RESEARCH METHOD COHEN ok

418 TESTS
experiences whereas aptitude tests encompass
out-of-school learning and wider experiences
and abilities. However, Cunningham (1998), in
arguing that there is a considerable overlap
between the two types, is suggesting that the
difference is largely cosmetic. An achievement
test tends to be much more specific and linked
to instructional programmes and cognate areas
than an aptitude test, which looks for more
general aptitudes (Hanna 1993) (e.g. intelligence
or intelligences: Gardner 1993).
Constructing a test
In devising a test the researcher will have to
consider:
the purposes of the test (for answering
evaluation questions and ensuring that it tests
what it is supposed to be testing, e.g. the
achievement of the objectives of a piece of
the curriculum)
the type of test (e.g. diagnostic, achievement,
aptitude, criterion-referenced, normreferenced)
the objectives of the test (cast in very specific
terms so that the content of the test items
can be seen to relate to specific objectives of a
programme or curriculum)
the content of the test (what is being tested and
what the test items are)
the construction of the test, involving
item analysis in order to clarify the item
discriminability and item difficulty of the test
(see below)
the format of the test: its layout, instructions,
method of working and of completion (e.g.
oral instructions to clarify what students will
need to write, or a written set of instructions
to introduce a practical piece of work)
the nature of the piloting of the test
the validity and reliability of the test
the provision of a manual of instructions for the
administration, marking and data treatment of
the test (this is particularly important if the
test is not to be administered by the researcher
or if the test is to be administered by several
different people, so that reliability is ensured
by having a standard procedure).
In planning a test the researcher can proceed thus:
1 Identify the purposes of thetest.
2 Identify the test specifications.
3 Selectthe contents of the test.
4 Consider the form of thetest.
5 Write thetest item.
6 Consider the layoutof the test.
7 Consider the timing of the test.
8 Plan thescoring ofthe test.
Identify the purposes of the test
The purposes of a test are several, for example
to diagnose astudent’sstrengths,weaknessesand
difficulties, to measure achievement, to measure
aptitude and potential, toidentifyreadiness for a
programme. Gronlund and Linn (1990) term this
‘placement testing’ and it is usually in a form of
pretest, normally designed to discover whether
students have the essential prerequisites to begin
aprogramme(e.g.intermsofknowledge,skills,
understandings). These types of tests occur at
different stages. For example, the placement test
is conducted prior to the commencement of a
programme, and will identify starting abilities and
achievements – the initial or ‘entry’ abilities in
astudent.Iftheplacementtestisdesignedto
assign students to tracks, sets or teaching groups
(i.e. to place them into administrative or teaching
groupings), then the entry test might be criterionreferenced
or norm-referenced; if it is designed
to measure detailed starting points, knowledge,
abilities and skills, then the test might be more
criterion-referenced as it requires a high level of
detail. It has its equivalent in ‘baseline assessment’
and is an important feature if one is to measure the
‘value-added’ component of teaching and learning:
one can only assess how much a set of educational
experiences has added value to the student if one
knows that student’s starting point and starting
abilities and achievements.
Formative testing is undertaken during a programme,
and is designed to monitor students’
progress during that programme, to measure