Creating Multiple-Choice Test Questions

Creating Multiple-Choice Test Questions Ten Essential Rules for Creating Multi-Choice Questions This article covers the basic rules for creating multiple-choice test questions. These types of tests are often undervalued and not often discussed, partly because they are less exciting than some learning and test techniques such as 3-D learning methods. If your work requires you to use test materials, then it is best to reduce or eliminate the errors that can arise from badly-written test questions. The writing rules listed in this article are designed to ensure tests are more precise. The aim is to end up with questions that are understood as they were intended and that the answer choices are clearly-written without providing hints. And, in case you are not very familiar with the terminology that goes with multi-choice questions, this is also explained below. How Multiple-Choice Questions are Made UpThe questions stem. A number of optional answers.Here is a question and some possible answers: The abbreviation ISD stands for which of the following: Irregular System DesignInstructors Systematic Design Instructional Systems Design Irrelevant System DesignIn this, a), b), c) and d) are the answer options, while a), b), and d) are distractors and c) is the right answer. The following are ten important rules. If there are any others you would like to add, please use the comments form ons website.Questions designed to test critical thinking skills and comprehension rather than merely recallSometimes, multi-choice questions attract criticism for testing nothing more than superficial knowledge recall. It is possible to go deeper by asking students to evaluate events or situations, interpret concepts and/or facts, analyze causes and effects, predict outcomes, and draw inferences.The majority of words should be placed in the stem of the questionIf your preference is to use a stem as opposed to a whole question make sure you put most words in the questions stem. This will allow you make answer choices shorter, thereby rendering them easier to read with less room for confusion.Use precise words and make the structure of sentences simpleThe structure of test or exam questions should be simple so that each one can be easily understood. Do your best to be as accurate as you possibly can be. Different words can mean different things depending on their context and how they are used colloquially.Make answer options a similar lengthAlthough this is not necessarily easy, those who are accustomed to taking tests can get clues to the right answer from the length. Frequently, the right answer is the longest one. If you cannot make all answers a similar length, try to write two long answers and two short ones.Do your best to make distractors sound plausibleIncorrect answer options should seem believable. While this can be difficult, it is best not to throw in obvious distractors (also spelled distracters) because this reduces the validity of a test.The order of correct answer options should be mixed upTry to ensure the majority of correct answer options are not, say, a or b. This happens frequently. Spread correct answer options in random order and do not allow them to form a detectable pattern. When you have written a test, go back and do some reordering if needs be.Double negatives should be avoidedThis should not sound like news! Words like no, not and nor should not be combined in sentences, nor with un prefixes. The following question could, for instance, cause confusion for test-takers: which of these situations would not be unpleasant to a workforce? Turn it around to its positive version e.g. which of these situations would be pleasant to a workforce?Try not to trick those taking your testWhile they may have their faults, the purpose of a test is to evaluate knowledge. So, do not use questions or answer choices that could trick a test taker. If a question or answer option is in any way ambiguous, revise it.Be cautious when using All or None as an answer optionA lot of test writers do not like this particular rule because they find ALL or NONE of the above useful when they run short of distractor ideas. However, these do not necessarily help learning. For example, if it is not used in a consistent manner all the ab ove can be a throwaway answer. This option can additionally promote guesswork where a test-taker feels one or more answer is right. A further problem with the answer none is that you cannot judge if the student really does know the right answer.Use a consistent number of answer optionsHaving answer options that go to i for one set of questions and only to d in the next can leave the test-taker not knowing what to expect and it can create a user-interface problem. Studies cannot seem to agree on whether or not it is best to have three, four or five answer options. However, many believe that four options is a fair and realistic number.

