This presentation uses the example of the great giraffe challenge riddle to demonstrate the problem with test validity when it comes to attempting to standardize writing assessment.
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…and Standardized Testing The Great Giraffe Challenge Riddle
Transcript
1. The Great Giraffe Challenge Riddle and Standardized
Testing
2. My name is Diane Phelps. I have a PhD in English Education.
My specialty is the instruction and assessment of writing. Today I
flunked the following Facebook riddle
3. I received this riddle from a high school classmate who
studied Engineering and who also holds a degree in corporate
finance: My new profile pic is a giraffe because I answered a
riddle wrong. The deal is I give you a riddle. You get it right you
get to keep your profile pic. You get it wrong and you change your
profile pic to a Giraffe for the next 3 days. MESSAGE ME ONLY SO
YOU DONT GIVE OUT THE ANSWER. Here is the riddle: 3:00 am, the
doorbell rings and you wake up. Unexpected visitors, It's your
parents and they are there for breakfast. You have strawberry jam,
honey, wine, bread and cheese. What is the first thing you open?
Remember... message me only. If you get it right I'll post your
name here. If you get it wrong change your profile pic.
4. What does the fox say?
5. Without revealing the correct response, what follows are
just some of the answers floating around in cyber space
6. Nothing! You cant make me get up in the middle of the night!
Well, if I woke up, and then I heard the doorbellI must have opened
my ears first Its my parents at 3am? It must be bad news The bottle
of wine! sssd How do I know what time it is? How do I know my
parents are there? How do I know what they want for breakfast? How
I would open my MOUTH to YELL at my parents for bothering me!!! But
what if its not my parents? I think I would open my shot gun
case!
7. There is no wrong answer because language can be sly.
8. Writing is socially constructed and culturally embedded.
This riddle reminds us that reader background knowledge varies and
item context can be subjective.
9. We need to keep these things in mind when we stick our necks
out discussing education reform! Maybe I ought to change my profile
picture to a fox swwww
10. Did you correctly solve the great giraffe riddle? Do you
think it is valid?