1. … more than you ever wanted to know about writing valid assessment items!!!

2. Item Formatting … Imperatives: Concise stem – “Which sentence is true about the main character?” not “Which of the sentences below is true about the main character?” Never uses NOT such as, “Which sentence is not...” Never uses EXCEPT such as, “All the sentences are true about the character except …” All “wrong” answers must be reasonable options, not “throw-aways.” No answers that are opposites. Ex. A. The main character is very tall, B. The main character is very short. Will they really notice if there is no option D????????

3. Arrangement of Answer Options Options All virtually the same in length – preferable If not same length, then shortest to longest or longest to shortest. This is done in order to prevent students from automatically guessing that the longest answer is right. If wording or phrasing is being quoted from the passage, the answer options must follow the order of appearance in the passage. It has to be B or C???

4. Theme Performance Objectives R10-S2C1-03 – Compare and contrast the illustration of the same theme in two different literary genres, using their structural features as the basis for the comparison. R10-S2C2-03 – Recognize ways that forms of literature present similar themes differently across genres. Did you notice that they assess virtually the same thing?

5. Sample Question Which Will Address Both … Which statement is true about presentation of theme in All Quiet on the Western Front, the novel, and “Dulce Et Decorum Est,” the poem? A. The common theme is presented through graphic wording and phrasing in the poem but presented through repetition of violence in the book. B. A common theme is presented in the book through extensive dialog of characters while the poem relies on appeals to readers’ sense of smell. C. The common theme is presented from the perspective of an American soldier in the novel while it is presented from the perspective of a German soldier in the poem. D. A common theme is presented both in the novel and the poem through combinations of visual horror combined with descriptions which are repulsive to other senses. (Does this not address both objectives?)

6. Your Turn! With a partner, write a properly formatted question that addresses either theme PO! *Be prepared to share

7. Inference Performance Objectives R10-S3C1-02 – Distinguish supported inferences from unsupported inferences in expository selections such as editorials, newspaper articles, essays, reviews, and critiques. R10-S3C1-07 – Make relevant inferences by synthesizing concepts and ideas from a single reading selection. What these objectives have in common is the ability to recognize an inference. With one objective, students must only determine if the inference is followed by support. With the other, the student is required to determine which answer option is the most clearly correct or logical conclusion one might draw from a given set of circumstances and the answer options from which the student must choose.

8. Sample Question Read the passage quoted from Nixon’s “Checkers” speech and answer the question that follows. “That's what we have and that's what we owe. It isn't very much but Pat and I have the satisfaction that every dime that we've got is honestly ours. I should say this— that Pat doesn't have a mink coat. But she does have a respectable Republican cloth coat. And I always tell her that she'd look good in anything.” What does Mr. Nixon hope the listener/reader will infer from this statement? a. The Nixon family is just like the typical family. b. The Nixons wish for wealth and very fine things. c. Pat Nixon is fashionable and is very attractive. d. Richard Nixon is not concerned about politics.

9. Test Strategies for Those Objectives PO1 – All of the answer choices are exact quotes from the passage in the order in which they appear in the passage. If students will find those sentences and underline them, locating the only one which will not have follow up detail for support is simple. PO2 – If students have had instruction regarding supporting detail, the right answer option should be one from which they can locate supporting details inside the passage.

10. Your Turn! With a partner, write a properly formatted question that addresses either inference PO! *Be prepared to share

11. Literary Elements Performance Objectives R10-S2C1-01 – Analyze the author’s use of literary elements: theme (moral, lesson, meaning, message, view, or comment on life), point of view (e.g., first or third, limited vs. omniscient), characterization (qualities, motives, actions, thoughts, dialogue, development, interactions), setting (time of day or year, historical period, place, situation) and plot (exposition, major and minor conflicts, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.). R10-S2C1-02 – Analyze the author’s use of figurative language, including simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, symbolism, allusion, and imagery in a literary selection.

12. Sample Question: Characterization Which statement is true about the characterization of the mother in the story? A. She loves her husband and children. B. She loves material possessions the most. C. She places “keeping up with the Joneses” first. D. She places much value on having her own career.

13. Sample Question: Simile/Metaphor Read the portion of the text quoted below and answer the questions which follow. “Son, you are like a parrot in the oven.” What does the author communicate about the son through the comparison made by the father? A. He is colorful. B. He is talkative. C. He is in a trap. D. He is in trouble.

14. Sample Question: Foreshadowing What is accomplished in Lord of the Flies through Jack’s many references to pigs? A. It is meant to foreshadow Piggy’s demise. B. It is meant to foreshadow coming hunger. C. It is intended to foreshadow the beast’s arrival. D. It is intended to foreshadow the worship of pigs.

15. Read the following questions and determine whether or not they are written properly

16. Sample Question Analysis: Your Turn! Which of the following statements made by the author in this classic piece of literature which we read last week is the best example of all that the main character, Betty, whom some of you did not like, is really the character who is the best example of heroism? A. Betty fanned the flames of the fire in the other direction. B. Betty caught site of the fire truck. C. Betty left the scene uninjured. D. Betty ran into the burning tent putting her own life at risk in order to save the three tiny campers’ lives.

17. Sample Question Analysis: Your Turn! Which sentence is true about the presentation of theme in the story and the poem? A. The story presents the theme through characterization while the poem presents it through use of vivid figurative language. B. The story presents the theme through visual imagery while the poem presents it through the use of effective rhyme and meter. C. The poem presents the theme through use of appeal to all senses while the short story presents it through effective plotting. D. The poem presents the theme through effective word choice while the short story presents it through the appropriate setting.

18. Sample Question Analysis: Your Turn! Which type of fallacious reasoning is NOT used in this speech? A. Circular reasoning B. False causality C. Over-generalization D. Self-contradiction First – NOT Second – This objective is not assessed in this manner. Students are not asked to identify types of reasoning. They may be asked to identify a sentence that’s an example of a type.

19. Sample Question Analysis: Your Turn! Read the passage below and answer the question which follows. “My family is an expired firecracker set off by the blowtorch of divorce. We lay scattered in many directions.” The lines from this poem contain which poetic device? A. Simile B. Metaphor C. Hyperbole D. Allusion

20. Sample Question Analysis: Your Turn! Read the passage below and answer the question that follows. “One other thing I probably should tell you because if we don't they'll probably be saying this about me too, we did get something—a gift—after the election. … It was a little cocker spaniel dog in a crate that he'd sent all the way from Texas. Black and white spotted. And our little girl—Tricia, the 6-year-old—named it Checkers. And you know, the kids, like all kids, love the dog and I just want to say this right now, that regardless of what they say about it, we're gonna keep it.” What type of fallacious reasoning is used in this portion of Mr. Nixon’s speech? A. Circular reasoning B. Over-simplification C. Self-contradiction D. None of the above.

21. Questions? Maybe someone else will ask … You ask now !

22. Remember that if students have had little or no experience in having their knowledge of a performance objective assessed in a multiple choice format, they are being set up for frustration and potential failure when they actually mastered the objective in the manner in which it was assessed in another format in class. PLEASE provide them with multiple choice practice and test taking skills.