TASK 2: ACADEMIC WRITING

1.0 INTRODUCTION
According to Md.Ali (2015), assessment is a process of obtaining information on the extent to which pupils’ knowledge and
understanding about what they have based on the standard performance set by the school according to achievement levels as intended in
the curriculum document. In EDUP3063, Assessment in Education, we are required to administer a test for primary school students and
then analyse the test items based on the results of the administered test. This indirectly allows me to know the items that can be kept and
maintained and the items that need to be revise or eliminated and be replaced so that the level of test items administered is consistent with
the cognitive level of the students in the school.

2.0 TEST ADMINISTRATION

For this task to be conducted and to test my Multiple Choice Questions test I have to administer this test with the pupils the School-Based
Experience (PBS). I conducted a test administered to a group of year 4 Cekal students of 41 pupils at SK Tudan, Miri. This test is consists of 10
objective questions of Year 4 English subject which covered mostly grammar skills. I conducted this test for 15 minutes at 10.00 am to 10.15
am in the class of 4 Cekal. The reason why I choose 4 Cekal as my testes is because it is one of the classes that my English mentor teacher is
currently teaching in the school. Once the score for each pupil is obtained, an analysis of the test items and the students' test results has been
performed.

3.0 TABLE OF SPECIFICATION

Table of specification, sometimes referred to as test blue print, is a table that helps teachers align objectives, instruction and
assessment. Akem (2006) views the table of specification as a guide to assist a teacher or examiner in the evaluation system.
Onocha and Oyedeji (2003) noted that table of specification enables the test developers to complete the cells in the table and
 decide the percentage of the total number of items that will go to each of the cell. By it, teacher can determine what topics are being
stressed and also assist in the preparation of test that reflect what students have learned and also the limit the amount of time spent on
each unit. In general, Table of Specification is a table that used in constructing questions in assessing the students’ performance mostly in
summative test. It is also known as two-way chart which describes the topics to be covered by a test and the number of items or points
which will be associated with each topic. In addition, when constructing a test, teachers need to be concerned that the test measures
an adequate sampling of the class content at the cognitive level that the material was taught (). Therefore, the items constructed
should be based on the revised six levels of thinking of Bloom Taxonomies.
In this task, in order to prepare my table of specifications I choose five subtopics under Grammar Language Skills which are nouns,
pronouns, simple past tense, verb, and prepositions to construct my 10 test items. Other than that, in my table of specifications, the 10
items questions also being constructed based on the revised six levels of thinking of Bloom Taxonomies. In this table I used 2:6:2 formulas
to divide my questions according to three levels of difficulties which are easy, moderate and difficult. As in my TOS , 2 questions falls in
easy levels which include remember and understand levels of Bloom Taxonomies, 6 questions in moderate levels which include apply and
analyse of Bloom Taxonomies and 2 questions in difficult levels which include evaluate and create levels of Bloom Taxonomies. In addition,
for the total items of each subtopic are decided by calculating it using the formula below:

𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑐ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑠𝑢𝑏𝑡𝑜𝑝𝑖𝑐

Total Items for each Subtopic = ⟦ × 100⟧
𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑐ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑠𝑢𝑏𝑡𝑜𝑝𝑖𝑐𝑠

Therefore, the tables below are my table of specifications of my teaching time and categorisation of my items of each subtopic according to the
levels in Bloom Taxonomies.
 Teaching Time Calculation of Total
No. Topic/Title Calculation of % % Total Items
(hours) Items

1. Nouns 5 5/18 x 100 27.7 27.7/100 x 10=2.8 3

2. Pronouns 3 3/18 x 100 16.7 16.7/100 x 10=1.7 2

3. Simple Past Tense 5 5/18 x 100 27.7 27.7/100 x 10=2.8 3

4. Verb 3 3/18 x 100 16.7 16.7/100 x 10=1.7 1

5. Prepositions 2 2/18 x 100 11.1 11.1/100 x 10=1.1 1

Total 18 100 10

Table 1: Table of Specification 1

 Skills Level
Total Percentage
No. Remember Understand Apply Analyse Evaluate Create
Items (%)
Topics/Title

1. Nouns 1 1 1 3 27.7

2. Pronouns 1 1 2 16.7

Simple Past
3. 1 1 1 3 27.7
Tense

4. Verbs 1 1 16.7

5. Prepositions 1 1 11.1

Total 2 6 2 10 100

Table 2: Table of Specification 2

 Thus, based on Table 1 and Table 2, I constructed 10 test items to administer to a group of pupils in Multiple Choice Questions format in 15
minutes. (Refer to Appendix 1)

