Test wisdom describes the ability of test takers to use the characteristics and format of a test or test situation to answer questions correctly regardless of the content and thus achieve a higher test score. This ability is based on various so-called metacognitive strategies. In multiple choice tests in particular (as opposed to tests with open questions), these strategies help to identify the correct solution, regardless of whether the content of the question has been understood. A test-smart person is therefore able to achieve a better result in any test than a test-naïve person, even if both people have the same level of the actual ability to be assessed. Test wiseness as a skill is relatively unknown and has not been extensively researched scientifically. Nevertheless, studies have been describing the construct since the middle of the 20th century. Millman and colleagues provided the most important theoretical framework as early as 1965.
Elements of test wiseness
The strategies for test wiseness are divided into general elements and elements that depend on the purpose of the test.
General elements describe strategies for time management and error avoidance. The aim is to prevent participants from losing points for reasons other than a lack of knowledge. This includes, for example, guessing at questions that have not yet been answered if there is no point deduction for wrong answers, or not spending too much time on questions that cannot be answered. Many strategies that fall under the general elements of test wisdom are often also recommended for use in exam situations as part of preparation, e.g. for aptitude tests.
Elements that are dependent on the test purpose take into account the objective or the presumed intention of the test developer. This includes, in particular, the expected level of difficulty of a test or an individual task.
In addition to these elements, there are also key stimuli within tasks that can be used to identify the correct answer. Empirical evidence has already shown that the use of key stimuli explains up to 16 per cent of the variance in multiple choice tests for students. We will present these key stimuli in the next article.
