Table of Specification (TOS)

with an Overview on Test

Construction
OUTLINE:

 Introduction
 Table of Specification
 Situational Judgment Tests (SJT)
 Workshop
 Wrap-up
For every problem
there is a solution. If
you are not part of the
solution then you are
part of the PROBLEM.
Chinkee Tan
Chink Positive
 13% of students who got low grades in
exams are caused by faulty test questions.
WORLDWATCH, The Philadelphia Trumpet (August 2005)
Common observation of students
on test questions

Hindi kasama sa lessons.

Masyadong mahaba ang question at
mga pagpipilian.
Hindi maayos ang layout ng test, putol-
putol ang mga sentence.
Nakakalito ang mga tanong. Minsan
wala sa pagpipiliaan ang sagot.
Possible reasons for faulty test
questions:

Questions are copied verbatim from the

book or other resources.
Not consulting the course outline.
Much consideration is given to reduce
printing cost.
No TOS or TOS was made after making
the test.
Factors to consider in preparing test
questions (Oriondo & Antonio, 1984)

Purpose of the test

Time available to prepare, administer
and score the test.
Number of students to be tested.
Skill of the teacher in writing the test.
Facilities available in reproducing the
test.
“To be able to prepare a
GOOD TEST, one has to have
a mastery of the subject
matter, knowledge of the
pupils to be tested, skill in
verbal expression and the
use of the different test
format”
Evaluating Educational Outcomes
(Oriondo & Antonio,1984)
Characteristics of Good Tests
Validity – the extent to which the
test measures what it intends to
measure
Reliability – the consistency with
which a test measures what it is
supposed to measure
Usability – the test can be
administered with ease, clarity
and uniformity
Other Things to Consider
Scorability – easy to score
Interpretability – test results can
be properly interpreted and is a
major basis in making sound
educational decisions
Economical – the test can be
reused without compromising the
validity and reliability
General Steps in Test Construction
DRAFT
PRODUCE A
T.O.S.
ORDER

TEST ANALYZE

SUBMISSION
Table of Specifications (TOS)

A two way chart that relates the

learning outcomes to the course
content
It enables the teacher to prepare a test
containing a representative sample of
student knowledge in each of the areas
tested.
Sample TOS
KPU Paradox
Knowledge (Remembering) – answers
the question what, where and when?
(ano, saan at kailan)
Process (Application & Analysis) –
answers the question how? (paano)
Understanding (Analysis) – answers the
question why ?(bakit)
 THE LEVELS OF COGNITIVE
DOMAIN
The levels are the guiding posts in
constructing test items. Regardless of
what type of teacher-made tests the
teacher will prepare, the items must follow
the pattern set for evaluation.
The following items are features of
levels with regards to the objectives of the
lessons.
1. KNOWLEDGE (Remembering) –
includes those objectives that deal with
recall, recognize facts, terminology, etc.
Example: Sino ang kauna-unahang
bayani ng Pilipinas na nakipaglaban sa
mga Kastila?
2. COMPREHENSION (Understanding)
– includes some level of understanding.
It requires the learners to change the
form of communication to see the
connection or relations among parts of a
communication (interpretation) or draw a
conclusion (inference).
Example: Bakit sa tabing dagat naninirahan
ang mga sinaunang Pilipino?
3. APPLICATION (Applying) – it
requires the pupils to use previously
acquired information in a setting other
than the one in which it was learned.
Example:
Alin sa mga sumusunod ang uri ng
pamumuhay noong panahon ng Martial
Law?
4. ANALYSIS (Analysing) – It requires
the pupils to identify the logical errors
(point out the prediction or erroneous
inference), differentiate among facts,
opinions, assumptions, hypothesis or
conclusions, draw relationships among
ideas or to compare and contrast.
Example: Alin sa mga sumusunod ang
dapat ginawa ng mga Pilipino upang
makamit ang inaasam na kalayaan laban
sa mga Kastila?
5. SYNTHESIS (Creating) – objectives at
this level require the pupils to [produce
something unique or original. Test
questions at this level require the pupils to
solve unfamiliar problems or combine
parts to form a unique or novel whole.
Example: Bilang mag-aaral, paano ka
makakatulong sa pagpapanatili ng
kalinisan n gating kapaligiran?
6. EVALUATION (Evaluating) – Under
this objective, the learners are required
to form judgments about the value of
methods, ideas, people or products that
have a specific purpose.
Example: Alin sa mga sumusunod ang
higit na mabisang paraan ng pagsugpo
sa ipinagbabawal na gamot?
Tips in Preparing the Table
of Specifications (TOS)
Don’t make it overly detailed.
It's best to identify major ideas and skills
rather than specific details.
Use a cognitive taxonomy that is most
appropriate to your discipline.
Weigh the appropriateness of the distribution
of checks against the students' level, the
importance of the test, the amount of time
available.
General Rules in Writing Test
Questions
Number test questions continuously.
Keep your test question in each test group
uniform.
Make your layout presentable.
Do not put too many test questions in one
test group.
 T or F: 10 – 15 questions
 Multiple Choice: max. of 30 questions
 Matching type: 5 questions per test group
 Others: 5 – 10 questions
Some additional guidelines to consider
when writing items are described below:
1. Avoid humorous items. Classroom testing is
very important and humorous items may
cause students to either not take the exam
seriously, become confused or anxious.
2. Items should measure one’s knowledge of the
item context not their level of interest.
3. Write items to measure what students know,
not what they do not know. (Cohen & Wallack)
 Anatomy of a Perfect
Multiple Choice Tests
What is the effect of releasing a ball in
positive gravity?
a) It will fall “down.” correct
b) It will retain its mass. true but unrelated
c) It will rise. false but related
d) Its shape will change. false and unrelated
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Use negatively stated stems sparingly and
when using negatives such as NOT,
underline or bold the print.
2. Use none of the above and all of the above
sparingly, and when you do use them, don't
always make them the right answer.
3. Only one option should be correct or clearly
best.
Multiple Choice Questions:
4. All options should be homogenous and
nearly equal in length.
5. The stem (question) should contain only
one main idea.
6. Keep all options either singular or plural.
7. Have four or five responses per stem
(question).
Multiple Choice Questions:
7. When using incomplete statements place
the blank space at the end.
8. When possible organize the responses.
9. Reduce wordiness.
10. When writing distracters, think of incorrect
responses that students might make.
Situational
Judgment
Tests (SJT)
Situational Judgment Tests (SJT)
Is a type of test which presents realistic
scenarios similar to those that would be
encountered in real life.
(http://blog.careerbuilder.co.uk/2015/06/11/what-
you-need-to-know-about-situation-judgement-
tests/)
Situational judgment tests (SJT)
Situational judgment tests present
the test-taker with realistic, hypothetical
scenarios and ask the individual to
identify the most appropriate response or
to rank the responses in the order they
feel is most effective.
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Situational_judgeme
nt_test)
Why use SJTs?
Situational judgment test’s are
designed to clarify the difference
between average from superior response.
The most effective response will look at
the situation from various angles,
consider a wider range of action, and
take account the long-term consequences
of action. (Sharpley, 2010)
Formats in SJT questions
Ranking questions ask you to rank in
order your response to a situation.
Multiple choice questions ask you to
choose the most appropriate action or
decision to take in a given situation.
(http://www.foundationprogrammeguru.co.uk/the-
situational-judgement-test.html)
Things to remember in making SJT
Questions
Since SJT questions require learners to
identify the best or worst answer, the
stem should be presented in a manner in
which the test taker will choose the
correct answer by eliminating the
distractors.
Things to remember in making SJT
Questions
In making the choices, the correct
answer should always be the one that
actually solves the problem or answer the
question. Logically, the “correct” answers
need to be distinct from the other answer
options. Hence if two answer options
seem very similar, it would be very
difficult to identify the “distractor”.
(http://www.foundationprogrammeguru.co.uk/the-situational-
judgement-test.html)
Conceptual Framework

