A variety of factors can undermine performance on a test beyond lack of knowledge, such as anxiety and misinterpretations of the questions. But there are four simple things that instructors can do with their tests to minimize these confounding variables.
Most professional program curricula focus on the required specialized knowledge and skills to meet the profession’s needs. Yet graduates need more than subject matter competencies to meet the requirements of their professional work. Our graduates must be capable of solving complex problems and have dynamic
The best final exam question I’ve ever given is this: “I want you to write about one thing that you figured out in this class that matters.”
This sounds simple, I know. Perhaps even a little flaky. After all, we’re the instructors. We’re the
Sometimes courses with large enrollments spawn useful innovations, and this study looked at one empirically. Large courses almost always mandate the use of multiple-choice tests, and incorporating quizzes in these courses can present sizeable logistical challenges. To cope with that situation in a large microbiology
As many classes and exams migrate online, many professors are increasingly concerned about an uptick in cheating. Preliminary numbers indicate those concerns are valid. In August 2020, Derek Newton in The Hechinger Report disclosed that at North Carolina State University, for example, 200 students in
Tests provide one measure of our students’ learning according to the standards of the instructor and the field. But tests also affect our students socially, emotionally, and financially and influence their science-minded identities for years to come. We owe it to students to create fair
I’m sure you’ve noticed that student interest perks up whenever there’s a mention of potential test questions. I wonder if we could be taking more advantage of that interest. Truth be told, we should be as interested in these questions as students are. Studying by
Multiple-choice tests don’t get much respect. Maybe it’s because they’re associated with memorization, old-fashioned standardized tests, and other situations in which the answer is likely to be “C.”
Yet when properly designed, multiple-choice tests can be a vital addition to your testing tool box. Outlined
Eleven years ago, I discovered a life-changing pedagogy called team-based learning. It let me do things in large classrooms that I didn’t think was possible. I found that the key to successful team-based learning was writing really good multiple-choice questions. I would like to look
Are your students too answer oriented? Are they pretty much convinced that there’s a right answer to every question asked in class? When preparing for exams, do they focus on memorizing answers, often without thinking about the questions?
To cultivate interest in questions, consider having
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