What is a Test

Think back to the first time you tried sit-ups. In a physical-education class your teacher counted the sit-ups you completed and told you how well you had done. That simple scene contains the whole idea of a test: a task was set, a number was produced, and a judgement followed.

Numbers, measurement and decisions

Numbers are a part of everyone's life, and they can be used in measurement - and measurement is simply a way of giving meaning to numbers. Decision-making, too, is a daily task: people make hundreds of decisions every day, and to make wise decisions one needs information. This is exactly the role of measurement - to provide decision-makers with accurate and relevant information so they can make informed choices. In physical education we collect data about fitness characteristics (amount of physical activity, blood pressure, height, weight, strength and so on) because fitness, physical activity and quality of life are closely linked, and sound decisions about a learner depend first on obtaining relevant information and then on evaluating it.

What a test is

A test is an instrument or tool used to make a particular measurement. That tool may take many forms - it may be written, oral, a mechanical device (such as a treadmill), physiological or psychological. Whatever its form, a test does not by itself deliver a verdict; it creates the standardised situation in which a learner's ability can be observed and a score obtained. It is therefore the starting point of assessment: the task or instrument through which information is gathered. …