Prior to the actual creation of an exam, there are steps that need to be taken. First of all a master test plan will need to be created. This plan will include the number of exams during the course, the weight of each exam, and the number of items on each exam.

Such a master plan may look something like this:

Adapted from: Mac Donald, M. (2002). Systematic Assessment of Learning Outcomes. Boston, MA: Jones and Bartlett. Pp. 65.

Now, looking at the master plan above, there are some concerns. Note that exams 1 and 2 each cover areas of never before tested content. The final exam covers previously tested content as well as newly tested content.A question arises as to the significance of the newly tested content in this exam and the need to re-test the previously tested content. The answers to these questions will play a part in the final test blueprint. The debate often rages in schools: ?should the final exam be a comprehensive exam??

Discussion question: What are the advantage/disadvantages of a comprehensive final exam from both student and faculty perspectives?

You will then need to identify the objectives and content to be assessed by the test. ?What do you want to test?? The content and course objectives are then weighed to aid the decision. A content/objectives worksheet commonly results.

Content/Objectives Worksheet

1. Number of unit exams 2
2. Number of items per unit exam 50
3. Total unit exams (a + b) 100
4. Number of final exam items 100
5. Total number of exam items 200

Adapted from: Mac Donald, M. (2002). Systematic Assessment of Learning Outcomes. Boston, MA: Jones and Bartlett. Pp. 69.

You will next need to make the decision of how to assign items in proportion to the course content they represent, and this will form the basis for establishing test blueprints.

Sample content item worksheet:

1. Number of unit exams 2
2. Number of items per unit exam 50
3. Total unit exams (a + b) 100
4. Number of final exam items 100
5. Total number of exam items 200

Adapted from: Mac Donald, M. (2002). Systematic Assessment of Learning Outcomes. Boston, MA: Jones and Bartlett. Pp. 71.

Developing a Test Blueprint

A blueprint is a test plan that links the test items to the content and instructional objectives of the course, and provides a foundation for establishing content-related evidence of validity. A blueprint consists of a two way chart that relates the instructional objectives to the course content. . A Blueprint worksheet follows:

Adapted from: Mac Donald, M. (2002). Systematic Assessment of Learning Outcomes. Boston, MA: Jones and Bartlett. Pp. 72.

The crucial concerns in the testing are that the assessment methods reflect the emphasis of instruction and that provisions are made to assess every learning objective and learning outcome. This will then relate to a curricular worksheet developed to determine the teaching/learning activities relate to the course objective. So, you would refer to a worksheet or a course outline that may look something like this:

Objective: At the conclusion of this module, student will safely perform basic nursing procedures:

Module Objectives:

1. Identify the rationale for the procedure
2. Describe the steps of the procedure
3. Select appropriate equipment for the procedure
4. Safely perform the procedure
5. Interpret client response to the procedure

Teaching Strategies Learning Strategies Assessment Strat

Once the blueprint is designed, it is important to carefully review and update the blueprint to determine its relevance.

The exam that is of most importance to nursing obviously is the NCLEX exam. This is a test plan that is carefully benchmarked and validated by panels of experts. The actual test plan for the NCLEX exam is located at the following web site:

http://www.ncsbn.org/public/testing/res/NCSBNRNTestPlanBooklet.pdf

There are additional items that are important in the planning of exams. On a practical level, it is important to note scheduling challenges that occur during a semester. Most schools request that faculty do not schedule exams during various religious holidays that are observed by the student/faculty population. It is also important to schedule enough exams to adequately test the content, and they should be scheduled at reasonableintervals so that students are not overwhelmed by the testing and the amount of content.

You will also need to determine the length of the test. The length of time may be a decision of the amount of scheduled class time, but you may have flexibility in that area. There are a few rules of thumb for the number of test questions over a period of time. Some say a question a minute, some say 1.5 a minute, some say 50 questions per I hour. It will really depend on the content, the construction of the questions, and the ability of the student.

You also need to select the appropriate test format. The following basic types of measurement instruments provide a variety of formats:

1. Selected-responseitems are also referred to objective test items because selective judgment is not involved in scoring them. With these test items, the correct answer is supplied and the student has to select it.
2. True-false ?present a statement, and the student decides if it is true. The potential for guessing is a concern.
3. Multiple-choice? present a stem that is followed by 2-5 options. Student is required to select the correct option. These items are easy to score and lend themselves to objective analysis.
4. Matching ? provides two lists of options and requires the student to select a choice that parallels and option on the other list. It is difficult to assess higher order content with this type of measurement.

2. Constructed response type ?are also referred to as subjective items because scoring can be open to interpretation.
3. Completion or short answer? present the student with a statement with some blanks that are to be filled in.
4. Essay? ask students to compose original composition to respond to an idea or question.
5. Performance Assessment – usually refer to assessments where students are asked to perform. They are particularly well suited to higher level critical thinking assessment, but can be subjective and are time consuming. An example of this would be the ACLS testing.
6. Psychomotor Assessment ? is concerned with motor skill assessment, such as the performance of a clinical skill.

There are also ?pop quizzes? given by some faculty during the course of the semester. What is the purpose of such quizzes, and what is your opinion of such quizzes?