Comprehension Item with Two Defensible Options
At a Delhi school, a TGT (English) is reviewing a 10-mark comprehension section for Class 10. The passage says that the city library began opening until 9 p.m.; monthly visits rose by 18% and evening borrowing by 27%. The librarian's report adds: 'Longer hours removed one excuse; they did not create readers. Most people who came at 8 p.m. were the same people who used to come at 6 p.m.' It recommends pairing longer hours with school outreach. One item asks: 'The author's attitude towards extended hours is best described as (A) enthusiastic approval (B) cautious acceptance (C) outright dismissal (D) indifferent.' The key says A. Of 40 students, 32 chose A, 6 chose B, and 2 chose D. School policy says an item must be reviewed if at least 10% of students choose a defensible alternative. The section is already marked, and six parents have complained.
1. Is the review threshold met? Evaluate A and B against the passage and decide which is the better key.
Read the worked answer
Yes, the threshold is met: 6 out of 40 is 15%, above the 10% trigger. On the passage, A is too strong. The report does not simply celebrate the change; it says longer hours 'removed one excuse' and 'did not create readers', and it recommends adding school outreach. That is acceptance with reservations, not enthusiasm. B fits: the report accepts that extended hours helped visits and borrowing, but it cautions that the same people came later and that outreach is needed. C is wrong because the report does not reject extended hours; D is wrong because the report clearly has a view and makes a recommendation. The better key is B.
2. Rewrite the item or stem so that the intended answer is unambiguous, and state the new key.
Read the worked answer
A clearer version is: 'Which statement best captures the report's view of longer library hours? (A) Longer hours alone are sufficient to create new readers. (B) Longer hours help existing users but must be combined with school outreach. (C) Longer hours are useless because the same people come. (D) Longer hours have no measurable effect on visits or borrowing.' Key: B. This version removes the vague attitude label and makes each option a testable claim about the passage. A is now clearly too strong, C contradicts the reported rise in visits, and D contradicts the 18% and 27% figures. The teacher should also check that the stem does not rely on the word 'author' when the passage is a report; 'the report's view' is more precise.
3. How should the teacher handle the six students who chose B and the 32 who chose A?
Read the worked answer
Because the original item was ambiguous and the printed key signalled A, the fairest immediate step is to award full credit to both A and B for this item, then retire or rewrite it. The six students had a defensible reading, and the 32 followed the key; penalising either group would punish them for the item's defect. The teacher should explain the textual evidence in class, show why B is the better answer, and record the item for review. If the section is used again, only the rewritten version should be used. This keeps the assessment fair while preserving the comprehension skill being tested.