Adaptive testing
a response to student diversity?
Martin Barker | School of Biological Sciences
Sara Preston | Centre for Academic Development
‘Default’ teaching & learning
These students
may need
extra support
These students
may need extra
challenge
#students 
1. Students are unique
Academic diversity is increasing among the student
intake. We need to respond to this in teaching and
learning, not just ‘aiming for the middle’ by default
academic ability 
Difficulty 
An ideal test
might have Qs
from range of
difficulty levels
Q 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
2. Assessments should be appropriate
Adaptive tests give students a series of questions, at
a suitable difficulty level, based on the student’s
cumulative performance in the test
Hardest

Easiest
3. Anatomy of an adaptive test
Students are ‘jumped’ to different levels as they gain/lose marks
Key for diagram
below
Different score outcomes depend
on path taken
Q difficulty
levels
‘Jump’ allows students to
switch to a different Q types
(from Q blocks 2.1, 1.2 etc)
Harder 
Moderate 
Easier 
4. Example: part of an adaptive test
Questions are based on critical thinking, problem solving in biological and environmental sciences
Q1.1
Q3.1
2 marks
A water lily plant is growing in the
middle of a pond on Day 1. The plant
doubles in area every day. The pond
is completely covered on Day 20.
On which day is the pond is halfcovered?
4 marks
A group of 10 browsers consumes all
the leaves on a tree in 20 days. On a
very similar tree, 15 browsers do so
in 10 days. How many days will 25
browsers take to consume all the
leaves on another very similar tree?
2 marks
+
Q1.2
6 marks
Q1.3
2 marks
An adult shrew is four times as old
as its offspring. In 20 weeks, it will
be twice as old. How old will adult
and offspring be then?
0 marks
2 marks
Q2.1
4 marks
Five enzymes were part of a
biochemical pathway. Enzyme K
occurred before Enzyme Q but after
H. Enzyme X occurred before
Enzyme H but after Enzyme N. What
is the order of enzymes in the
pathway?
The array shows plots within a field.
Each letter represents a different
treatment.
What is the missing treatment,
based on the existing pattern?
Students
access
different mark
combinations.
This partly
depends on
their
performance in
the first Q
bank
5. Results In a pilot study most (94%) students shifted to a different ‘difficulty level’ of Qs once (61%) or
twice (6%). Compared with control group, students were more likely (2 P<0.001) to answer ‘suitable’ Qs
6. Conclusion Adaptive testing can provide an appropriate challenge up to, not below or beyond, a
student’s academic capacity. This is fairer to students and more informative for teaching staff
Answers: Q1.1 =Day 19; Q1.2 =40, 10 weeks; Q1.3 =G; Q2.1 =NXHKQ; Q3.1 = 5 days