The Challenges in Constructing and Administering an Objective Test for Beginners’ Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

A test or an exam plays important role in education since it is used as a consideration in determining the success of instruction and sorting student's grades. However, constructing and administering a good test for young learners especially during the COVID-19 pandemic is not simple. Therefore, it becomes a great challenge for every teacher especially in Indonesia. This paper aimed at presenting the challenges faced by the teachers in constructing and administering an objective test especially for elementary school students during the COVID-19 pandemic. To collect the data, semi-structured interviews were given to 5 teachers in Lubuklinggau, Bengkulu. Based on the findings, we conclude that at least there are five practical problems faced by the teachers, those dealing with the difficulty on selecting which materials should be tested; the difficulty in finding plausible distractors for multiple-choice, the difficulty to make the students clearly understand the test items, the difficulty in managing the time of the test, and the difficulty in ensuring the students to pass the test without cheating or helped by the parents.