4.0 Multiple Choice Question (MCQ)

Multiple choice question tests (MCQ tests) can be useful for formative assessment and to stimulate students' active and self-
managed learning. They improve students' learning performance and their perceptions of the quality of their learning experience. Multiple
Choice Questions (MCQs) are generally recognized as the most widely applicable and useful type of objective test items. They
could be used to measure the most important educational outcomes - knowledge, understanding, judgment and problem solving
(Mohammed O. Al-Rukhban, 2006). However, MCQ tests are strongly associated with assessing lower order cognition such as the recall
of discrete facts. Therefore, to tests to assess higher order cognition (such as synthesis, creative thinking and problem solving), we must
draft questions with considerable skill if such tests are to be valid and reliable based on six revised levels of Bloom Taxonomies to make
questions inculcating high order thinking skills which are remember, understand, apply, analyse, evaluate and create.
In this task, I prepared MCQ test with ten items covering subtopics in English Grammar. As I mentioned above, I have 2 easy
questions, 2 difficult questions and 6 moderate questions included in my MCQ test. Below is the categorisation of my items according to its
level and subtopic:

Questions Subtopics Level of Difficulties Levels according to Bloom Taxonomies

1 Pronouns Easy Remember
2 Nouns Easy Understand
3 Nouns Moderate Apply
4 Simple Past Tense Moderate Apply
5 Verbs Moderate Apply
6 Prepositions Moderate Apply
 7 Simple Past Tense Moderate Analyse
8 Pronouns Moderate Analyse
9 Simple Past Tense Difficult Evaluate
10 Nouns Difficult Evaluate

TABLE 3: MCQ ITEMS CATEGORISATION

In my MCQ, I also included space for the students to fill in their name, date and class. In addition, I also provided an example on how to answer
the questions in my MCQ test to guide them in answering the questions there. I also provided instruction for each of the questions items
specifically and generally in my test to help the students to be clear of what do I need them to answer for each question. Other than that, I also
provided hunts by bolding the focus of the questions to make the students understand the requirements of my items better. (References for
instructions in exam)

(Refer to Appendix 1- Multiple Choice Questions Paper)

5.0 ITEM ANALYSIS

On 27th March 2018, I conducted and administered my MCQ test items on 41 students of 4 Cekal at SK Tudan, Miri. According to
(), by administering the tests it will provide data that you can use to analyse your items. Item analysis is a process of examining
class wide performance on individual test items (). Item analysis is a process which examines student responses to individual test items
(questions) in order to assess the quality of those items and of the test as a whole. Therefore, below are the analyses of the items that I
constructed and conducted based on three main analyses which are difficulty index analysis, distractor analysis, discrimination index
analysis and distractor analysis to evaluate the entire test items constructed based on the result I get from administering my test items. I
also included the calculation of mode, mean, median and standard deviation of the items.
5.1 Mean, mode, and median

When people talk about statistical averages, they are referring to the mean. To calculate the mean, simply add all of your numbers
together. Next, divide the sum by however many numbers you added. The result is your mean or average score. For mode, about the
frequency of occurrences while median is the middle value in a data set. Below are the calculations of these three elements:

a. Mean
𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒔
𝒎𝒆𝒂𝒏 =
𝒏𝒖𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒑𝒖𝒑𝒊𝒍𝒔

𝟎+(𝟏×𝟖)+(𝟐×𝟏𝟑)+(𝟑×𝟖)+(𝟒×𝟖)+(𝟓×𝟐)+(𝟔×𝟏)
Mean=
𝟒𝟏

= 2.59

b. Mode =2

c. Median=The median is the 21st score which is number 2. Below are the calculations to find the median.

× f cf
Median = {(n + 1) ÷ 2} th value
0 1 1
= 21th value
1 8 9
=2
2 13 22

3 8 30
 4 8 38

5 2 40

6 1 41

Σf=41

5.2 Difficulty Index Analysis

Difficulty Index Analysis is to test how hard is a test question or performance task was for the students. Item difficulty is relevant for
determining whether students have learned the concept being tested. It also plays an important role in the ability of an item to
discriminate between students who know the tested material and those who do not. The item will have low discrimination if it is so
difficult that almost everyone gets it wrong or guesses, or so easy that almost everyone gets it right (Quileste, 2015).Therefore,
to produce a difficulty index for a test item is by calculating the proportion of students in class who got that particular item correct. Below
is the formula to count difficulty index for each items.

