Negatively-Coded Test Items: A Theoretical and Practical Approach to Teacher-Made Test Items

Testing is one of the formal tools of assessment. The results of a test is also representing teaching process. It is not only a way of assessment but also a method of removingshortcomings by giving sufficient feedback afterwards. Thus language teachers are required to plan and construct tests which enhance learning the language. Hence, this study aimed to investigate negatively-coded tests. Therefore, 200 Iranian EFL learners in one of the high schools of Tehran were randomly selected and assigned to take three versions of one grammar test on conditionals, the first test with thirty negative items, the second test with thirty negative items but at the same time underlined and capitalized ones, and the last one with thirty positive items of the previous ones. The data was analyzed using paired t-test, reliability, and the psychometric analysis. The results of paired t-test in pair one that is the scores of the negative test and underlined test revealed no significance. However, in pair 2, that is the t-test of the scores of the underlined test and the positive test was statistically significant. The reliability of test results advocated the fact that the results of the positive test outperformed the previous ones respectively. The psychometric analysis of the items also proposed that the test items have improved in the last test as well.

Keywords:

Language Test , Multiple- Choice Items , Conditionals , Negatively-coded Items , Psychometric Analysis