Writing · Free lesson
ML English: a validation result is not a test result
You have a validation score, but a draft update calls it test accuracy. Correct the label before a reviewer mistakes an intermediate result for a separate evaluation.
Professor Scott MendozaThe short answer
Keep the dataset label with the score: Accuracy was 88% on the validation set. Evaluation on the held-out test set has not run yet. Pending does not mean zero, failed or the same score.
A score needs its dataset and status.
In a common ML workflow, validation data supports development choices, while a separate test set is reserved for an additional evaluation. Whatever your team calls its sets, report the actual set used. On the validation set attaches the score to its evidence. Has not run yet states missing evaluation work; it does not describe a failed result. Do not copy the validation number into the test field.
Compare the examples
Accuracy was 88% on the validation set.
Evaluation on the held-out test set has not run yet.
This is validation accuracy, not a test-set result.
Held-out means set aside from specified development use. The name alone does not prove the data was kept independent or that future performance is guaranteed.
Build the meaning step by step
Name the metric
Accuracy was 88%.
Attach the evaluated set
That result is from the validation set.
State what remains unmeasured
The held-out test evaluation is still pending.
Try it now
Read the experiment status
Read all answers and explanations
The only completed run used validation data and scored 88% accuracy. Which report is supported?
Accuracy was 88% on the validation set.Name the actual evaluated set. Neither test nor production results were supplied.
The test evaluation has not run yet. What should the update say?
The test evaluation is pending.Not run is a status, not a numerical score or failure.
Does a validation score alone guarantee the same result on a different set?
No, report the separate result only after it is actually measured.Different evaluation evidence needs its own result.
Put it into practice
Correct the result note
Known facts: validation accuracy 88%; held-out test evaluation not run. Correct both misleading claims.
Test accuracy is 88%, so the final evaluation is complete.
See a model answer
Accuracy was 88% on the validation set. Evaluation on the held-out test set has not run yet.
A precise report can be incomplete in work status without being unclear about the evidence.
A little more clarity
Common questions
A few useful details before you move on.
Can tested refer generally to validation work?
In ordinary speech, yes. In a formal result note, the label test set has a more specific meaning, so name the dataset to avoid confusion.
We evaluated the model on validation data; the test set is still reserved.
What if the test result exists but I cannot access it?
Say unavailable to me or not yet verified, according to what you know. Do not claim it has not run if you only lack access.
I have not verified the test-set result yet.
Take it into your day
Report the measured score where it belongs; mark unrun evaluation as pending.
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