𝑁𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑎𝑛 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚

Difficulty Index (p) = 𝑁𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑠

Thus, table below shows the difficulty index analysis for each item in my multiple choice questions test.
 Number of Correct Calculation of
Items Questions Difficulty Index
Responses Difficulty Index
1 6 p=6/41 0.17
2 20 p=20/41 0.49
3 18 p=18/41 0.44
4 12 p=12/41 0.29
5 3 p=3/41 0.07
6 9 p=9/41 0.22
7 10 p=10/41 0.24
8 12 p=12/41 0.29
9 6 p=6/41 0.15
10 10 p=10/41 0.24

TABLE 4: DIFFICULTY INDEX OF EACH ITEM

Based on the data shown in table 4, indicates that the difficulty index value based on difficulty index table in Appendix 2 for items 2
and 3 falls in average level and it is shows that it is a good item whereas majority of the items is between 0.21 and 0.40 which falls in difficult
level as the cognitive levels increase accordingly to the Bloom Taxonomies levels. This proves that the item is in line with the cognitive level of
the student being tested and this means the item is relevant and the item needs to be kept and maintained. However, there are three items
which are item 1, 7 and 9 are below 0.20 which falls in too difficult level. This means that this items need to revised and strongly recommended
to be eliminated.

5.3 Discrimination Index Analysis (d)

Discrimination Index is a measure of how well an item is able to distinguish between examinees who are knowledgeable and those
who are not. In other word, discrimination index is a measure, of how the ‘good’ students are doing versus the ‘poor’ students
on a particular question (Farisham Taib, 2013). Item discrimination indices range from -1.0 to 1.0 which are the higher the value, the
better that choice is able to discriminate between good and weak students. The closer the discrimination is to 1.0 or -1.0, the greater
the discrepancy between the two groups. The method of calculating item discrimination index is based on 27 percent of the total
number of students who sit on a test
Therefore, below are the formula used to calculate the discrimination index of each item.

𝐷𝑖𝑠𝑐𝑟𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑥, 𝑑 =
𝑅𝐴 − 𝑅𝐵
1 D= discrimination index
(𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑠𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑅𝐴 𝑑𝑎𝑛 𝑅𝐵 )
2
𝑅𝐴 = Highest number of correct responses

𝑅𝐵 = Lowest number of correct responses

A= Highest

B= Lowest

Thus, below I show few calculations on how to calculate the discrimination index and a table below showing the discrimination index for
each item in my multiple question choice tests.
 a. A=B = 41 × 27/100
= 11

Through these calculations, we are able to identify the number of pupils for high and low achievement groups and thus able to identify the value of the
discrimination index of each item. Based on the number of Year 4 Cekal pupils who sit for this test which are 41 pupils, 27 percent of the total pupils are equal
to eleven pupils. Thus, a total of eleven pupils of the high achievement group and eleven pupils of the low achievement group of students should be taken into
account when calculating the discrimination index for each item in this subject. Below is the table showing the discrimination index for each item in
multiple choice grammar test.
Highest number of correct Lowest number of correct Calculation of
Items Question Discrimination Index
responses responses Discrimination Index
1−0
1 1 0 𝑑= 0.09
1
((2) × (11 + 11))
8−2
2 8 2 𝑑= 0.55
1
((2) × (11 + 11))
9−1
3 9 1 𝑑= 0.73
1
((2) × (11 + 11))
6−1
4 6 1 𝑑= 0.45
1
((2) × (11 + 11))
3−0
5 3 0 𝑑= 0.27
1
((2) × (11 + 11))
6−0
6 6 0 𝑑= 0.55
1
((2) × (11 + 11))
 3−3
7 3 3 𝑑= 0.00
1
((2) × (11 + 11))
7−2
8 7 2 𝑑= 0.45
1
((2) × (11 + 11))
1−2
9 1 2 𝑑= -0.09
1
((2) × (11 + 11))

5−1
10 5 1 𝑑= 0.36
1
((2) × (11 + 11))

TABLE 5: DISCRIMINATION INDEX OF EACH ITEM

After analyzing all the items in this test, it was found that the items numbered 1.5.9 and 10 in the moderate category were good, items
2, 3, 4 and 6 were items in very good items category based on the table of discrimination index table in the Appendix 3. This shows that the
question is very good and there is no need to do a revision and no need to be revised. However, for item numbers 7, 9 and 1 have
discrimination index which falls in poor items category. This is also mean that discriminations which at or near zero mean that there is no
relationship between performance on this item and overall performance. This means that these items need to be eliminated and replace with
another item as they are unable to distinguish between high achievers and low achievers while there are also two items which is categorised as
marginal items and need to be revised and reasonably good which are item 5 and 10 accordingly.

