use an imperfect match type as much as possible. A perfect match will include
guess-work once the student reads the second to the last pair of concepts.
Even if the student has no idea as to the last pair concepts, he can “guess”
because there are no other matches left.

3. Indicate the basis for matching column A with column B. Use the directions
effectively to explain clearly the basis for matching column A with column B.
The directions should lead to no ambiguity as to the basis for matching.
Remember that the given a pair of concepts there is more than one way of
rationalizing the pairing done.

4. Place all of the items for one matching exercise on the same page. Do not
overwork the students by putting column A on page 2 and on column B beyond
page 1 so that the pair of the concept in columns A page 1, is found on page 2
column B.

Lesson 4: WRITING SHORT ANSWER ITEMS

Rules in Writing Short Answer Items

1. State the item clearly and precisely so that only one correct answer is
acceptable. An item may be so stated that several correct answers are possible.
Example:
POOR: The item that require students to select the correct answer
is _____(multiple-choice, matching, true-false.
BETTER: The item that consists of a stem and three or more
alternative is_____(multiple-choice)
2. Begin with a question and shift to an incomplete statement later to achieve
preciseness and conciseness. The use of a question makes the problem clear
and specific so that only one correct answer is possible. The question form is
suited to younger examinees. An incomplete statement becomes less vague
and ambiguous when it is stated first in question form.
Example:
What is the correct answer in a multiple-choice item called? (Key)
The correct answer in a multiple-choice item is called_____(key).

Sometimes, the question form is preferred because it presents the

problem clearly and precisely.

3. Leave the blank at the end of the statement. When the blank is placed at the
end of the statement, the students is given a chance to determine what problem
really is. Placing the blank at the start of the statement tends to make the
student confused as what the problem is.
Example:
POOR: _____ are the incorrect alternatives in a multiple-choice
item. (Distracters)
BETTER: The wrong alternatives in a multiple-choice item are called
_____ (distracters).

4. Focus on one important idea instead of trivial detail and leave only one blank.
Example:
POOR: When a teacher wants to _____ the student’s learning
difficulties, the kind of assessment she should use is _____
assessment (identify, diagnostic).
BETTER: When a teacher wants to identify the student’s learning
difficulties, the kind of assessment she should use is _____
assessment (diagnostic).

The “poor” example focuses on an unimportant idea (identify) and uses

two blanks instead of one. The “better” item presents only one problem
(diagnostic assessment) and leaves only one blank.
 5. Avoid giving clues to correct answer. Clues serve to give away the correct
answer. Length or shortness of a blank can indicate a long or short answer.
The use of articles “a” or “an” before a blank can suggest answer begins with
consonants or a vowel sound.
Example:
POOR: A collection of questions held in a system of storage is
called an _____. (item blank)
BETTER: A collection of questions held in a system of storage is
called _____. (item blank).
Merely delete the article “an” which suggest that the answer begins with
a vowel sound. In this way, giving a clue is avoided.

Lesson 5: WRITING ESSAY QUESTIONS

Essay questions require students to produce their own answers freely. They
measure the ability to organize, integrate, and express ideas. These abilities cannot
be adequately determined or assessed by selection-type items.
The higher order thinking skills (analysis, synthesis, and evaluation) can be
directly measured by essay questions. Essay involves less time to prepare than
selection type items. However, essay questions do not provide adequate sampling of
learning outcomes to be measured. Scoring tends to be subjective, unreliable, and
time consuming. Poor handwriting, misspelled words, and poor grammar tend to lower
scores.

Rules for Preparing/Administering Essay Questions

1. State questions that require clear, specific, and narrow task or topic to be
performed. Some sample terms to use that make the task clear and specific are
as follows: compare, describe, explain, summarize, relate, differentiate,
criticize, and appraise. The topic of an essay question must be limited and
narrow.
The problem of solid waste management is quite broad to discuss in an essay
question. It can be narrowed down to recycling as one of the ways to manage
solid waste. Thus an essay question that can be formulated runs like this:
Describe how old magazines and newspapers can be recycled at home.

2. Give enough time limit for answering each essay questions. Enough time to
think and write the answers should be given to students. Only a few essay
questions should be formulated for a given class period. It is not wise to include
so many questions to cover as many desired learning outcomes because there
may not be enough time for the students to finish the test. It is advisable to
include one or two essay questions in the testing period.
3. Require students to answer all questions. It is best to require all students to
respond to the same essay questions for point of comparison and
representativeness. If only a few questions are answered, the problem of
adequate and representative sampling of behaviour becomes evident.

4. Make it clear to students if spelling, punctuation, content, clarity, and style are
to be considered in scoring the essay questions. When these criteria are clear
and specific to students, the item becomes valid.

5. Grade each essay question by the point method, using well-defined criteria. By
using certain criteria as a guide, scoring essay questions becomes less
subjective and more objective.

6. Evaluate all of the students’ responses to one question before going to the next
question. Scoring essay test question-by-question rather than student-by-
student maintains uniform standard for evaluating the answer to each question.