The Influence of Teachers Words and Actions

The Influence of Teachers' Words and Actions Teachers can have a huge influence on their students.  This goes much deeper than the lessons they teach. You only have to reflect on your own time in school to realize how positive or negative experiences can stick with you for the rest of your life. Educators need to remember that they hold great power over students in their hands. Words Can Uplift By encouraging a struggling student and explaining how she can be successful, a teacher  can change that student’s career. A perfect example of this happened to my niece. She had moved recently and began attending a new school in ninth grade. She struggled through most of her first semester, earning D’s and F’s. However, she had one teacher who saw that she was smart and just needed some extra help. Amazingly, this teacher spoke to her only once. He explained that the difference between earning an F or a C would require just a bit of extra effort on her part. He promised that if she spent just 15 minutes a day on homework, she would see a huge improvement. Most importantly, he told her that he knew she could do it. The effect was like flicking a switch. She became a straight-A student and to this day loves learning and reading. Words Can Harm By contrast, teachers can make subtle comments intended to be positive but are actually hurtful. For example, one of my best friends in school took  AP classes. She always earned B’s and never stood out in class. However, when she took her AP English test, she scored a 5, the highest possible mark. She also earned 4’s on two other AP exams. When she returned to school after the summer break, one of her teachers saw her in the hall and told her that she was shocked that my friend had earned such a high score. The teacher even told my friend that she had underestimated her. While at first my friend was delighted with the praise, she said that after some reflection, she was annoyed that her teacher didn’t see how hard she had worked or that she excelled in AP English. Years later, my friend now an adult says she still feels hurt when she thinks about the incident. This teacher likely only meant to praise my friend, but this faint praise led to hurt feelings decades after this brief hallway discussion. The Donkey Something as simple as role-playing can bruise a students ego, sometimes for life. For example, one of my students spoke of a former teacher she really liked and admired. Yet, she recalled a lesson he presented that really upset her. The class was discussing the barter system. The teacher gave each student a role: One student was a farmer and the other was the farmer’s wheat. The farmer then traded his wheat to another farmer in exchange for a donkey. My students role was to be the farmer’s donkey. She knew that the teacher simply picked kids at random and assigned them roles. Yet, she said that for years after the lesson, she always felt that the teacher had picked her as a donkey because she was overweight and ugly. Words Stick With Students The example illustrates that a teachers words can really stick with students for their entire lives. I know that I have tried to be more careful with what I tell students each day. I’m not perfect, but I hope that I am more thoughtful and less damaging to my students in the long run.

Drug Abuse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Drug Abuse - Essay Example As the research stresses the problem affects the victim in numerous ways because they are not good for the body, that is, they are harmful to the body. Drug abuse can harm the body system of an individual in numerous ways, such as the heart, liver, lungs, kidneys and also the brain. These organs can be heavily damaged by the introduction of the harmful drugs into the body system. From the report it is clear men, women and teenagers within the United States are widely experiencing the effects of drug abuse and have become addicted victims. Drugs such as Alcohol, cocaine, heroin and meth. Marijuana is among the drugs that are often abused, although, it is not technically addictive. All these drugs fall under the prohibited drugs in the American Law. However, Marijuana has been legalized in other places. Some other states are still in a discussion regarding the legalization of marijuana. These drugs are by all mean destructive as they lead to loss of job, families as well as homes. Drug abuse is a problem that has been relevant in the public domain for several decades. Some drugs such as cocaine, are rather expensive and used by individuals from wealthier families. The drug has physical and psychological effects on the victim. Methamphetamine is another seriously effective drugs and among the fastest growing in the United States. The effects are relatively harsh to the user and can be awfully concerning. Addicts experience a decline in appetite, high blood pressure, high body temperature, and violent behavior.

To what extent were the diggers who staged the Eureka rebellion of Essay

To what extent were the diggers who staged the Eureka rebellion of December 1854 motivated by democratic ideals - Essay Example Although, the miners lost the battle, they succeeded in gaining greater equality for the miners including the abolition of the License and Gold Commission, as well as the vote for all males. The Eureka stockade can be regarded as the birthplace of Australia’s political system as marked the inception of the right to vote, political equality, and freedom of speech.1 The Eureka revolution represented an earnest attempt at democratic government. The paper maintains that the miners who staged the Eureka rebellion were mainly motivated by democratic ideals, by values and principles against injustice and oppression. Background The gold can be regarded to have been a social transformer, a democratic mineral given that whoever who found had cash in their hands. In order to maintain control on the colony’s critical pastoral industry and preserve its conventional values, Governor La Trobe instituted an emergency system where commissioners enjoyed both judicial and executive powers . This set the stage for the confrontation as the military and the police transformed into an arbitrary force, whose decisions almost unchallenged. A heavy tax as imposed on all individuals who went to dig in an effort to deter men from leaving their regular employment, especially within the pastoral industry. Furthermore, the diggers bought the license at a high price, more than what the squatters paid to graze sheep. Unsurprisingly, the license tax was opposed right from its inception and the majority of the colony’s men condemned the tax and the manner in which the police enforce the tax.2 The failure by the conservative legislative council to substitute the detestable tax with an equitable and less confrontational export duty on gold set the stage for future rebellion. The new governor, Hotham ordered twice-weekly searches to weed out unlicensed miners, which further disillusioned the miners. The move heightened hostility to the overworked and undermanned police force. At the same time, larger complaints were emerging, which rendered licenses to be symbolic. The burning of the licenses derived from the fact that they represented the most evidence of government's injustice.3 The seeds of discord, sown into the soil, can be highlighted as a series of miscarriages of justice, latent within the system. The incidences police mistreatment was subsidiary to the deeply entrenched distrust fuelled by serious miscarriage of justice over the murder of James Scobie by Bentley, who was an ex-convict owner of the Eureka Hotel and exonerated of the murder charge.4 The burning of the hotel in protest to the Bentley verdict marked a turning for both sides. The Eureka episode created disaffection between the two camps, which had threatening undertones. What started as a disconnected series of events triggered by the same flawed system of control gained momentum when the populace reacted to the enquiry into the hotel’s destruction while seizing the opportunity to highlight the long-standing litany of grievances against the government.5 Hotham declined to accept the recommendations, which demanded that the licenses be abolished, and the police return to standard work, but used delaying tactic of a royal commission. The Ballarat miners were by then organized, united, and determined to success. The governor and other officials, on the other hand, sought to conquer the defeat the rebel movements even if it meant the use of military force. The retrial and subsequent conviction

