LOGO Dinh Cong Triet

TEST DESIGNING & TEST SPECIFICATION BUILDING Summer training course- August 2011

10 Questions for thought

WHAT to test? Skills SpeakingReading Listening Writing Knowledge Language Grammar lexis semantics syntax morphology

Reading WHAT to test? Reading aloudSilent reading pronunciation Stresses & intonation Identify main facts & details, Relate cause & effect Identify sequence of events, predicting outcomes inferring meaning from contextual clues Subskills

Listening WHAT to test? Identify main facts & details, Relate cause & effect Identify sequence of events, predicting outcomes inferring meaning from contextual clues Subskills

Grammar WHAT to test? Syntax (sentence structure) Mechanics: e.g Punctuation, capital letter, comma, etc.. Rules of grammar pronouns nouns verbs subject & verb agreement prepositions tenses adjectives adverbs comparatives

Speaking WHAT to test? Language Presentation skills Content / ideas Pronunciation Organization quantity quality clarity accuracy appropriacyformat vocabularySentence complexity syntaxgrammar fluencyconfidence Eye contact style

Writing WHAT to test? Language Content / ideas Organization quantity quality clarity accuracy appropriacy Paraphrasing vocSentence complexity syntax Topic sentence Supportive sentences compound Simple complex

WHAT to test? Skills SpeakingReading Listening Writing Knowledge Language Grammar lexis semantics syntax morphology

Reading WHAT to test? Reading aloudSilent reading pronunciation Stresses & intonation Identify main facts & details, Relate cause & effect Identify sequence of events, predicting outcomes inferring meaning from contextual clues Subskills

Listening WHAT to test? Identify main facts & details, Relate cause & effect Identify sequence of events, predicting outcomes inferring meaning from contextual clues Subskills

Grammar WHAT to test? Syntax (sentence structure) Mechanics: e.g Punctuation, capital letter, comma, etc.. Rules of grammar pronouns nouns verbs subject & verb agreement prepositions tenses adjectives adverbs comparatives

Speaking WHAT to test? Language Presentation skills Content / ideas Pronunciation Organization quantity quality clarity accuracy appropriacyformat vocabularySentence complexity syntaxgrammar fluencyconfidence Eye contact style

Writing WHAT to test? Language Content / ideas Organization quantity quality clarity accuracy appropriacy Paraphrasing vocSentence complexity syntax Topic sentence Supportive sentences compound Simple complex

What makes test questions difficult? THINKING LEVELS

Designing test questions in accordance with the levels of thinking

Bloom’s taxonomy Old version, 1956, Benjamin Bloom New version, 1990’s, Lorin Anderson

BLOOM’S TAXONOMY. Knowledge Comprehension Application Analysis Synthesis Evaluation Arrange, define, list, memorise, name, relate, recall, repeat, state Classify, describe, discuss, explain, express, recognise, identify, report Apply, choose, demonstrate, illustrate, solve, use, interpret Analyse, calculate, categorise, criticise, contrast, distinguish Arrange, collect, compose, plan, construct, create, design, develop Argue, assess, justify, judge, rate, support, value, evaluate

Useful verbsSample questions stems Tell List Describe Relate Locate Write Find State name What happened after….? How many…..? Who was it that……..? Can you name the …….? Describe what happened at…..? Who spoke to…..? Can you tell why….? Find the meaning of …..? What is …….? Which is true or false…….? Bloom’s taxonomy – Knowledge level

Useful verbsSample questions stems Explain Interpret Outline Discuss Distinguish Predict Restate Compare Translate Describe Can you write in your own words….? Can you write a brief outline….? What do you think could happen next….? Who do you think….? What was the main idea…..? Who was the key character…..? Can you distinguish between….? Can you provide an example of …..? What do you mean ….? Can you provide a definition for….? Bloom’s taxonomy – Comprehension level

Useful verbsSample questions stems Solve Show Use illustrate Construct Complete Examine Classify Do you know another instance where….? Could this have happened in ….? Can you group by charateristics such as….? What factors would you change if…..? What questions would you ask of…..? From the information given, can you develop a set of instructions about……? Would this information be useful if you had….? Bloom’s taxonomy – Application level

Useful verbsSample questions stems Analyse Examine Compare Contrast Investigate Categorise Identify Explain Separate Which events could have happened….? What do you see as other possible outcomes…? How was this similar to….? Can you explain what must have happened when…? What are some of the problems of ….? Can you distinguish between….? What were some of the motives behind….? Bloom’s taxonomy – Analysis level

Useful verbsSample questions stems Create Invent Compose Predict Plan Construct Design Imagine Propose devise Can you design a…..to….? Can you see a possible solution to ….? If you had access to all resources how would you deal with….? What would happen if …..? How many ways can you……? Can you write a new recipe for a tasty dish? Why not compose a song about…..? Bloom’s taxonomy – Synthesis level

Useful verbsSample questions stems Judge Select Choose Decide Justify Debate Verify Argue Recommend determine Is there a better solution to …. Judge the value of…. Can you defend your position about…..? Do you think……is a good or bad thing? What changes to ……would you recommend? Do you believe….? Are you a …..person? How would you feel if….? How effective are…..? What do you think about…….? Bloom’s taxonomy – Evaluation level

BLOOM’S TAXONOMY. Skills Subskills Question types Levels

BLOOM’S TAXONOMY. Skills Subskills Question types Levels

SkillsSub-skillsQuestion typesQuestion levels Reading  Identifying main facts & details (FD)  Recognizing cause & effects relationship (CE)  Inferring meaning from contextual context ( ICC)  Predicting outcomes (PO)  Sequence of events (SOE)  Evaluating writer’s attitude & view  True/ false  Re-arrangement  Structured  Open-ended (subjective response, free writing)  MCQ (wh-question, matching, completion with options)  Cloze procedure Listening  Identifying facts & details  relate cause & effect  identify sequence of events  Inferring meaning from contextual clues.  Predicting out comes  Inferring speaker’s attitude & emotion (sad, happy, worried)  Inferring relationship between speakers.  MCQ with pictures or without pictures.  Fill in the blanks/ completion item.  Labelling.  Matching  True / false.  sequencing

BARRETT’S TAXONOMY.

Table of Specifications Question levels Bloom’s(Know,Comp, App, Ana, Syn, Eva) Barrett’s (LC, RO, IC, Eva, Appr) Skills & subskills Mark allocation Question Sections/numbers Time allocation Curriculum specs knowledge Question types (MCQ, T/F, gap-fill, matching, sequencing, open-ended) LSRW

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