How does the CAT work, as in, how does the test adapt to the individual user?
The multiple choice sections of the test are able to gauge how you respond to questions of various difficulties, and to give you questions based on that information. In each question type, for example, sentence correction you will get a question of average difficulty first. If you answer this question correctly, your next questions will be more difficult. The more questions you answer correctly, the more difficult they will become. If you answer incorrectly to the first, average-difficulty question, your second question will be less difficult. This has two consequences: The first is that as you take the test, you will get fewer questions that are very easy for you, and fewer that are too hard. Also, no other test taker will see the same question combinations. In those ways, the CAT is able to better gauge your performance. An ideal item pool for a computer adaptive test would be one with a large number of highly discriminating items well distributed at each ability level. The informati
