In 1992, he was assigned to be the director of the development of the KS3 Science Tests and was based at UCLES in the University of Cambridge. This was where he started enhancing the art of writing test questions and designing exams and test papers.
From the year 2000, he headed the research into online testing for a commercial publisher, later opening his own company in 2003 - Test and Evaluation Ltd. This is when his career in writing started to blossom. He found himself working with major publishers to create and produce standardised tests, in reading and mathematics as well as science.
The publishers sell his tests to schools around the world, together with manuals, which explain how to get valuable information from the results. Teachers are able to monitor children’s progress and offer diagnostic advice on their strengths and weaknesses and hopefully help the children learn more effectively and successfully.
Colin said: “Improving children’s education is the most satisfying thing I reckon I can have done in my working life.”
One of the test series is called Diagnostic Reading Tests. It was designed to determine swiftly and effectively how well children read. It is used by Special Education training establishments as part of their course material.
Good job, Colin!