Developing assessment instruments

Developing Assessment Instruments

Christopher Walker

How to use this information to further the learner assessment goalLearner Assesment

Dick and Carey 5 Steps for creating an instrument

Know the Types of Assessment Items

Domains and Item Types

Types of Criterion-Referenced Tests

The Criteria for writing test items

Entry Behavior Test – An entry behavior test is given to learners before instruction. They are designed to assess learners mastery of prerequisite skills.Pretest – A pretest is used to determine whether learners have already mastered some of the skills in your instructional analysis.

Types of Criterion-Referenced Tests

Continued• Practice Tests – Practice tests solicits the learners

participation during the instruction by providing them with a chance to rehearse the new skills they are being taught.

• Posttests - Posttests are given following instruction and help you determine if the learner has achieved the objectives you set our for them to accomplish.

The Criteria for writing test items

• Goal – Centered Criteria

• Learner – Centered Criteria

• Context – Centered Criteria

• Assessment – Centered Criteria

Dick and Carey 5 Steps for creating an Instrumemt• 1. Identify the elements to be evaluated. These elements should

be taken directly from the behaviors and criteria included in your objectives.

• 2. Paraphrase each element. Also make sure that a “Yes” response on the instrument always corresponds with a positive performance, and a “No” response with a negative performance.

• 3. Sequence the elements on the instruments. The order in which the elements are listed should match the natural order of the performance.

• Continued

4. Select the type of judgement to be made by the evaluator. When evaluating a performance, product, or attitude, judgements can be made using checklists, rating scales, or frequency counts.

5. Determine how the instrument will be scored. With checklists you can simply add up the yes answers to obtain a score for each objective and for the entire process or product. With rating scales you can add up the numbers assigned for each element.

Know the Types of Assessment Items

Essay

Fill-in-the-blank

Live performance checklist

Product checklist

Completion

Multiple-choice

Matching

Examples

Domains and Item TypesVerbal Information

Attitudes

Psychomotor Skills

Intellectual Skills

Verbal Content• Verbal Skill objectives generally call for simple objective-

style test items. This includes short-answer, matching and multiple choice

AttitudesAttitude objectives are more problematic since there is not usually a way to directly measure a persons attitude.

Psychomotor Skills• Psychomotor objectives are usually assessed by having the

learner perform a set of task that lead to the achievement of the goal. It also requires a checklist or rating scale so that the instructor can determine if the steps were performed correctly.

Intellectual Skills• Intellectual skills objective

require either objective style test items the creation of some product or a performance test.

Goal Centered Criteria

Test Items should be congruent with the terminal and performance objectives by matching the behavior involved

Learner-Centered CriteriaTest items should be taken into consideration and the characterizes and needs of the learners.

Assessment-Centered CriteriaTest Items should be well written and free of spelling grammar and punctuation errors. Directions should be clearly written to avoid any confusion on the part of the learner

Context-Centered CriteriaTest items such as writing performance and the learning context should be considered.

SummaryReflective Practitioner: The ability to adjust the learning

needs so that all learners can grasp the content and be able to spit out the information come test time

Life Long Learner: Being able to get through pressured situations that can help me be a better teacher and do my best as a learner as well.

Change Agent: The process of learning and preparing for test time

•Christopher Walker

•cwalker6541@myasu.alasu.edu