Testing terminology: a general quiz

Multiple-choice exercise

Choose the best answer for each question.
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  1. True score refers to:
    1.   the learner's score minus an amount for guessing correctly.
    2.   a theoretical measurement of a learner's score excluding any problems of reliability.
    3.   the score measured as the difference from the mean score of all the test takers.
    4.   the learner's total score without any subjective marking judgments.
  2. The Cambridge First Certificate examination is a:
    1.   achievement test.
    2.   performative test.
    3.   proficiency test.
    4.   diagnostic test.
  3. If 40 out of 100 students get an answer right, that item has a value of 0.4. This is a measure of:
    1.   standard deviation.
    2.   usefulness.
    3.   facility value.
    4.   easiness.
  4. Achievement tests are:
    1.   tests of general ability to learn language.
    2.   tests designed to influence the teaching programme.
    3.   tests directly related to a language course designed.
    4.   tests to measure what learners know and don't know.
  5. Holistic scoring means:
    1.   adding all the scores together.
    2.   marking items independently.
    3.   assessing by direct testing.
    4.   judging on the basis of an overall impression.
  6. Integrative testing is another description of:
    1.   holistic testing.
    2.   discrete-point testing.
    3.   direct testing.
    4.   analytic testing.
  7. Validity is a measure of:
    1.   how well we can describe the abilities we are testing.
    2.   how fair a test is.
    3.   how well a test measures what it is intended to measure.
    4.   how the test will parallel results of other tests.
  8. Analytic scoring involves:
    1.   breaking down the scores to produce a histogram.
    2.   adding up the marks to get an overall picture.
    3.   scoring for an overall impression.
    4.   scoring a mark for each component of a task.
  9. Backwash is:
    1.   the affect of testing on learner performance.
    2.   the affect of teaching on test design.
    3.   the affect of testing on teacher competence.
    4.   the effect on the learning / teaching process of a test.
  10. A multiple-choice test contains:
    1.   a stem and a number of distractors.
    2.   a choice of true or false.
    3.   distractors and a common core question.
    4.   a rubric and some distractors.
  11. What is the mean score of 18, 20, 22, 24 and 26?
    1.   21
    2.   22
    3.   25
    4.   23
  12. Aptitude testing is:
    1.   assessing communicative success.
    2.   assessing general cognitive ability.
    3.   assessing intelligence.
    4.   assessing how well learners will be able to acquire the targets.
  13. What is the guess ratio for a multiple-choice test with 5 possible answers to each question?
    1.   20%
    2.   25%
    3.   30%
    4.   33%
  14. Direct testing differs from discrete-point testing because:
    1.   the former attempts to test the underlying skills while the latter gets the learner to undertake the skill being tested.
    2.   the former gets the learner to undertake the skill being tested, while the latter attempts to test the underlying skills.
  15. Paraphrase test items require the learner to:
    1.   re-express what they hear or read in their own words.
    2.   summarise what they read or hear.
    3.   correct what they read or hear.
    4.   re-express what they hear or read in a different form.
  16. Face validity is a measure of:
    1.   how well we can describe what we are testing.
    2.   a subjective judgement of a test's fairness.
    3.   how well a test actually targets the desired skills.
    4.   how well a test is designed.
  17. Benchmarking is:
    1.   ranking students' performance against a set of criteria.
    2.   the use of one student to compare the performance of others.
    3.   establishing a set of usable marking criteria.
    4.   the use of a few test scripts to standardise marking.
  18. If a test is reliable, this means that:
    1.   the test will have a high facility ratio.
    2.   the results will be a valid measure of a test-taker's ability in the skill we are testing.
    3.   the test will be objective.
    4.   the results will be comparable regardless of where and when the test is taken
  19. Unique answer items have:
    1.   no equivalents elsewhere in the test.
    2.   only one possible right answer.
    3.   only three correct answers in a set of four possible ones.
    4.   only true or false answers to select from.
  20. Criterion referencing is:
    1.   measuring performance against a benchmarked student.
    2.   measuring performance based on overall communicative success.
    3.   measuring performance against a range of predetermined criteria.
    4.   choosing the most useful criteria when standardising test markers.