NR537 Week 4: Scholarly Discussion: Item Analysis
You are a member of a 3-person educational team that has developed a competency test that uses 50 multiple choice test questions to determine the knowledge and skill level of learners. After 30 learners have completed the competency test, the team conducted an item analysis. From the results, there are 10 questions that are identified as being problematic. One of the educators wants to consider each of these questions individually to see if one or more of the questions should be removed from the test. However, a second educator is strongly against this by stating, “This is a competency test; it has validity because we wrote it—the test questions should not be altered. The grade on the examination should stand!” The third educator wants to remove the ten questionable items from the test and raise all learners’ scores. For the educator in professional nursing development, this will result in staff nurses who have failed the exam being placed on performance improvement plans and possible dismissal from the agency. For the educator in the academic setting, the learner will not be allowed to progress to the next course, must repeat the current course, and may be dismissed from the academic program.
What quantitative and qualitative information would you provide in order to assist these educators to consider the quality of the test questions?
NR537 Week 4: Scholarly Discussion: Item Analysis Answer
To assist the educators in considering the quality of the test questions, both quantitative and qualitative information can be provided. Here’s how you can approach this:
Quantitative Information:
- Item Difficulty Index:
- Calculate the difficulty index for each of the 50 questions. Identify questions with extremely high or low difficulty indices, as extreme values may indicate issues.
- Item Discrimination Index:
- Assess the discrimination index for each question. Questions with low discrimination may not effectively differentiate between high and low performers.
- Reliability Coefficient:
- Calculate the reliability coefficient of the test. A low coefficient may indicate inconsistency in the test, requiring further examination of individual questions.
- Frequency of Incorrect Responses:
- Analyze the frequency with which learners are selecting the incorrect options for the 10 identified questions. Consistent incorrect responses may indicate a problem with the distractors.
- Correlation with Total Test Score:
- Examine the correlation between individual question scores and the learners’ total test scores. Questions with low correlations may not be contributing significantly to the overall assessment.
Qualitative Information:
- Item Review by Experts:
- Engage subject matter experts to review the 10 identified questions. Experts can provide insights into the relevance and clarity of the questions in relation to the competencies being assessed.
- Learner Feedback:
- Collect feedback from learners regarding the perceived difficulty, ambiguity, or unfairness of the 10 questions. This qualitative data can highlight areas of concern from the learners’ perspective.
- Validity Evidence:
- Evaluate the validity evidence for the test questions. Consider whether the questions align with the intended competencies and if they accurately measure what they are supposed to measure.
- Educator Consensus:
- Facilitate discussions among the educators to reach a consensus on the quality of the questions. Encourage open communication about concerns and potential solutions.
- Ethical Considerations:
- Discuss the potential consequences of removing or retaining the 10 questions, considering the impact on learners’ grades, professional development plans, and dismissal implications.
- Benchmarking:
- Benchmark the test against similar competency tests in the field. Compare the problematic questions to industry standards to identify any significant deviations.
By presenting both quantitative metrics and qualitative insights, the educators can make informed decisions about whether the identified questions should be retained, revised, or removed from the competency test. This approach balances statistical rigor with the practical considerations of the impact on learners and their professional paths.
