Secondary School Teachers’ Attitudes towards Employing Objective Tests in Achieving Cognitive Objectives

Abstract

The aim of this study is to explore the attitudes of secondary school teachers toward employing objective tests in achieving cognitive objectives (remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating).To achieve the study’s objectives, a questionnaire consisting of 24 items was administered, distributed across six dimensions, with four items in each dimension. The sample included 230 male and female teachers, distributed demographically according to gender, specialization, academic qualification, and years of experience.

The results revealed that the attitudes of secondary school teachers toward employing objective tests in achieving the cognitive objectives in the dimensions of remembering, understanding, analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating were above average, while their attitudes toward achieving the objective of application were at an average level. Furthermore, the results indicated that there were no statistically significant differences in teachers’ attitudes toward employing objective tests in achieving cognitive objectives and their dimensions according to gender, years of experience, and academic qualification. However, statistically significant differences were found in teachers’ attitudes toward achieving cognitive objectives (remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating) through objective tests according to specialization, and in the understanding dimension specifically with regard to specialization.

The study concluded with a set of recommendations and proposals, most notably the need to train secondary school teachers in designing objective tests that assess higher-order levels of thinking, particularly the skill of application. It further emphasized strengthening the integration of diverse assessment methods to ensure comprehensive evaluation, alongside the provision of pedagogical guides and standardized item banks aligned with Bloom’s cognitive taxonomy. The study also recommends revising teacher preparation programs to incorporate practical components in measurement and evaluation, encouraging comparative studies between objective and alternative assessments, and examining students’ attitudes toward such tests. In addition, the study calls for the implementation of field experiments aimed at improving the quality of assessment. At the policy level, the study advises decision-makers to adopt a national assessment policy grounded in scientific principles, to strengthen educational supervision, to establish electronic platforms for question banks, and to review the system of public examinations so that it focuses on measuring understanding and critical thinking alongside memorization.