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Table 8 Items corresponding to the structure of the test and external concerns factor

From: Designing and validating a scale for evaluating the sources of unreliability of a high-stakes test

Item

 

Mean

SD

22

Some items were designed based on the extra-curricular sources

3.45

.95

26

The difficulty of items in the general and specific sections was not balanced and was disproportional

3.39

1.00

21

The format of some options was not familiar to me

3.37

1.02

23

The items were ambiguous and unclear

3.25

.99

20

The items were of low quality (e.g., some items had two or more correct options)

3.20

1.11

24

The items were irrelevant to their domains of knowledge, or they had overlap to a large extent

3.07

.97

25

The length of the test was too short to test the test-takers’ ability in different domains

2.99

1.07

19

The items were designed so that mathematical errors could occur in calculating the scores

2.93

.94

18

The items were biased against test-takers with physical disabilities, like color blindness

2.43

1.07

17

The items were biased against males or females

2.21

1.01

27

Some test-takers benefitted more from educational services because of the more related courses they passed in their previous level of education

3.39

1.04

28

Some majors were gender-specific and gender-biased which was a source of frustration for talented candidates

2.98

1.10

29

The security protocols were not completely followed in preparing the exams, so some candidates could have access to the test

2.71

1.15