Concept Ideas

Situational
Judgemental
Test (SJT)

Answer
 Example:
Ang kalabisan ay dahilan upang
Kalabisan magkaroon ng pagbaba ng
(Surplus) presyo upang makamit ang
presyong ekwilibriyo.

Sa presyong 1,000, ang demand para

sa cellphone A ay 10,000. Ngunit ang
naprodyus na cellphone A ay 14,000.
Ano ang dapat gawin upang
magkaroon ng ekwilibriyo?
A. Bawasan ang supply
B. Bawasan ang demand Answer: D
C. Taasan ang presyo
D. Ibaba ang presyo
Knowledge:
Alin sa mga sumusunod ang
nagpapahiwatig na may kakapusan sa
bansa?
A. Kung mabilis ang paggawa ng produkto.
B. Kung sagana ang produkto sa pamilihan.
C. Kung may kaguluhan sa pulitika.
D. Kung limatado ang suplay ng kalakal sa
bansa.
Process:
• Sa papaanong paraan mo maitataguyod ang karapatan sa
tamang impormasyon?
A. Pag-aralan ang nakatatak sa etiketa ukol sa sangkap,
dami, at komposisyon ng produkto.
B. Palaging pumunta sa timbangang-bayan upang matiyak
na husto ang biniling produkto.
C. Pahalagahan ang kalidad at hindi ang tatak ng produkto
o serbisyong bibilhin.
D. Palagiang gumamit ng recycled na produkto upang
mapangalagaan ang kapaligiran.
Understanding:
• Maituturing na kagustuhan ang isang bagay kapag higit ito sa
batayang pangangailangan. Kailan maituturing na batayang
pangangailangan ang isang produkto o serbisyo?
A. Magagamit mo ito upang maging madali ang mahirap na
gawain.
B. Nagbibigay ito ng kasiyahan at kaginhawaan.
C. Hindi mabubuhay ang tao kapag wala ang mga ito.
D. Makabibili ka ng maraming bagay sa pamamagitan nito.
Understanding:
Nagsimula sa maliit na puhunan ang negosyo ni Mang
Cenon, hanggang ito ay lumaki at nagkaroon ng iba’t ibang
sangay sa Bulacan. Alin ang HINDI dahilan ng kanyang pag-
unlad?
A. Maayos ang kanyang pangangasiwa.
B. Marami siyang kabarkada at kaanak
C. Malawak ang kanyang kaalaman sa negosyo.
D. Mahusay siyang makitungo sa kanyang mga tauhan.
Things to Remember:
Making a good test takes time
Teachers have the obligation to
provide their students with the
best evaluation
Tests play an essential role in the
life of the students, parents,
teachers and other educators
Break any of the rules when
you have a good reason for
doing so! (emphasis mine)
(Mehrens, 1973)
POINTS TO PONDER…
A good lesson makes a good question
A good question makes a good content
A good content makes a good test
A good test makes a good grade
A good grade makes a good student
A good student makes a good COMMUNITY
Jesus Ochave Ph.D.
VP Research Planning & Development
Philippine Normal University
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