This is a professional development workshop on setting a semester examination paper. While some in-house policies make this presentation local, most of its contents are globally relevant--any university and colleges can apply its contents.

1. Paro College of Education
Royal University of Bhutan
Paro
Professional Development:
Setting Semester Examination Paper
11 May 2016
Facilitator: Dr Gembo Tshering
Controller of Examination

2. Overview
Date Session Activity Time
11May2016
1st
Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives: Knowledge Dimension 8.40 AM-9.40 AM
2nd Knowledge Dimension Grid 9.40 AM-10.10 AM
Tea Session 10.10 AM-10.25 AM
3rd
Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives: Cognitive Process
Dimension
10.25 AM-11.25 AM
4th Cognitive Process Dimension Grid 11.25 AM-11.45 AM
5th Item Formats 11.45 AM-12.45PM
Official Lunch 12.45 PM-1.45 PM
6th Guiding Examinees during the Test 1.45 PM-2.15 PM
7th Appearance of a Semester Exam Paper 2.15 PM-2.30 PM
8th Reducing Mistakes in Test Scores 2.30 PM-2.50 PM
9th Debriefing 2.50 PM-3.00 PM
5/10/2016 2Dr Gembo Tshering/email: gembotshering.pce@rub.edu.bt

3. SESSION ONE
Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s
Taxonomy of Educational Objectives:
Knowledge Dimension
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4. An outline of the Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives
Knowledge
Dimension
Cognitive Process Dimension
Remerging Comprehending Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating
Factual
Conceptual
Procedural
Meta-
cognitive
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5. Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives: Knowledge Dimension
• Factual Knowledge
– Knowledge of terminology
(alphabet, scientific terms)
– Knowledge of specific details and elements
(significant names, cultural facts)
Definition:
The basic elements students must know to be
acquainted with a discipline or solve problems in it.
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6. Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives: Knowledge Dimension
• Conceptual knowledge
– Knowledge of classifications and categories
(plants, library)
– Knowledge of principles and generalizations
(Pythagorean theorem, Four Noble Truths)
– Knowledge of theories, models, and structures
(boiling point, parliament)
Definition:
The interrelationships among the basic elements within
a larger structure that enable them to function together.
5/10/2016 6Dr Gembo Tshering

7. Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives: Knowledge Dimension
• Procedural Knowledge
– Knowledge of subject-specific skills and algorithms
(division algorithms, cooking)
– Knowledge of subject-specific techniques and methods
(interviewing techniques, research methods)
– Knowledge of criteria for determining when to use
appropriate procedures
(four wheel driving, emergency bell)
Definition:
How to do something, methods of inquiry, and criteria for
using skills, algorithms, techniques, and methods.
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8. Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives: Knowledge Dimension
• Metacognitive Knowledge
– Strategic knowledge
(rehearsal, mnemonic strategy)
– Knowledge about cognitive tasks, including
appropriate contextual and conditional knowledge
(testing knowledge, cognitive demands)
– Self-knowledge
(personal strengths, personal weakness)
Definition:
Knowledge of cognition in general as well as awareness
and knowledge of one’s own cognition.
5/10/2016 8Dr Gembo Tshering

9. SESSION TWO
Knowledge Dimension Grid

10. Knowledge and cognitive process
dimensions
Subject
Matter
Knowledge Dimension
Factual Conceptual Procedural Meta-cognitive
Median X
Punctuation
rules X
Calculating
median X
Cultural
values X
5/10/2016 10Dr Gembo Tshering

11. SESSION THREE
Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s
Taxonomy of Educational Objectives:
Cognitive Process Dimension

12. Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives: Cognitive Process Dimension
• Remember
– Recognizing
– Recalling
Definition:
Retrieve relevant knowledge from long-term
memory.
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13. Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives: Cognitive Process Dimension
• Understand
– Interpreting
– Exemplifying
– Classifying
– Summarizing
– Inferring
– Comparing
– Explaining
Definition:
Construct meaning from instructional messages, including oral, written, and graphic
communication.
5/10/2016 13Dr Gembo Tshering

14. Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives: Cognitive Process Dimension
• Apply
– Executing
– Implementing
Definition:
Carry out or use a procedure in a given situation.
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15. Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives: Cognitive Process Dimension
• Analyze
– Differentiating
– Organizing
– Attributing
Definition:
Break material into constituent parts and determine
how parts relate to one another and to overall
structure or purpose.
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16. Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives: Cognitive Process Dimension
• Evaluate
– Checking
– Critiquing
Definition:
Make judgments based on criteria and standards.
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17. Harvesting the Power of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives: Cognitive Process Dimension
• Create
– Generating
– Planning
– Producing
Definition:
Put elements together to form a coherent or
functional whole, reorganize elements into a new
pattern or structures.
5/10/2016 17Dr Gembo Tshering

