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Abstract (Kevin) Chapter 6 is about creating good [|test questions]. The author presents a number of ideas for making tests more useful and efficient. Some of the ideas given include using a variety of questions, avoiding confusing questions, making prompts clear, keeping tests short, and making questions authentic. Wormeli also advises to use smaller tests over time rather than one big test.

Synthesis We all felt that these were good ideas to use when [|developing assessments]. We felt that it was important to vary the types of questions on the test and also to make sure that test questions are not confusing. We want tests to try and show an accurate representation of a student's learning, student's should not be penalized for deficiencies in the test. We all also liked the idea of giving a number of smaller tests rather than one big one.

Amanda Martemucci
FIAE-Chapter 6: Chapter six discusses what good test questions are. The main idea is to not trick students in any way. Don’t give multiple choice or true and false questions that could have multiple answers. Testing is a chance to see how students are grasping the information, not a time to trick them. It is also good to keep tests short and give small tests throughout the term rather than one huge test at the end. In my opinion, students will be more stressed and nervous to take a huge test rather than smaller ones. Smaller tests will allow students to focus on a specific part of information important to the term, allowing them to create a deeper understanding rather than taking tons of information in at once. I will definitely takes the ideas presented in this chapter for when I give tests to my students. I would rather my students gain a deeper understanding of what I want them to learn rather than have them be tricked and overloaded with information to remember.

Bridget
Chapter 6: Creating Good Test Questions Tests are meant to assess students’ knowledge, and therefore should include only clear, important information that will reflect mastery. Using all one type of question, like multiple choice, is repetitive and won’t reflect mastery of a student who doesn’t think in multiple choice terms. Questions should be varied and require students to provide their own answers at some point. Unclear and tricky questions should be avoided because they don’t assess students’ mastery, but rather if they can comprehend a muddled question. But in writing clear questions, it is essential to not give away the answer because of grammar, statements in previous questions, and so forth. And while prompts must be clear and not give anything away, it is fair to include common errors in a list of answers. Differentiated instruction is all about students’ work over time, not just a snapshot of their abilities, because of this, multiple small tests work better than one large, high-stakes one at the end of the unit. All of this boils down to the fact that I will need to create tests that vary in question format, have clear directions and questions, and make sure that the end result is a reflection of the mastery of my students.

Moe
I really liked how this chapter reminds us that we can easily take traditional, useless questions and make them into innovative, concrete ones. Before we can expect anything from our students, in our assessments, we have to set clear parameters and let them all know exactly what we want from them right from the get-go. I always hated when a teacher wouldn’t tell us exactly what they wanted us to accomplish when we started a new unit. It makes the student feel like the upcoming lessons aren’t important. Another key aspect of assessment is to let the students do what they did during the prep/practice time. My high school calculus teacher was very clear about when we would be able to use a calculator on the test or not. We had a no calculator quiz that you had to get a one hundred on before you could rewrite your first test (if you ended up needing a rewrite). It was very clear to us that on that quiz, and certain parts of the other tests, that we were absolutely not allowed using a calculator. I did fine on the quiz and non-calculator sections because that’s how I prepared for the assessments.

Jesika
This chapter was all about making a good test. There were a lot of no brainers in this chapter. Like, don’t make confusing questions. If the questions are true/false provide the T and F. Make sure your questions are clear and are obviously about the content you are trying to assess. Switch up the kinds of questions. Answering the same type of question for half an hour or more can be boring and students will lose interest in what they are writing an put down anything just to make it stop.

I loved this chapter. There were a lot of helpful things that I will be putting into practice soon when it comes to deciding on assessments for my unit. I feel as though I saw a lot of these things on tests I have taken. But on the other hand I’ve seen tests that have done just about everything this chapter said not to do.

Kristen
Use both traditional and “not-so-traditional” questions and/or prompts in your tests (p.75). Not-so-traditional questions seem interesting because they ask the student to apply the knowledge in different ways like drawing it or applying it to a real-life situation. Wormeli suggests to make testing more efficient for students – its not about how time consuming the test is, its about what they know! Don’t try to fool your students with making things confusing just to trip them up. “Straightforward questions are respectful and useful” (p. 78). Keep tests short efficient for both your sake in grading and for the students’ sake when taking or reviewing. Wormeli warns against timing tests because it creates a negative impact on some students ability to perform. Make parts of the test easy to relate to and fun so students feel more at ease. Overall, the assessment process will be most successful when you think of the students you are testing and how best they can show you what they’ve learned when you create your test questions. Remember you want to motivate and assess them not confuse and aggravate them.

Christina
In //Fair isn’t Always Equal//, chapter six discusses test questions. To create good test questions, it is best to start by referring to the objectives of the unit. By keeping the test straightforward, simple, short, and clear, a test is able to measure the students mastery of concepts without external factors, such as confusion. One aspect that I found particularly useful was the idea to include common mistakes in the choices for a question. By doing so, and ensuring the students know of their presence, I would able to see if the students discern the answer correctly.

Chelsea
One idea that I liked from this chapter was the idea of creating a test using a mixture of traditional questions and not so traditional questions. It creates a sense of students learning while at the same time giving a better picture of their understanding and working towards student’s individual needs. Also, it is helpful to make your test in a way that is efficient for students, placing the T and F for true or false only takes a few extra seconds and stops confusion. I think that designing an effective and efficient test is important because it takes some of the stress off of students, especially in regards to test confusion. I think it is important to make the test as simple and as clear as possible, prompts should be written clearly. The book also mentions that when testing students you should avoid confusing negative questions like “all of the above except x, y and z”. These types of questions only confuse students. I also liked the idea of making tests fun and using student’s names and interests in the tests because it engages them and creates a humor around a stressful situation. It is important to remember that the test needs to be designed for student’s readiness level. But we should also create tests that are short, efficient and clear, not only for the students, but also for ourselves so that we are able to give students timely feedback.

Kevin
Chapter 6 is all about making test questions. One way to create better questions is to mix traditional and non-traditional types of question formats. Some students won't perform as well on certain styles of test, I know many people who struggle with multiple choice questions because they over-think the questions, sometimes they know too much and this ends up confusing and hurting them. In such a case the grade the student receives certainly does not adequately evaluate his or her mastery of the material. I agree that in order to avoid this kind of situation from happening it is good to have a variety of question formats. Much of the rest of the chapter focuses on making sure that students are not confused by test questions which will again result in a disconnect between their true understanding and the grade they receive.