DEFINITION OF TESTING: 

                It is a technique of obtaining information needed for evaluation purposes. (Tests, quizzes, measuring instruments) are devices used to obtain such information. A TEST is a method of measuring a person's ability on knowledge in a given area. It helps uste compare a student's performance with other students. Testing helps students as well as teachers. The results of testing will tell the student where he stands while the teacher will know whether he has been effective in his teaching. 

                 Thus testing can act as guide to students as well as teachers. In a way testing is an inevitable part of teaching/learning process.

QUALITIES or CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD TEST :

1. VALIDITY : 

                A test is valid if it measures what it is supposed to measure. Thus a test which is ideal for measuring  language skill may be useless for the other skill.

Validity, thus deals with what is tested and degree to which a test measures what is supposed to measure. For example, if we test the students writing skills giving them a composition test on Ways of Cooking, such test is not valid, because it tests not abilities  to write, but the knowledge of cooking as a skill. 

There are2 types of validity: 

A. Content-related Validity -

               A test is said to have content validity when it relates to the skill/area about which conclusion are to be drawn. For example, speaking ability is tested using speaking performance (oral test, seminar etc) not pencil and paper test. To test pronunciation teacher should require the students to pronounce the target words orally.

B. Face Validity- 

                Face validity is the extent to which students view the assessment content of the course and its objectives. 

Test with high face validity has the following characteristics: 

• Well constructed, expected format with familiar task.
• Clearly doable within the allotted time. 
• Clear and uncomplicated test item.
• Crystal clear direction. 
• Task that relate to students course work. 
• A difficulty level that present a reasonable challenge.



2. RELIABILITY - 

                A test is reliable if the results of test are consistent and dependable every time. If the same test is administered to the same group of students at different times the results should not vary oo much. Thus a test is basically a measuring instrument and therefore it must be prepared in such a way that its results are reliable. We can not use an elastic to measure one's chest. We have to use a non-elastic tape measure for the purpose.



3. PRACTICALITY -

                 An effective test is practical. Validity and reliability alone are not enough to build a test. The administrative aspects of testing like the following are important :

• the cost of the test should be within budgeted limits,
• all materials and equipment should be readilyavailable, 
• students should be able to complete the test reasonably within the set time frame, 
• should be easy to print /xerox before the test, 
• has a scoring/evaluation procedure that is specific and time efficient, 
• should preclude the possibility of cheating by testees. 

                Thus tests should be efficient in terms of making, doing, and evaluating. Then, the tests must be affordable. Furthermore, a test that takes a few minutes for a student to take and several hours for an examiner to evaluate for most classroom situation is impractical.

4. DISCRIMINATION :

                 If we want to measure the height of pre-school children it would be no good to use a measuring stand made for the Armed Forces and not calibrated below four feet because the average height of five year old children is about 2.5 to 3.00 feet. This measuring device would fail to discriminate between the heights of pre-school children. All information hat we will get is that almost all the children are below 4.00 feet. In other words we can not use the PG question paper for High school students.