The use of new, previously untested questions is an essential component of question bank development. Such questions are not graded but may be incorporated into examinations. For each written examination, approximately 15 - 20 untested questions will be included for determination of their validity and reliability. These questions do not count toward a student’s grade.
The term “unscored experimental question” does not imply a different format or difficulty level. These are standard questions. If these questions generate reliable statistics during the testing process, they will become part of the regular question bank for use as regular exam items. This process ensures that all assessments are set with well performing items only.