Online testing maintaining good test content

Online Testing: Maintaining
Good Test Content
Online Testing:
Maintaining
Good Test
Content

Good Test Content
Overview
1. Creating, Reviewing and Maintaining Good Test
Content.
2. Test Authoring Scenarios
3. Summary
Source: Test Generator – Online Testing: Maintaining Good Test Content

Good Test Content
Creating, Reviewing and Maintaining Good Test
Content
 When we refer to "test content" or
"items", we mean questions and answers
and any associated parameters such as
question reference, point value,
randomization, etc.

Good Test Content
Test Authoring Scenarios
 Hopefully one or more of these scenarios match your
current test authoring activities.
 1 - Your organization buys packaged test content which may/may not track
the learning objectives defined during the training/learning experience.
 2 - Your organization uses subject matter experts (SMEs), who have little if
any experience or training in developing test content, creating, evaluating
and publishing their own test content.
 3 - Similar to 2, test content evaluated by one or more peer evaluators.
 4 - The authoring, evaluation and test publishing process is conducted by a
team to include trained test authors, subject matter experts and
a psychometrician or two thrown in to the mix. All test content is subject to
rigorous review before being published to a testing audience.

Good Test Content
 My impression, based on countless discussions with
customers is that their test authoring falls under
scenario 1, 2 or 3. It's a crap shoot.
 Scenario 4 is simply not an option for many
organizations: too expensive, too time-consuming or
simply not an approach that the organization is willing
to take.

Good Test Content
 At the risk of stating the obvious, here are some best
practices for your consideration.
 1 - Review your test content BEFORE adding it to your testing
software. We're making certain assumptions here: a) you have legacy items
that are in an MS Word file, or in a spreadsheet of some sort.
 2 - Prepare the questions for importing into the testing software's database
 3 - Following the import of the items, we recommend reviewing the items
AGAIN, in their new environment. This would be done at a question bank
level, question banks ideally being the repositories for KNOWN, GOOD
QUESTIONS. In our opinion this is a critical step because it is from question
banks that test are created.

Good Test Content
 4 - Create a test by importing items into the test from one or multiple question
banks.
 5 - Publish the test for peer review ONLY. If "peer" means just you, then publish it
by enrolling yourself in the test and view it as a test taker would see it.
 6 - Correct and tweak. If you discover errors: spelling, grammar, formatting or
technical errors in the content, now's your chance to fix them--before you publish
the test to your test takers. If you discover that one or more items are simply
"bad" items, it's a good idea to go back to the question bank and correct the item
at a question bank level and keep track of the changes you made to the item. In
TG there's a notes field that can be used as a journal entry to help you keep track
of items that have been modified. Once you fix it at the question bank level, we
assume you will be re-importing it into your test. Keep in mind that the original,
"bad" item is still in your test, so make sure to remove the bad item from the test.
You might have to repeat this "tweaking" process if you weren’t especially
thorough in evaluating your test items WHILE they were in the question banks.

Good Test Content
Summary
 Tracking down bad items AFTER a test is published is
more troublesome than doing it on the front end.
 You want your reports to accurately reflect whatever
test-taker outcomes you are attempting to measure
and NOT worrying whether or not you have bad test
items.
 You may not be able to provide scenario #4, but you
can take steps to help ensure that you are delivering--
to the best of your ability--test content that is
accurate.

Good Test Content
Questions?
928.266.0553
sales@testshop.com
Visit our Website: Test Generator

Online testing maintaining good test content

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