AP Assessment & Evaluation Methods 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: The primary purpose of using exit tickets at the end of an AP class period is to:
- Assign grades for daily participation
- Collect formative data to guide next-day instruction (Correct answer)
- Replace the need for unit tests
- Measure long-term retention of content
Correct answer: Collect formative data to guide next-day instruction
Exit tickets provide quick formative snapshots of student understanding that teachers can use to adjust upcoming lessons.
Question 2: Which of the following best describes the difference between norm-referenced and criterion-referenced scoring?
- Norm-referenced scoring uses rubrics; criterion-referenced does not
- Norm-referenced compares students to each other; criterion-referenced compares students to a fixed standard (Correct answer)
- Criterion-referenced scoring ranks students; norm-referenced does not
- Norm-referenced scoring is used only for AP exams; criterion-referenced is used for classroom tests
Correct answer: Norm-referenced compares students to each other; criterion-referenced compares students to a fixed standard
Norm-referenced scoring ranks students relative to peers, while criterion-referenced scoring measures performance against predetermined standards.
Question 3: An AP teacher wants to assess students' ability to synthesize multiple historical sources into a coherent argument. The most appropriate assessment type is:
- A 50-item multiple-choice test
- A document-based question (DBQ) essay (Correct answer)
- A vocabulary matching quiz
- A fill-in-the-blank worksheet
Correct answer: A document-based question (DBQ) essay
A DBQ requires students to read, analyze, and synthesize primary sources to construct an evidence-based argument, directly mirroring AP History exam tasks.
Question 4: A teacher shares learning targets with students at the beginning of a unit and uses those targets to design end-of-unit assessments. This approach is an example of:
- Norm-referenced design
- Backward design (Correct answer)
- Differentiated instruction only
- Summative-first planning
Correct answer: Backward design
Backward design begins with desired outcomes (learning targets), then aligns assessments and instruction to those goals.
Question 5: When an AP teacher uses benchmark assessments at the midpoint of a course, the primary goal is to:
- Determine final semester grades
- Identify students who need additional support before the AP exam (Correct answer)
- Compare the school to national norms on reading ability
- Replace AP practice exams entirely
Correct answer: Identify students who need additional support before the AP exam
Benchmark assessments provide interim data that teachers can use to identify struggling students and adjust instruction well before the high-stakes AP exam.
Question 6: Which characteristic makes a test item have high 'discrimination index'?
- Most students answer the item correctly
- High-scoring students answer correctly more often than low-scoring students (Correct answer)
- The item covers multiple content standards simultaneously
- The item has only two answer choices
Correct answer: High-scoring students answer correctly more often than low-scoring students
A high discrimination index means the item effectively separates high-performing students from low-performing ones, indicating it measures relevant knowledge.
Question 7: A teacher reviews AP exam score distributions and notices a bimodal pattern with peaks at 2 and 4. The most likely explanation is:
- The scoring rubric was too lenient
- Two distinct subgroups of students with different preparation levels took the exam (Correct answer)
- The exam was too short to produce a normal distribution
- Graders applied different standards
Correct answer: Two distinct subgroups of students with different preparation levels took the exam
A bimodal score distribution typically reflects two distinct population clusters — for example, well-prepared and underprepared students — rather than a single continuous group.
AP Assessment & Evaluation Methods 3
The primary purpose of using exit tickets at the end of an AP class period is to: