LSU PSYC 3020 Summer Final

After piloting and revising an achievement test, when are norm tables typically developed?

Following national administration to a representative sample (Norms require large-scale data from a defined population)

An instructor asks students to review several theories of intelligence and explain how they relate and differ from one another. According to Bloom’s taxonomy, which cognitive level is most directly engaged by this task?

Analyze (Analyze requires breaking concepts apart to compare them)

An organization uses aptitude tests to estimate how well current employees might perform in future training programs. What is the most relevant goal?

Predicting job-related performances (Aptitude tests are intended to forecast future success)

What is the central difference between aptitude and achievement tests?

Aptitude tests estimate potential, achievement tests measure prior learning (Aptitude = future ability, Achievement, = past learning)

What is the first step when developing an aptitude test for a specific vocation?

Define a set of relevant abilities or competencies (You can’t write meaningful items until you know what to measure)

When developing a table of specifications that incorporates multiple cognitive levels, which framework is most commonly used to guide item classification?

Bloom’s taxonomy (It helps categorize learning objectives by cognitive complexity and is widely used in test planning)

Which feature most clearly distinguishes criterion-referenced tests from norm-referenced tests?

Performance is evaluated against a defined level of mastery (Criterion-referenced tests assess whether a student meets a predetermined level of performance)

Which scenario best illustrates inappropriate use of an achievement test score?

Using an individual student’s score to diagnose a learning disability (Achievement scores alone can’t diagnose disabilities)

Which type of assessment is best suited for evaluating how much a student has learned in a particular subject area, such as math or reading?

Achievement test (achievement tests assess acquired knowledge and skills)

You are developing a standardized math achievement test and want to ensure that the test content fairly reflects what students were actually taught. What should you do before writing the items?

Create a table of specifications (The table ensures your test reflects intended content and cognitive levels)

A child with a chronological age of 5 and receives a mental age score of 4.5 on the Stanford-Binet. Assuming the use of the original ratio IQ formula, what does this imply?

The child’s IQ is slightly below average for their age

A psychological opts to evaluate one’s intelligence by examining portfolios of produced work across a variety of domains. Which theory is most consistent with this approach?

Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligence

A school psychology selects a brief IQ screener for a child with suspected developmental delay. What must they do to ensure an appropriate decision follows?

Supplement with broader cognitive assessments

When psychologists develop an intelligence test, what should guide their selection of tasks and items?

A theory of intelligence that specifies relevant mental abilities

Which of the following best captures a central claim of emotional intelligence theory?

Self-awareness and persistence are more important than memory or vocabulary

Which of the following best illustrates fluid intelligence?

Solving a puzzle that you’ve never seen before using pattern recognition

Which of the following best illustrates Thurstone’s Theory of Intelligence?

A student who struggles in math but excels in verbal analogies and spatial puzzles

Which psychologist proposed that intelligence consists of several independent abilities known as prirmay mental abilities?

Louis Thurstone

Which task would best assess spatial intelligence as defined in multiple intelligence theory?

Visualizing how to rotate a 3D object in your mind

Why is test-retest reliability emphasized for intelligence tests more than for some other measure?

Intelligence is assumed to be relatively stable over time

Describe how achievement tests are used

Measurement of person’s knowledge or how much they have learned (Other purposes include identify topics of importance, determine readiness for more learning, group for targeted education, and assess a program on a school or district wide basis)

Explain how criterion-referenced tests are interpreted

Cut scores, Benchmarks, Compared to fixed score

Explain how norm-referenced tests are interpreted

Percentiles, z scores, t scores, compared to other people

Provide the steps for the development of standardized tests

Determine content, test specifications, items are written, items are used in a trial setting, rewrite items, final tests are assembled, extensive national standardization effort, preparation of all necessary materials

Understand how to create a table of specifications

A grid that guides construction of achievement tests. One axis could be the topics covered in a class while the other could be amount of time the topic was covered or cognitive level of questions (Ex: Bloom’s taxonomy”

Consider the validity of achievement tests

The type of test doesn’t relegate us to specific types of validity, however content-based evidence takes higher priority for achievement tests

Describe how aptitude tests are used

Measurement of person’s ability or potential to perform in the future. Used to assess cognitive skills and assess psychomotor performance

Examples of aptitude tests:

ACT, SAT, GRE

Validity for aptitude tests

Remember: Type of test doesn’t relegate us to specific types of validity, however criterion-based evidence takes higher priority for aptitude tests. Specifically predictive validity

Consider the reliability for achievement tests

Internal consistency is prioritized for achievement tests; however interrater reliability would be prioritized depending on how the test was scored. Test-retest reliability doesn’t make sense.

Reliability for aptitude tests

Internal consistency is prioritized for aptitude tests; interrater reliability would be prioritized depending on how the test was scored. Test-retest reliability needed - aptitude assumed stable over time