5.4 DISTRACTOR ANALYSIS

 Distractor analysis is an extension of item analysis, using techniques that are similar to item difficulty and item
discrimination. In distractor analysis, however, we are no longer interested in how test takers select the correct answer, but how the
distracters were able to function effectively by drawing the test takers away from the correct answer. The number of times each
distractor is selected is noted in order to determine the effectiveness of the distractor. In the item distractor index, in the choice of
multiple choice tests, students are given 4 response options, namely A, B, C and D. Only one of the 4 responses is the correct answer
while the other is a distractor. Distractor analysis is conducted to identify problematic distractors. There are three main types of
problematic distractors. First is a distracting distractor which is said to be problematic because no student chooses the distractor. This
means that the distracters are too easy and must be carefully analysed. Second, the chosen distractor is equally chosen by high
achievers and low achievers. This means that this distractor fails to distinguish between the two groups of students. We would expect
that the distractor is selected by enough candidates for it to be a viable distractor. Distractor analysis can be a useful tool in evaluating
the effectiveness of our distractors. It is important for us to be mindful of the distractors that we use in a multiple choice format test as
when distractors are not effective, they are virtually useless. As a result, there is a greater possibility that students will be able to select
the correct answer by guessing as the options have been reduced. Thus, a table below showing the distractor analyses index for each
item in my multiple questions choice test.
ITEMS DISTRACTOR A DISTRACTOR B DISTRACTOR C DISTRACTOR D
1 10 5* 22 4
2 16 10* 5 10
3 2 17* 10 12
4 2 22 14* 3
5 35 2 3* 1
6 12 9* 19 2
7 15 7 9 10*
8 9 5 15 12*
 9 10 14 7* 10
10 8 16 10* 7

TABLE 6: DISTRACTOR ANALYSIS FOR EACH ITEM FOR THE WHOLE CLASS

6.0 DISCUSSION

In this discussion, I will discuss the findings that I get through my item analysis above accordingly to its type of index analysis.
Therefore, I will include the table of difficulty index and discrimination index to decide each item falls in what level. From this, I can decide
for each item whether it is a good item or not.
In discrimination index, there are five levels of interpretation to determine the items that need to be kept and maintained and also the
items that need to be redone and to improve. Below is the table showing the levels in the discrimination index:

Besides, for item difficulty index, there are five levels of item evaluation that is too easy, easy, average, difficult and too difficult. The
good distribution of item difficulty index is 0.41 to 0.60 at the average level. If the item's difficulty index is at a value less than 0.20 indicates
that the item is too difficult and if more than the value of 0.80 the item is considered too easy. Items with values ranging from 0.20 to 0.80
will be maintained and stored to vary the levels in the test, whereas if they are less than 0.20 or greater than 0.80, the item will be re-
enacted to match the cognitive level of a class administered test. Below is the table showing the levels in the difficulty index:

From the findings:

a. Item number 1

P1 = 0.17 , d1 = 0.09

According to difficulty index table above, item 1 falls in too difficult level while for its discrimination index it is falls in the lowest level and
considered as poor items which need major revision or eliminated.
b. Item number 2
P2 = 0.49, d2 = 0.55
 According to difficulty index table above, item 2 falls in average levels while for its discrimination index it is falls in very good items.
Therefore, this item should be kept and maintained in the test as this item match the cognitive level of a class administered test.

c. Item number 3

P3 = 0.44 , d3 = 0.73

According to difficulty index table above, item 3 falls in average levels while for its discrimination index it is falls in very good items.
Therefore, this item should be kept and maintained in the test as this item match the cognitive level of a class administered test. This is
also shows that all the pupils understand the subtopic that is being asked in this item.

d. Item number 4

P4 = 0.29 , d4 = 0.45

According to difficulty index table above, item 4 falls in difficult levels while for its discrimination index it is falls in very good items.
Therefore, this item should be kept and maintained in the test as this item match the cognitive level of a class administered test however
it may challenge some of the pupils as it difficulty index is in difficult level which may need the pupils to think more when answering it.

e. Item number 5

P5 = 0.07 , d5 =0.27

According to difficulty index table above, item 5 falls in too difficult levels while for its discrimination index it is falls in second lowest and
considered as marginal items that needs some revision.
f. Item number 6

