CRI Assessment & Evaluation Techniques 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under NCRA standards, what minimum accuracy percentage must a student achieve on a five-minute literary take to be considered passing at most speed levels?
- 90%
- 95% (Correct answer)
- 97.5%
- 99%
Correct answer: 95%
NCRA guidelines require 95% accuracy on graded dictation takes for passing at most speed benchmarks.
Question 2: A CRI is designing a portfolio-based assessment for student reporters. Which artifact is MOST relevant to include?
- A collection of typed essays about court reporting history
- Transcripts from multiple material types across different speed levels over time (Correct answer)
- Attendance records for all class sessions
- A list of steno machine brands the student has used
Correct answer: Transcripts from multiple material types across different speed levels over time
Transcripts across material types and speeds demonstrate growth and breadth of skill over time, the core purpose of a portfolio assessment.
Question 3: Which approach best reduces rater bias when multiple instructors grade the same student take?
- Each instructor uses their own personal grading standard
- Instructors apply a shared, calibrated scoring key with defined error categories (Correct answer)
- The most experienced instructor grades all takes alone
- Grades are averaged after each instructor independently assigns a letter grade
Correct answer: Instructors apply a shared, calibrated scoring key with defined error categories
A shared, calibrated scoring key ensures inter-rater reliability by standardizing how each error type is identified and penalized.
Question 4: A student repeatedly drops articles ('the,' 'a,' 'an') in transcripts. Which targeted assessment would most directly address this issue?
- Assigning faster dictation speeds to force stroke efficiency
- Administering dictation specifically designed with frequent article usage and tracking omission rates (Correct answer)
- Switching the student to a different steno theory
- Grading only on proper nouns for the next four weeks
Correct answer: Administering dictation specifically designed with frequent article usage and tracking omission rates
Targeted dictation loaded with articles and systematic tracking of omissions isolates and measures the specific skill gap.
Question 5: Which term describes the degree to which an assessment measures what it claims to measure?
- Reliability
- Validity (Correct answer)
- Standardization
- Norming
Correct answer: Validity
Validity refers to whether a test accurately measures the intended construct or skill.
Question 6: When a CRI uses the same grading key repeatedly and produces consistent scores for the same performance, this assessment property is called:
- Validity
- Authenticity
- Reliability (Correct answer)
- Alignment
Correct answer: Reliability
Reliability is consistency of results across repeated measurements under the same conditions.
Question 7: A student fails a speed test on the first attempt but passes on the second attempt of the same take. What is the BEST instructional response?
- Record the second score as passing and move to the next level immediately
- Investigate whether the first failure was due to anxiety, preparation, or a skill gap before advancing (Correct answer)
- Dismiss the first attempt and never reference it again
- Require the student to pass three additional warm takes at the same speed
Correct answer: Investigate whether the first failure was due to anxiety, preparation, or a skill gap before advancing
Understanding the cause of the initial failure helps the instructor determine whether the student is genuinely prepared or just benefiting from material familiarity.
CRI Assessment & Evaluation Techniques 3
Under NCRA standards, what minimum accuracy percentage must a student achieve on a five-minute literary take to be considered passing at most speed levels?