[musiccitycpa]

It seems like I am not alone in this thought based on what I have read here over the past couple months along with personal experiences. We all know there are 2 types of testlets: Medium and Difficult. You start with a medium and based on how you perform determines if your next one is medium or difficult. A lot of times, it is pretty easy to distinguish between the 2.

But then, the 3rd testlet comes around. Whenever my 2nd testlet is difficult, I can never tell whether or not my 3rd testlet is medium or difficult. It seems to be harder than the 1st but maybe a little easier than the 2nd. Does anyone know why this is? Is it all mental? Or is there a third dimension of testlet that NASBA isn’t telling us about? Maybe I’ve been watching too much “Stranger Things”…

AUD- 77
BEC- 84
FAR- 69, Sep 16
REG- 71,61,88

[sancasuki]

I have noticed that like half the people on here say that their testlets went.
1 medium
2 difficult
3 medium/difficult

Medium/difficult does not exist!! Personally, I couldn't tell what difficulty my testlets were for FAR, AUD, & BEC. REG was the only one where I knew for sure that the 2nd and 3rd ones were difficult. It was very obvious.

[hawkgolf12]

I'm not totally convinced that testlets are strictly medium or difficult after the first testlet. It is obvious that testlet 1 is “medium.” My testlets seemed to go medium, difficult, medium/difficult. I think each testlet has questions that are all weighted differently. For example, my first testlet may contain questions that are only worth 1 or 2 points and are considered as medium. My second testlet could contain questions that are worth 3 or 4 points and considered difficult. The third testlet could contain questions that are worth anywhere between 1 and 4 points. Testlet 3 might contain more 3 and 4 level based questions than 1 or 2 level, based on how testlet 2 went.

Although, I'm just taking a wild guess on how they score this exam and have no clue. But based on my experience with my first two exams, I got the feeling this may be how testlets are put together. I've heard from people who have third testlets that are embarrassingly easy and I think that just means that testlet 2 didn't go as well and they were given more questions worth less weight (1 or 2 points). All speculation though.

REG - 8/9/16
AUD - 9/8/16
FAR - 10/28/16
BEC - TBD

Becker & Ninja MCQ

[sancasuki]

This is what AICPA says:

Multiple-choice testlets vary in difficulty—there are two levels that are labeled “medium” and “difficult.” Within the testlets, items often vary substantially in their difficulty levels, but across testlets, those labeled “difficult” contain harder questions on average than testlets labeled “medium.” Every candidate receives a medium testlet first. Succeeding testlets can be either medium or difficult, depending on a candidate’s performance. The scoring procedures take the difficulty of all questions into account so that candidates are scored fairly regardless of the difficulty of the testlets they take.

Linkie

[hawkgolf12]

I get that the AICPA states that testlets are labeled as medium and difficult, but that doesn't take away the fact that questions are all weighted differently. Yes, testlets are technically labeled either medium or difficult. However, it is different when looking at it from a candidate perspective. Testlet 2 or 3 can be labeled as difficult by the AICPA but may be actually “medium/difficult” based on the questions and the weights associated with them. Those testlets can contain questions that are worth 4 points but also questions that are worth 1 point.

If there are 20 questions worth 5 points and 10 questions worth 1 point then that testlet would probably (guessing) be labeled “difficult” by the AICPA, but candidates would most likely believe it to be “medium/difficult”. However, as easy as it is for them to label these testlets, it sure isn't easy for us candidates to distinguish between those difficulty levels. Frankly, none of us have any clue which questions are considered medium or difficult once we get past testlet 1. It's all speculation on our part.

REG - 8/9/16
AUD - 9/8/16
FAR - 10/28/16
BEC - TBD

Becker & Ninja MCQ

[Knight Rider]

The speculation is all part of the fun…it's like a way to channel all of the aggravation they inflict on us.

[Author]

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