Computer Adaptive Testing Explained

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  1. This is a discussion on Computer Adaptive Testing Explained in NCLEX Discussion Forum, part of Nursing Student ... I'm not sure if this is a re-post, but I had just taken my NCLEX about an hour ago and had 18 SATA...

    by Feb 22, '12
    I'm not sure if this is a re-post, but I had just taken my NCLEX about an hour ago and had 18 SATA questions. I consider myself a fairly smart guy, but those questions were very difficult and I didn't think it was fair to have so many and then the exam shut off at 75. So beaten and disheveled I decided to do some research on Computer Adaptive Testing and here is an explanation that is much more relieving.

    How Does CAT Work?

    1. Every time you answer an item, the computer re-estimates your ability based on all the previous answers and the difficulty of those items.
    2. The computer then selects the next item that you should have a 50% chance of answering correctly.
      • This way, the next item should not be too easy or too hard.
      • The computer’s goal is to get as much information as possible about your true ability level.
      • You should find each item challenging as each item is targeted to your ability


    https://www.ncsbn.org/1216.htm
    Last edit by Silverdragon102 on Feb 22, '12 : Reason: TOS pm to member
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    by scienchris Feb 22, '12 11:02 am
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  3. 4 Comments so far...

  4. Feb 22, '12 by
    That is what my instructor says and she used to work for Kaplan. " all you need to get is 50% "
  5. Feb 22, '12 by
    But it's 50% of the right difficulty!
  6. Feb 22, '12 by
    Of application/analysis level type of questions.
  7. Feb 22, '12 by
    95% confidence interval rule

    this rule is the most common for nclex candidates. the computer will stop giving items when it is 95% certain that your ability is clearly above or clearly below the passing standard.

    as if the computer has its own mind....