LAR ANA , INC .

TOP IC 3:
PLAN NING THE
CLA SSROOM T EST
PRESENTED BY DR. ZAIDI
 INTRO
Testing is part of the teaching and learning process.
The importance of planning and writing a reliable, valid and
fair test cannot be underestimated.

Designing tests is an important part of assessing le arners’

understanding of course c ontent and the ir level of c ompetenc y in
app lying what they have learned .

Whether you use low - stake quizzes or high -stake mid and final
se me ster examinations, careful design of the te sts will he lp provide
more calibrated results.
LE ARNING OUTC OME S
SBA: CLASSROOM ASSESSMENT | PENTAKSIRAN BILIK DARJAH (PBD)

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 3.1 PURPOSE OF CLASSROOM TESTING
One Two Three

Tests provide Teachers know their learners. The key to this

teachers with an Tests d eveloped by the process is the test
objective individual teachers for use in questions that are
feedback as to their own class are the most used to elicit
instructionally relevant. evidence of learning.
how much Teachers can tailor tests to Test questions and
learners have emphasise the information they tasks are not just a
learnt and consider important and to match planning tool; they
understand the the ability levels of their also form an
subject taught . learners. essential part of the
teaching sequence..
Dylon William
“Sharing high quality questions may be the most
significant thing we can do to improve the quality of
student learning,” (William, D., 2011).
3. 2 PL A NN ING THE C LA SSRO OM T EST
A well-constructed test must have high quality items. A well-constructed test is an instrument that is able to provide
accurate measure of the test taker’s ability within a particular domain. It is worth spending time to write high quality
items for tests. In order to produce high quality questions, the test construction has to be properly planned

D ECI DI N G IT S PU RPO SE

PREPARI NG TE S T I T EMS .
S PE CIFYI NG TH E LE ARNI NG OB JECT I VE S

S ELE CTI NG BES T IT EM TYPE S;

DE VE LO PI NG TE S T S PECI FICAT I ON S; DE CIDI NG IT S RUB RICS OR M ARKI NG S CHE ME ;

S ELE CTI NG BES T IT EM TYPE S;

 P LAN NING TH E CLA SSRO O M T E ST

i) Deciding Its Purpose Th e f i rs t s t ep i n t e st p la n n i ng i s t o d e ci d e on t h e p u rp o s e o f

t h e te s t . Te s t s ca n b e u s ed fo r m a n y d i ffe re n t p u rp o se s . I f t he
t es t i s to b e us e d for m a t iv el y, t he te s t c a n i n d i ca t e p r ec i s el y
wh a t t h e l ea rn e r n e ed s t o st u d y a n d t o wh a t l ev el .

Th e p ur p os e of fo rm a t i ve t e st s is t o a s s es s p ro g r es s a n d to
d i re c t t he le a rn in g p ro ce s s. Th es e t e st s wi ll h a ve l i m i t ed
s a m p l e of le a rn i n g o ut c om e s .

. Tea c he rs w i ll h av e to s ele c t t he app rop ri a te k n ow le dg e ii) Specifying the Learning Objectives

a nd s k il ls to be as se ss ed a n d i nc lu de m or e qu e sti on s
w i th re g ar d to th e m or e i m por ta nt l ea rn i n g o bj ec ti ve s.

Th e le a rn i ng ob j ec ti ves th a t the tea c he rs w ou ld li k e to

e m pha s i se on w i ll de ter m i n e no t onl y w ha t m a te ri a ls to
i n clu de in th e te st bu t a ls o t he spe ci f i c f or m of th e te st.
 P LAN NING TH E CLA SSRO O M T E ST

iii) Developing Test Specifications Making a test blueprint or Table of

Specifications is the next important step that
teachers should do. The table describes the
content, the behaviour of the learners and the
number of questions in the test corresponding
to the number of hours devoted to the learning
objectives in class .

Table of Specifications is a plan prepared by the classroom

teacher as a basis for the test construction. It is a two -way
table which describes the topics to be covered in a test and
the number of items associated with each topic. The table
ensures that a fair and representative sample of questions
appear in the test.
 A S AMPL E OF T AB LE O F SP E CIF ICAT IO NS
• A Table of Spec ificatio ns
all ows th e teach er to
con struct a test which
foc uses on th e key areas
and w eightage (in
percentage ) given in
different section s of the
test b ased o n their
imp orta nce.

