Writing Test Questions that Parallel the State Assessment

When you plan your next set of test or assignment questions, consider paralleling your state’s standardized exam. Here are three ways:

1. Instead of having an exact answer within the multiple choice possibilities, you might be less definitive. Standardized tests often ask what I call a “most likely” question. For example, Which of these words MOST LIKELY reflects the author’s general attitude toward life on the farm? A) tolerant B) indifferent C) fearful D) appreciative. These questions often include one, two, or three answers that are “kind of” correct, with one being more correct. This forces students to rationalize their thinking.

2. A second strategy might include adding more open-ended questions. Substitute some of the fill-in-the-blank and multiple choice questions with those that require students to think and respond in complete sentences. This allows you to assess content knowledge and simultaneously emphasize the power of clear writing.

For every open-ended question, consider offering 5 points possible:

• 1 point for incorporating or embedding the question within the answer.
• 1 point for writing in complete sentences.
• 1 point for defining all pronouns (omitting all “he,” “she,” “it,” “they” references).
• 2 points for the correct answer and content accuracy.

Offering points for well-constructed responses helps you balance the state assessment expectations while also scoring for understanding.

3. A third suggestion for content-area questions is to include references to multiple-meaning words. Students need to have exposure to words beyond their most-commonly-used definitions. This is often easy to do when done within multiple choice questions. For example, What does “parallel” mean in the following sentence: The characters paralleled one another in many traits. A) side by side B) not intersecting C) mirrored D) opposite. Giving students exposure to reading words in context helps determine if they really understand the broader meanings.

To aid teachers in planning questions like this, I’ve developed a QAR card with examples and samples for the different types of questions asked on standardized tests.