The Effect of Cognitive Level Measured by Test Items and Test Instruction on Guessing Tendency

Abstract

The aim of this study which is a quasi-experimental research is to investigate the effect of test instruction and cognitive level measured by test items on guessing tendency. The study group of the research consisted of 220 undergraduate students studying at different departments of Ankara University Faculty of Educational Sciences in 2014-2015 spring term. An achievement test of measurement and evaluation containing equal number of items measuring knowledge, comprehension and application levels was applied to students in the study group. The test was applied with four different instructions to determine the effect of test instruction on guessing. The data were analyzed by using Kruskal-Wallis test, repeated measure one-way analysis of variance and Friedman test. The findings showed that test instruction and cognitive level measured by test items significantly affected guessing tendency