How AQA Design Exam Questions (And How Teachers Can Too) | S3 E4 Teach & Tell podcast

What if a student got an exam question wrong not because they didn't know the content, but because of an ambiguous word buried in the sentence?

In this episode of Miss Estruch Teach & Tell, former Head of Biology Katie Estruch breaks down insights straight from the AQA Summer Conference 2026 keynote by Tor Thompson (AQA Assessment Design Manager). Discover how exam boards screen for "Construct Irrelevant Variance" (CIV) to ensure assessments measure true subject knowledge rather than reading stamina or decoding speed.

📌 What We Cover: 

• What is Construct Irrelevant Variance (CIV)?

• Language screening: Eliminating ambiguous phrasing, dense clauses, and rare vocabulary

• Formatting & Layout: Reducing cognitive load and designing for dyslexia

• Visuals: Clean diagrams and designing for colour vision deficiency

• Context: Streamlining wordy scenarios into clear numbered steps

• The Classroom Checklist: 5 quick wins for writing your own worksheets and assessments