Constructing Test Items

1 What Is Constructing Test Items?.- What This Book Is About.- Major Purposes Of This Book.- Why This Information Is Important.- Persons For Whom This Book Is Intended.- Overview Of The Remaining Chapters.- How To Approach the Chapters.- 2 Definition, Purpose, And Characteristics of Items.- Defining A Test Item.- Test Item Nomenclature.- Purpose For Test Items.- Criteria For Good Test Items.- Assumptions For Test Items.- Classification Of Items.- Conclusion.- 3 Determining the Content For Items: Validity.- Basic Concepts of Validity.- The Relationship Between Constructing Test Items and Validity.- Conditions For Items To Contribute To Validity.- Initial Considerations When Selecting Content For Items.- Achieving Clarity In A Test's Content.- Developing Test Content Specifications.- Melding Cognitive Processing Levels With Items Content.- Test Item Specifications.- Making An Item Consistent With Its Specification.- Conclusion.- 4 Starting To Write Items: Practical Considerations.- The Importance Of Good Writing In Test Items.- Sources For Information On Writing Style.- Using Taxonomies In Writing Items.- Distinctness Between Stem and Response Alternatives.- Importance Of An Interrogative Stem.- Determining The Correct Response For Test Items.- Determining The Optimal Number Of Response Alternatives.- Making Response Alternatives Plausible.- Use Of All Of The Above Or None Of The Above As Response Alternatives.- Using Specific Determiners In Test Items.- Constructing Complex Response Alternatives.- Time Examinees Need To Respond To Items.- Conclusion.- 5 Style, Editorial, and Publication Guidelines For Items in the Multiple-Choice Format.- Understanding The Multiple-Choice Item Format.- Advantages and Criticisms Of Items In The Multiple-Choice Format.- Editorial FormatFor Items.- Using Directions Correctly.- Specialized Style Rules For Multiple-Choice Items.- Type Characteristics and Page Layout.- Conclusion.- 6 Style, Editorial, and Publication Guidelines For Items in Other Common Formats.- Precision In Wording, Again.- Understanding Items In The True-False Format.- Understanding Items In The Matching Format.- Understanding Short-Answer AndSentence-Completion Items.- Understanding Cloze-Procedure.- Conclusion.- 7 Judging the Quality Of Test Items: Item Analysis.- Measurement Error.- Understanding Item Analysis.- Validating The Content Of Items.- Using Leading Questions In Item Analysis.- Item Statistics.- Item Parameters.- Item Bias.- Conclusion.- 8 Ethical, Legal Considerations, and Final Remarks for Item Writers.- Ethical Concerns For Item Writers.- Concluding Comments About Constructing Test Items.- References.- Author Index.