Test Items Selection and its Ethical Principles

 

Articles for Teachers

“They do not merely collect text; they must also gather data about the context and the informant and above all, write analysis of the items based upon the course readings and lecture material on folklore theory and method” as stated by Alan Dundes an American Folklorist. Though his statement clearly is not on the context of psychological test and item analysis yet it shows the objective of the item analysis. In psychological testing, this item analysis refers to the selection of the items or questionnaires that will be use to promote a reliable and valid sets of items. It also shortens the number of questions but guarantees the right data are collected and the test objectives are met. A meticulous, exhaustive process of filtering the correct   items that relatively correlate to the theory and principles being use by the test maker. Let’s just say it’s a quality control wherein the items are purified and its ambiguity were refined. Item analysis is indeed an essential tool to uphold effectiveness, fairness and also to check certain biases on the part of the test maker. This evaluation that the test items undergo comes with the initial testing wherein the exam was given first to the respondents to clear out ambiguous and misleading items on the said test

The item analysis serves as an assessment tool on the efficiency, reliability and the validity of the test, not only for educational assessment but for other professionals such as psychologist, nursing, and others. Item analysis is a filtration of questionnaires, a method of assessment from which the questions are being evaluated whether it corresponds on the purpose of the tools being assess. The test quality should be inline on the objective being measure and should not fall from ambiguity and misleading questions. If it measures the intellect of the individual, the test must not also be bias that it may ended up on the views of the test takers and doesn’t reliably evaluate. A repeated process should be done to check on whether it is congruent on the intention of the test and not discriminatory and prejudiced.

As an evolving field, psychological test is plagued with western biases especially the psychometrics origin came from it. Most of the test being used are design from the Western point of view and a non-Westerner doesn’t fully relate. Aside from the prejudiced and biases, test difficulty must be on the norm of the takers. Too much difficulty level is not appropriate on the assessment so therefore needed to be revise. To test the efficiency, validity and the reliability of the test, it should be administering first to a small portion of the respondents that represent the population that is subject to be assess. This trial run shall uncover the appropriateness on the difficulty of the test and its validity.

Does the exam address the purpose of what intends to be measure? Is the exam difficult to the test takers? Is it valid or reliable? If no, there should be a revision as well as an omission of the items if it not qualifies on the criteria. A good psychological exam must be free from subjectivity and biases on regards on how the scores are interpreted. It must also contain consistent result which is a sign of reliability and as well as it measures what intends to be measure. The test must also be practical that the exam is not too long or many. So, item analysis will identify whether all these criteria are being in check. The objectivity, reliability, practicability and the validity of the test. A good planning should be taken place for the construction of the test and it must be properly structured. But like the examination made by teachers, psychologist also utilized item analysis to furnish their test.

It is essential to eliminate certain subjectivity or bias on the part of the exam. As the world become one and well connected, it is still diverse, culturally, socially and politically. Even on the local level, variation on point of view is prevalent among every individual, so to properly not be ended up being one sided, the test construction must undergo a trial to test whether its not subjective but an objective one. The relevance of the item analysis is also to omit not important questions or detractors that made the test unnecessary longer. This omission of non-essential questions such as items that doesn’t measure what intends to be measure and also the too difficult items in the test must not be part of the exam.

Item Analysis is an essential part of test construction because it purifies and filter items that is unnecessary on the test. A tool to increase the test validity, effectivity and the quality of the material for assessment. It measures whether the test is too easy or difficult and maintain to test the consistency or reliability of it.

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