test validity and reliability in assessment

Write test instructions so that they are easily understood.

Word test questions very clearly so that no other interpretations are possible.

A longer test is going to be more reliable. For example, if your testing software displays well in a particular browser, then make using the best browser a requirement.

Ensure that testing conditions are similar for each learner.

Avoid creating one test for several different courses.

Ensure that the test measures related content.

Very short tests are more affected by the “luck factor.”

The test is long enough to assess the learner’s knowledge.

If the test were administered to similar groups, you would see similarities in the scores across the groups.

It might seem like one person wrote the entire test.

There are no great leaps in difficulty, wording and tone.

The test items seem similar or highly related.TO WHAT DEGREE IS A TEST CONSISTENT IN WHAT IT MEASURES? What Makes A Test Consistent?Ī test that is reliable will have a degree of consistency evidenced by these characteristics:

If the scale displays wildly different weights from day to day (even during the holidays), you would not consider it a reliable measure. If you weigh yourself every day and your weight is reasonably consistent, you consider the scale reliable. A test that is reliable or consistent has few variations within itself and produces similar results over time. The way to reduce random errors is to make a test consistent. Test reliability is an attempt to reduce the random errors that occur in all tests to a minimum. If you have trouble keeping all of these terms straight, think of it this way: reliability = consistency. A test with a high degree of reliability will be a more accurate measure of the learner’s knowledge and skills than one with low reliability. In this article, we’ll look at test reliability. You may want to read the previous article first. Test validity is required before reliability can be considered in any meaningful way. In Are Your Online Tests Valid?, we examined test validity or how you can be sure a test measures what it claims to measure. That’s why it’s so important to plan for online test reliability.

After going through all the effort of developing an online test, you want it to be an accurate measure.

Test validity and reliability in assessment