Test-Item Order: Does It Matter?

Frequently instructors discourage cheating on multiple-choice exams by creating different versions of the exam. Test questions may be reordered randomly, according to their degree of difficulty, or in the order the material was presented in class, or the answer options may be ordered differently. The question is whether these different versions of the exam in any way influence how well a student performs on the exam. There is a fairly widespread belief among faculty that putting the easier questions first helps students. It reduces exam anxiety, and that can improve performance on the exam.

To continue reading, you must be a Teaching Professor Subscriber. Please log in or sign up for full access.

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Related Articles

I have two loves: teaching and learning. Although I love them for different reasons, I’ve been passionate about...
There are a myriad of answers to this seemingly simple question. Grading probably comes to mind for many...
Fears of disingenuous work, fraudulent and stolen information, and theft of intellectual property have been swirling around education...
Students often struggle academically due to an inability to organize their lives around achievable goals. Students beyond early...
Hey, you. Yes, you. When was the last time you told your students, colleagues, or (gulp) administrators how...

For online faculty, I think it’s more important than ever to be conspicuously human...

Back when I was an undergraduate, students were thought to drop out of college because either they failed...

Are you signed up for free weekly Teaching Professor updates?

You'll get notified of the newest articles.

The Teaching Professor Conference 2024

June 7-9, 2024 • New Orleans

Connect with Fellow Educators at The Teaching Professor Conference!