Psychometric Analysis of Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSCE) 2017 Neco English Language Multiple Choice Test Items in Kwara State Using Item Response Theory

Abstract

Abstract Views: 234

The study determined the  dimensionality  of  2017  National  Examinations  Council (NECO) English Language multiple-choice test item and estimated the   item   parameter   indices   (discrimination,   difficulty,   guessing   and   carelessness) using four parameter logistic model.  The ex-post facto design was  employed  for  the  study.  The  population  for  the  study  comprised  all  candidates/test-takers  who  enrolled  and  sat  for  June/July  Senior  School  Certificate    Examination    (SSCE)    2017    NECO    English    Language    Examination  in  Kwara  State,  Nigeria  with  12,000  samples  purposively  selected  from  sixteen  Local  Government  Area  in  the  State.    The  research  instruments  used  for  the  study  were  Optical  Marks  Record  Sheets  for  the  NECO  June/July  2017  English  Language  objectives  items.  The responses  of   the   testees   were   scored   dichotomously.   The   data   collected   were   calibrated using four parameters logistic model. The results showed that the 2017  English  Language  multiple-choice  item  among  SSCE  students  in  Kwara  State  does  not  violate  the  assumption  of  unidimensionality which made  the  items  reliable  for  use  in  assessing  knowledge  of  students  in  English language. Also, the results showed that only two items were able to suit the 4-PLM based on the rule of thumb. While the remaining items does not suit the 4-PLM.  It  was  recommended  among  others  that  NECO  and  other  examination  bodies  should  intensify  more  efforts  toward  improving  the standard of the English Language test items using 4-PLM, which is the new trend for estimating item parameter indices