ERIC Number: EJ1330787
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016-Oct
Pages: 10
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-2476-5880
EISSN: N/A
Investigating Factors of Difficulty in C-Tests: A Construct Identification Approach
Khoshdel, Fahimeh; Baghaei, Purya; Bemani, Purya; Bemani, Masoumeh
International Journal of Language Testing, v6 n2 p113-122 Oct 2016
In this paper we tried to demonstrate the validity of C-Test using construct identification approach. In this approach to construct validation the factors which contribute to item difficulty are identified. The assumption is that the factors which make items difficult are actually the construct underlying the test. For the purposes of this study, 11 item-level and sentence-level factors, deemed to affect item difficulty, were entered into a regression analysis to predict classical item p-values. The 11 factors explained only 8% of the variance in item difficulties. This finding shows that lexical and sentential factors explain only a very small portion of the variance in p-values. It seems that a great amount of variation in item difficulties should be attributed to above-sentence and text level factors. The implications of the study for C-Test construct validity are discussed.
Descriptors: Test Items, Difficulty Level, Test Validity, Cloze Procedure, Language Tests, Undergraduate Students, Foreign Countries
Tabaran Institute of Higher Education. Shariati 60, Shariati Blvd, Ghasem Abad, Mashhad, Khorasan Razavi, Iran. Tel: +98 (51) 35227215; e-mail: ijlt@tabaran.ac.ir; Web site: http://www.ijlt.ir/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Iran
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A