18. SESSION FOUR
Cognitive Process Dimension Grid

19. Sample Test Blueprint
Content
Cognitive Process Dimension
Rem Und App Ana Eva Cre Tot
Item/Marks
Punctuation Q1, e,
5M;
Q5,ii,4M;
2/9
Drama Q2, iii,
3M;
1/3
Tot 0 0 3 0 0 0 3/12
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Question Number
Sub question
Marks

20. SESSION FIVE
Item Formats

21. Item Formats
Two Types of Items
• Selected-Response Items
• Constructed-Response Items
We will focus on some selected-response items
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22. Item Formats
• Multiple Choice Item Format
• Matching Item Format
• Extended Matching Item Format
• Alternate Choice Item Format
• True-False Item Format
• Complex Item Format
• Context-Dependent Item Format
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23. Item Formats: MC Item Format
A conventional MC item will have a stem, the
correct choice, and several wrong answers or
distractors.
Example: Who is Jigme Y. Thinley?
A. The first democratically elected Prime Minister of
Bhutan
B. The GNH ambassador of Bhutan to the world
C. The best public speaker in the Bhutanese parliament
D. The last Prime Minister of Bhutan before 2008
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24. Item Formats: MC Item Writing Rules
• The question or problem in the stem must be self-
contained.
• Avoid negatively stated stems.
• Each alternative must be grammatically consistent with
the item stem.
• Make all alternatives plausible, but be sure that one of
them is indisputably the correct or the best answer.
• Randomly use all answer positions in approximately
equal numbers.
• Never use all of the above as an answer choice, but use
none of the above to make the items more demanding.
5/10/2016 24Dr Gembo Tshering

25. Aligning Item Formats: Matching MC Item
A Matching MC item format starts with a set of options at the top followed by a set of
stems below. The instruction that goes before the options and stems tell test takers how to
respond and where to mark answers.
Mark your answer on the sheet. For each item select the correct answer from options
provided below.
A. Trashigang
B. Thimphu
C. Chukha
D. Punakha
1. The capital of Bhutan
2. The largest Dzongkhag
3. The winter residence of the Je Khenpo
4. The mega hydro power
5. The winter capital
Options/Premises
Stems/Responses
5/10/2016 25Dr Gembo Tshering

26. Item Formats: Matching MC Item-Writing Rules
• Use fairly brief lists, placing the shorter entries on the
right.
• Employ homogeneous lists (options and stems should
comprise similar sort of things).
• Include more responses than premises.
• List responses in a logical order (chronologically or
alphabetically).
• Describe the basis for matching and a number of times
responses can be used.
• Try to place any premises and responses for any
matching item on a single page.
5/10/2016 26Dr Gembo Tshering

27. Item Formats: Context-Dependent Item sets
A Context-Dependent Item Set has an introductory stimulus and usually two to twelve test items related to this
stimulus (suitable for testing reading comprehension, stories, poems).
Bhutan became monarchy in 1907. Since then, Bhutan has been developing steadily.
When did Bhutan become constitutional democracy?
A. 2007
B. 2008
C. 2012
D. 2013
Which one of the following is not a part of the democratic process in Bhutan?
A. Formation of GYT
B. Formation of DYT
C. Formation of constitutional offices
D. Formation of ministries
Note: All MC Item-Writing Rules
are applicable to Context-Dependent Item Sets
5/10/2016 27Dr Gembo Tshering

28. Guess What is Correct!
I am in school. The underlined sentence is an
example of dot dot dot or colon or semi-colon or
blank
A. A/a question full stop or colon or blank
B. A/a statement full stop or colon or blank
C. A/an exclamation full stop or colon or blank
D. A/an instruction full stop or colon or blank
5/10/2016 28Dr Gembo Tshering

29. The Correct One Revealed!
I am at the school. The underlined sentence is an
example of
A. a question.
B. a statement.
C. an exclamation.
D. an instruction.
5/10/2016 29Dr Gembo Tshering

30. SESSION SIX
Guiding Examinees during the Test

31. Guiding Examinees during the Test:
Instruction at the Test Level (First Page)
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Spring Semester Examination 2016
Paro College of Education
Royal University of Bhutan
Paro
Module: MAT408 (Descriptive Statistics) Program: B.Ed (S) Level: I
Writing Time: Three Hours Full Marks: 100
Read the following directions carefully:
1. Do not write during the first 15 minutes. Use this time for reading the questions. You will get full
three hours for answering the questions;
2. Write the answers to all the questions in the answer sheets provided by the college.
3. Read the directions to each section and to each question carefully before answering the
questions;
4. Once the writing time begins, you are not allowed to ask questions, speak with others, or move
around;
5. Do not leave the examination hall before you are certain that all the questions, as directed in the
paper, have been answered.

