Chapter 8

Measuring Cognitive Knowledge

Cognitive Domain

Intellectual abilities ranging from rote memory tasks to the synthesis and evaluation of complex information.

Cognitive Domain in PE benefits of exercise personalized activity program rules and strategies history of a sport safety procedures corrections in sport performance dance routines

Traditional Cognitive Assessments

homework class assignments group response to questions tests

Planning the Written Test Match test items to objectives. Consider Taxonomy of Educational

Objectives. Use a Table of Specifications.

Match Test Items to Objectives

Objective: Identify activities and sports as primarily aerobic or anaerobic.

Test Item: Explain why jogging is considered an aerobic activity.

Test item is more difficult than the objective and does not measure the achievement of the stated objective.

Match Test Items to Objectives

Objective: From memory, draw a tennis court and label the lines.

Test Item: Given the following diagram of a tennis court, label the lines of the court.

Test item is easier than the objective and does not measure achievement of the stated objective.

Match Test Items to Objectives

Objective: Describe how to “block out” when rebounding in basketball.

Test Item: When rebounding in basketball, describe how to “block out”.

Test item matches objective and allows accurate assessment as to the level of achievement of the objective.

Taxonomy of Educational Objectives

Table of Specifications

Selection of Test Items Provide clear instructions. Avoid trick questions/trivial details. Balance use of gender across

items. Balance use of ethnicity. Avoid stereotypes. (Ayers, 2001)

Types of Questions true/false matching multiple choice completion items short-answer essay

Administering the Test assembling the test giving the test grading the test testing students with disabilities

Analyzing the Test quantitative item analysis

difficulty index discrimination index item function

qualitative item analysis

Difficulty Index

Proportion of students who answered the question correctly

Difficulty Index = .5What does this mean?

Discrimination Index

Measures the extent to which a test question discriminates between the students who scored well and those who scored poorly

Discrimination Index = .5What does this mean?

Item Function Analysis

Suitability or effectiveness of a test question does not require a formula examines suitability of distractors in

multiple choice questions interprets with a healthy dose of

common sense

Analyzing a Question

120 students answered the question. 60 students selected correct answer

B. 32 students selected option C. 24 students selected option A. 4 students selected option D.What should be done, if anything, to

this question?

Using Alternative Assessments Carefully designed checklists and

rating scales (scoring rubrics) can be used for assessing the cognitive domain. student projects event tasks peer assessment self-assessment teacher observation