• A Table of Specifications provides the teacher with evidence

that a test has content validity and that it covers what
should be covered. This table also allows the teacher to view
the test as a whole.
A S AMPL E OF T AB LE O F SP E CIF ICAT IO NS
 P LAN NING TH E CLA SSRO O M T E ST

iii) Developing Test Specifications

The teacher, esp ecially one who is newly
trained, is advised to have this Table of
Specifications together with the subject
syllabus reviewed by the subject matter
expert or the subject Head of Department to
confirm whether the test plan would actually
measure what it set out to measure.

When the test items have been drafted and assembled, it is

advisable to once again submit the draft test paper and the
Table of Specifications to them
Content validity is different from face validity. Face validity
assesses whether the test “looks valid” to the examinees
SE L F-CHE CK 3 .1
 P LAN NING TH E CLA SSRO O M T E ST

iv) Selecting Best Item Types

Before deciding on a particular type of
test format, teachers should first
establish the following:
(a) Does the testing make sense?
(b) What is it that the teachers would
like to assess?

Te s ts a n d e xa m i na t io ns i n volv e a n in ve s ti ga ti on o f th e le arn e rs ’ k no w led ge , un d ers t an d in g

a n d s k ills a s w e ll a s an a s s e ss m e n t o f t he o u tc om e s of th at in ve s ti gat ion . It appe ars t hat
t he t es t for m a t u se d is o ne o f t h e ma i n dr iv in g fa ct or s i n lea r n e r s’ le a r ni n g be h a vi ou r .

F or i ns t a nc e , le a rn e r s pr e pa re d iffe re nt ly for m u lti ple -c ho ic e t es t s th an t he y do for o ral

e xa m i na t io n s. W h i ch t e st fo r m at i s be s t s u it e d t o th e te a c h er s ’ pu r po s es d e pe nd s on t h e
le a rn i ng ob je c ti ve s
I TE M T YP E S AND THE I R RESPE CTI V E P URPO SE S
 P LAN NING TH E CLA SSRO O M T E ST

Preparing a rubric or marking scheme well in

v) Preparing Rubrics or Marking Schemes

advance of the testing date will give teachers

ample time to review their questions and make
changes to answers when necessary.
The teacher should make it a habit to write a
model answer which can be easily understood by
others .

A rubric is a descriptive scoring scheme developed by teachers, and

sometimes in consultation with learners, to guide judgements with
regard to the product or process of learners’ assessment task.
 P LAN NING TH E CLA SSRO O M T E ST

vi) Preparing Test Items While the different types of questions (multiple-choice, short
answer, true-false, matching and essay) are constructed
differently, the following principles apply to constructing
questions and tests in general:
(a) Use simple and brief instructions for each type of question;
(b) Use simple and clear language in the questions;
(c) Write items that require specific understanding or ability
developed in that course, not just general intelligence or test -
wiseness;

(d) Do not provide clues or suggest the answer to one question i n the body of another
question; (e) Avoid writing questions i n the negative. If you must use negatives, highlight
them as they m ay mislead lear ners into answer ing incorrectly;
(f ) Speci fy the units and precisi on of answers;
(g ) Try, as far as possi ble, to construct your own questions.
(h) If an item is revised, recheck its relevance.
 3.3 A SS ES S ING T EAC HER ’S OWN TES T

If you had wanted to For example, your questions

know whether learners may have tested the learner’s
could apply a concept to understanding of surface
a new situation but features or procedures. On the
mostly asked questions other hand, you have been
requiring learners to label lecturing on causation or
parts or define terms, relation such as how the bones
that means you have
tested for recall instead of the feet work together when
of application. we walk.
D ID I TE ST WH AT I TH OUGHT I WAS TES TI NG FOR ? D I D I T E S T WH AT I T AUG H T ?
3.3 A SS ES S ING T EAC HER ’S OWN TES T

For exampl e, if you had wanted

Make sure that you have asked most learners to use analytical skills such
of the questions with regard to the as the ability to recognise patterns
material you feel is the most or draw inferences but only used
important, especially if you have true-false questions requiring
emphasised it in class. Avoid non-inferential recal l, you might try
questions on obscure material that
are weighted the same as questions constructing more complex true-
on crucial material. false, or multipl e-choice questions.

D ID I TE ST F OR WHAT I E MP HAS IS ED ON I N CL ASS ? I S T H E M AT E R IAL I T E S T E D FOR R E A LL Y WH A T I

W AN T E D LE AR N E R S T O LE AR N?
RECA P
Thank you
very much!