32. Guiding Examinees during the Test:
Instruction at the Section Level
SECTION A
25 Questions-50 Marks
Answer ALL Questions
Direction: Each question in this section is followed by four possible choices of answers. Choose the most
correct answer and write it down in the answer sheets provided.
SECTION B
FIVE Questions-25 Marks
Answer ALL Questions
Direction: Answer the questions given below as directed. All answers must be written in the answer
sheets provided. The intended marks for each question is given in brackets.
SECTION C
FIVE Question-25 Marks
Directions: From the FIVE questions, choose any three and write their answers as directed in the answer
sheets provided.
5/10/2016 32Dr Gembo Tshering

33. For MC item:
Each question in this section is followed by four possible choices of
answers. Choose the most correct answer and write it down in the answer
sheets.
For Matching item:
Match the following options to their correct responses and write the pairs
in terms of their alphabetical and numerical representations in the answer
sheets (eg., A=3)
For Context-dependent Item Sets:
Read the story given below and answer the questions that follow as
directed.
Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow
as directed.
Read the abstract given below and answer the questions that follow
as directed.
Guiding Examinees during the Test:
Instruction at the Item Level
5/10/2016 33Dr Gembo Tshering

34. SESSION SEVEN
Appearance of a Semester Exam
Paper

35. Face Validity of a Semester Examination Paper
Font Size:
Section: 14 (Capital, Times New Romans)
Others: 12 (Times New Romans)
Page Margins
Left: 1 “; Right: 1 “; Top: 1”; Bottom: 1“
First Page
Test Level Instruction (Semester Name, Module
Code, Module Name, Program Name, Writing
Time, Full Marks, Number of Sections, Choice
Questions, etc.,)
5/10/2016 35Dr Gembo Tshering

36. Face Validity of Semester Examination Paper
Second Page
Section and Item Level instructions and Items
(Note: show item level marks inside brackets and
right-align the brackets)
Item Numbering
First level should be counting number (1,2,3…)
Second level should be lower case alphabet
letter (a,b,c…)
Third level should be Roman number (i,
ii,…)
5/10/2016 36Dr Gembo Tshering

37. Face Validity of Semester Examination Paper
Footer Section
a)Left corner will have ©PCE
b)Centre will have Spring Exam 2016
c) Right corner will have Page X of Y
d)The footer content will have top border line
Example as given below:
© PCE Spring Exam 2016 Page 1 of 12
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d)
a)
b)
c)

38. Item Numbering
Use continuous counting numbers to number questions across sections
SECTION A
Question 1
Question 2
SECTION B
Question 3
SECTION C
Question 4
Limit item levels (sub division) to three levels
Question 1
a)
i…
ii…
iii…
iv…
b)
i…
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1st level
2nd level
3rd level

39. SESSION EIGHT
Reducing Mistakes in Test Scores

40. Reducing Mistakes in Test Scores: Marking
Scheme and Model Answer
Question No. Question and Answer Marks
1 What is Newton’s Third Law of Motion? 1
Ans: Every action has equal and opposite reaction. 1
2 Which one of the following is the correct number of
faculty members of Paro College of Education?
A. 60
B. 65
C. 55
D. 70
1
Ans: A 1
3 Write a letter to your father asking him about your favorite
pet.
3
Ans: Format
Grammar
Vocabulary
1
1
1
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41. SESSION NINE
Debrefing
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42. Bibliography
5/10/2016 Dr Gembo Tshering 42
Aiken, R. L & Groth-Marnat, G. (2006). Psychological testing and assessment (12th ed).
New York: Pearson Education, Inc.
Anderson, W. L.; Krathwohl, R. D.; Airasian, W. P. et al. (Eds). (2001). A taxonomy for
learning, teaching, and assessing: a revision of Bloom’s taxonomy of
educational objectives. New York: Addison Wesley Longman, Inc.
Gronlund, E. N & Waugh K. C. (2009). Assessment of Student Achievement (9th ed).
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.
Haladyna, M. T. (2004). Developing and validating multiple-choice test items (3rd ed).
Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

43. THANK YOU AND HAPPY SPRING SEMESTER
EXAMINATION
5/10/2016 43Dr Gembo Tshering