FAA Fundamentals of Instructing (FOI)Assessment and CritiqueHard
A CFI designs a written progress exam so that students who studied thoroughly and understand the material consistently score higher than those who did not prepare, effectively separating strong performers from weak ones. This test demonstrates which characteristic of a good assessment?
- AObjectivity
- BComprehensiveness
- CDiscrimination
- DUsability
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: C. Discrimination
Discrimination is the characteristic of a good test that refers to its ability to differentiate between varying levels of student achievement—well-prepared students should score noticeably higher than poorly prepared ones.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. Objectivity refers to freedom from grader bias in scoring, not separating achievement levels.
- B. Comprehensiveness refers to whether the test covers the full range of lesson objectives.
- D. Usability refers to how practical the test is to administer and score.
Discrimination (Test Characteristic)
The ability of a test to differentiate between students who have mastered the material and those who have not.
- Well-prepared students should score meaningfully higher
- Poor discrimination means everyone scores similarly regardless of preparation
- One of several characteristics of a good test, along with validity, reliability, and objectivity
Memory trick: Discrimination = sorting apples from oranges by quality of preparation.