P6 = 0.22 , d6 = 0.55

According to difficulty index table above, item 6 falls in difficult levels while for its discrimination index it is falls in very good items.
Therefore, this item should be kept and maintained in the test as this item match the cognitive level of a class administered test. As in
this case, the pupils’ show that they understand the concept of the subtopic tested but the item may challenge the pupils’ ability to apply
the concept of that particular subtopic tested.

g. Item number 7

P7 = 0.24 , d7 = 0.00

According to difficulty index table above, item 7 falls in difficult levels while for its discrimination index it is considered as poor items and
should be eliminated.

h. Item number 8

P8 = 0.29 , d8 = 0.45

According to difficulty index table above, item 8 falls in difficult levels while for its discrimination index this item falls in very good items
category. Therefore, this item should be kept and maintained in the test as this item match the cognitive level of a class administered
test.
i. Item number 9
P9 = 0.15 , d9 = −0.09

According to difficulty index table above, item 9 falls in too difficult levels while for its discrimination index this item falls in poor item
category and suggested to be eliminated.

j. Item number 10

P10= 0.24 , d10 = 0.36

According to difficulty index table above, item 10 falls in average levels while for its discrimination index this items considered as
reasonably good item but can be improvised. Therefore, this item can be kept in this test but maybe need some improvement to make it
match the cognitive level of administered class.

Therefore, as conclusion for my findings are:

Conclusion Item Numbers

Very good items and be used in the test  Item 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8

Good items and need to be improvised  Item 5 and 10
but still can be used in the test
Poor items and need to be eliminated  Item 1,7 and 9

TABLE 9: CONCLUSION OF ITEMS FINDING

 Based on table 9, it can be concluded that the suitability of the item can be classified into three categories which are:
i. Very good items and be used in the test
ii. Good items and need to be improvised but still can be used in the test
iii. Poor items and need to be eliminated

In the first category of items there are 5 items that can be stored and used which are item 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8. This is because the
difficulty index and discrimination index for the items are at a very good level and acceptable. These cause the items doesn’t need any change
and no need to be revised and there is two item categorized as a good items and need to be improvised but still can be used in the test which
are item number 5 and 10. The item in this category is an item that is still acceptable because only one aspect is either the difficulty index or the
discrimination index of the item at the wrong level. Therefore, the item needs to be modified to ensure that both aspects of the difficulty and
ability to distinguish high achievers and low achievement pupils are at the acceptable level. Finally, there are three poor items which are item 1,
7 and 9. Items that are categories in this group have difficulty index values that indicate the item is too difficult or too easy and has a poor index
of discrimination. Therefore, these items cannot be used and need to be eliminated and replace it with another item.
Other than that, the subtopics covered in the poor items are 1 question about pronoun and 2 questions about simple past tense. This
shows that the pupils have lack understanding and quite weak in this subtopic. Therefore, as an English teacher, improvements need to be
done in teaching strategy to enhance the pupils’ knowledge in applying the rules of simple past tense and pronouns. Other than that, drills also
can be done by giving the pupils sets of questions like in the MCQ test to make them familiar to those kinds of questions and enhance their
application and evaluating skills. In addition, enrichment and remedial activity also should be conducted to help strengthening their skills.
Besides, to improve my items I should make clearer instructions for my questions and change some of the distractor of my items to
make my items better. In addition, I also should construct easier questions as in my difficulty index, there is none of my items falls in the easy or
too easy level. This means I should make the distribution of my questions equal based on the formula of 2:6:2 or 1:3:1, to make my multiple
choice questions test to be more valid and reliable. Moreover, I should replace distractors that are selected by too many or too few people in an
item. For examples, item 5, distractor A and question 1, distractor C are selected by too many pupils while question 4, distractor A and D,
question 5 , distractor B, C and D and question 6 , distractor D are too few people choosing these distractor which need to be revised or
change completely.

7.0 CONCLUSION

Looking at the overall achievement of students holistically, there are only a few questions that need to be revised and improved due to
factor of difficulty factors and items that fail to distinguish high achievers and low achievement pupils. In addition, through the calculation of
difficulty index and discrimination index, the level of difficulty and the suitability of a constructed item can be identified. This can help a teacher
to identify items that need to be kept in a question bank and items that need to be modified so that it is appropriate to be administered to the
pupil. Therefore, through this task, the knowledge in making the interpretation of test scores and analysis on test items can be very useful in the
future.
 APPENDICES

APPENDIX 2
TABLE OF DIFFICULTY LEVEL TABLE OF DISCRIMINATION LEVEL