7. Evaluate the answers to essay questions without identifying the student. There
is a tendency to score essay questions based on personal bias. To prevent
knowing the identity of the student, a code number may be assigned to each
student. In this way, answers can be scored more objectively based on their
own merits.

8. If possible, two or more correctors must be employed to ensure the reliable

results. The scores of the correctors must be averaged to determine the final
score of a student to each question.
TEACHING-LEARNING ACTIVITIES

I. Evaluate the following items. Indicate whether each item has

A. Acceptable stem and acceptable options

B. Acceptable stem but unacceptable options
C. Unacceptable stem but acceptable options
D. Unacceptable stem and unacceptable options

Choose the letter only of the correct answer from the above options.

_______1. The heart is protected from injury by the

a. skull c. rib cage
b. pelvis d. spinal column
_______2. The topsoil contains a dark sticky substance called
a. bedrock c. humus
b. compost d. subsoil
_______3. Which of the following games is different?
a. Basketball c. Football
b. Baseball d. Badminton
_______4. When expressed as a percentage, ¾ equals
a. a number less than 80% c. a number greater than 75%
b. exactly 75% d. 80%
_______5. The following methods are used in hydroponics except
a. slop- method c. sub- irrigation method
b. water- culture method d. all of the above
_______6. A Gumamela is a
a. incomplete flower c. pistillate flower
b. complete flower d. staminate flower
_______7. A reading teacher wants to find out if the pupils are ready to move on
to the next lesson. What kind of test should she give?
a. diagnostic c. placement
b. formative d. summative
_______8. Generally, the longer the test, the higher is its
a. validity c. usability
b. reliability d. interpretability
_______9. A standardized test
a. has norms c. has scorability
b. has objectivity d. has reliability
_______10. Luis is twelve years old. How many orbits around the sun has the earth
made since he was born?
a. 12 c. 52
b. 30 d. 365
II. Read each item below. Evaluate each item by writing G for good item and P for
poor item.

A. For True-False Item

_______11. Each item task should match the learning outcome to be measured.
_______12. The options “none of the above” is perhaps used more often with
mathematical problems.
_______13. No pattern should appear in the test.
_______14. It is not desirable to make the options approximately unequal in length.

B. For Short-Answer Item

_______15. At the end of the semester, Mr. Dela Cruz gave his students a test in
mathematics. This type of test is called __________.
_______16. Anything that can be expressed quantitatively is measured by a
__________.
_______17. __________ is the process of determining learner’s achievement in
qualitative terms.

C. For Essay Test

_______18. Name and explain briefly in at least 50 words the important functions
of the nervous system.
_______19. Trace the path of oxygen in the respiratory system.
_______20. In not more than 200 words, explain how nuclear fission takes place.
ASSESSMENT TASKS

I. Decide whether the following instructional objectives and test items match. Write
the letter of your choice before the number.
A. MATCH
B. DO NOT MATCH
_______1. Objective: Identify the 4 components of an instructional
objective.
Test Item: Explain the 4 components of an instructional objective.
_______2. Objective: List the main events in a story in chronological order.
Test Item: List the main events in a story in chronological order.
_______3. Objective: Distinguish fact from opinion in a news article.
Test Item: Define fact and opinion.
_______4. Objective: Subtract 4-digit numbers from 5-digit numbers with
regrouping.
Test Item: Subtract 4-digit numbers from 5-digit numbers without
regrouping.
_______5. Objective: Name the capitals of 76 provinces in the country.
Test Item: Name the capitals of 20 cities in the country.
_______6. Objective: Predict outcomes of stories read.
Test Item: Supply the ending of the following stories.
_______7. Objective: Discuss briefly the principle of sowing and reaping.
Test Item: Give two examples of how sowing and reaping can be
illustrated.
_______8. Objective: Draw a familiar scenery in a rural area using any
medium.
Test Item: Draw a scene of a barrio fiesta using cray pas.

_______9. Objective: Solve worded problems involving the3 Measures of Central

Tendency.
Test Item: Apply Polya’s 4 steps in problem solving to find for the
unknown.
_______10. Objective: Define the 3 basic concepts of assessment.
Test Item: Identify if the situations correspond as Test, Measurement
and Evaluation.
REFERENCES:

Asaad, Abubakar S. and Hailaya, Wilham M. (2004). Measurement and evaluation:

Concept and principles, Manila, Rex Book Store

Bloom, Benjamin, et al. (1956). Taxonomy of educational objectives: Cognitive

domain. New York: David Mckat.

Calderon, Jose F. and Gonzales, Expectation (1993). Measurement and evaluation.

Mandaluyong City: National Bookstore.

Gronlund, Norman E. (2003). Assessment of student achievement. 7th ed. Boston:

Pearson, Education, Inc.

Gutierrez, Danilo S. (2007). Assessment of learning outcomes (Cognitive Domain).

Book Manila, Rex Book Store.

Oriodo, Leonora L. and Eleanor M. Dallo-Antonio. (1984). Evaluating educational

outcomes. Manila: Rex Bookstore.