Nanette Miner 4/19/13 Nanette Miner 4/19/13

5 General Rules for Workplace Tests Part-5

Rule #5

Ordering Questions

You may wish to group evaluation questions by topic or you may mix them up. Back on the job, the work people encounter won't show up in any kind of logical sequence – so mixing questions up has its merits.

On the other hand, keeping questions grouped allows you to easily spot if a learner just "didn't get" a particular topic. If all the questions on a similar topic are grouped together and the learner answers all or almost all of them wrong, either he needs retraining or the topic itself was poorly presented. If your same-topic-area questions are interspersed throughout the exam, it might be harder for you to spot a problem.

Nanette Miner 4/18/13 Nanette Miner 4/18/13

5 General Rules for Workplace Tests Part-4

Rule #4

Use Key Words

Key words assist the test-taker in figuring out the answer.

Who triggers the respondent to look for a person or position
What triggers the test taker to look for a thing or a process
Where triggers them to look for a place or location
When triggers them to look for a date or a period of time
Why will signal them to look for reasoning.

Nanette Miner 4/17/13 Nanette Miner 4/17/13

5 General Rules for Workplace Tests Part-3

Rule #3

Stick to the Facts

Do not include trivial information - the only intention of which is to confuse the test taker. For instance: Bob and Ed left their office on K Street in Washington DC at 4:45 pm to travel to BWI airport for a 9:00 pm flight - how far is the airport from their office? The times given have nothing to do with the correct answer; in fact, Bob and Ed are irrelevant, too. 4

A better phrased question would be:

Using (a calculator, a map, an internet site) calculate the distance between K Street in downtown DC and the BWI airport.

Nanette Miner 4/16/13 Nanette Miner 4/16/13

5 General Rules for Workplace Tests Part-2

Rule #2

Give Adequate and Specific Instructions

Instructions are critical. Do everything you can to make sure test takers know WHAT to do, and WHEN and HOW to do it.

Examples:

If there is a time requirement, state it. e.g. you must finish this section in 30 minutes
If a tool or resource is allowed, state it. e.g. you may use a calculator for questions 11 – 20. The opposite is true as well - you may NOT use a calculator to complete this section. For each item in column A there is ONLY ONE correct answer in column B.
It's also quite helpful to read the instructions out loud at the start of the test even when they are clearly written on the test itself. This will ensure that everyone hears, sees, and interprets the directions the same way and allows for questions before anyone begins.

Nanette Miner 4/12/13 Nanette Miner 4/12/13

5 General Rules for Workplace Tests Part-1

RULE #1

Do Not Trick Them

If you have not taught “it” in the training, it should not be on the test. In addition, your test questions should be stated in the same manner they were stated/taught in the class. For example: if you teach the three characteristics of steel, don't ask: Which one of these is NOT a characteristic of steel. It's hard for most people to have success with "null" answers and more importantly, why reinforce what you don’t want them to remember?