Melba Pattillo Beals, Warriors Dont Cry Essay -- Warriors Dont Cry

Melba Pattillo Beals', Warriors Don't Cry In the book Warriors Don't Cry by Melba Pattillo Beals, the author describes what her reactions and feelings are to the racial hatred and discrimination she and eight other African-American teenagers received in Little Rock, Arkansas during the desegregation period in 1957. She tells the story of the nine students from the time she turned sixteen years old and began keeping a diary until her final days at Central High School in Little Rock. The story begins by Melba talking about the anger, hatred, and sadness that is brought up upon her first return to Central High for a reunion with her eight other classmates. As she walks through the halls and rooms of the old school, she recalls the horrible acts of violence that were committed by the white students against her and her friends. In 1954, the Supreme Court ruled in the case of Brown vs. The Board of Education that schools needed to integrate and provide equal education for all people and it was unconstitutional for the state to deny certain citizens this opportunity. Although this decision was a landmark case and meant the schools could no longer deny admission to a child based solely on the color of their skin. By 1957, most schools had began to slowly integrate their students, but those in the deep south were still trying to fight the decision. One of the most widely known instances of this happening was at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. It took the school district three years to work out an integration plan. The board members and faculty didn't like the fact that they were going to have to teach a group of students that were looked down upon and seen as "inferior" to white students. However, after much opposition, a plan was finally proposed. The plan called for the integration to hap pen in three phases. First, during the 1957-1958 school year, the senior high school would be integrated, then after completion at the senior high level, the junior high would be integrated, and the elementary levels would follow in due time. Seventeen students were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be the first black teenagers to begin the integration process. The town went into an uproar. Many acts of violence were committed toward the African-Americans in the city. Racism and segregation seemed to be on the rise. Most black students decid... ...f and eventually led to complete integration of all ethnic groups in America. The definition of a warrior is "one who is engaged in or experienced in battle, or in the military life; a soldier; a champion". Melba Beals proved to be a warrior throughout all of the events that surrounded the integration of Central High School. Although she eventually had to leave town, she and the other eight students showed true bravery and courage when they decided to scale the walls of segregation and end the oppression of the white people in Little Rock. Beals was truly woman who fought hard and kept her faith in route to becoming a "warrior" and eventually a "champion" in the fight for civil rights. Sources: Beals, Melba Patillo. "Warriors Don't Cry." Pocket Books. (February 1995). Cozzens, Lisa. "The Civil Rights Movement 1955-1965." African American History. http://fledge.watson.org/~lisa/blackhistory/civilrights-55-65 (25 May 1998). Beals, Melba Patillo. "Warriors Don't Cry." Pocket Books. (February 1995). Cozzens, Lisa. "The Civil Rights Movement 1955-1965." African American History. http://fledge.watson.org/~lisa/blackhistory/civilrights-55-65 (25 May 1998).

America”s Affirmative Actions on Minorities

In years past, Americas of every race, color, and nationality have been pushing for equal rights and equal representation in everything from politics, to professional sports coaches, to jobs, and colleges. In American colleges there is a little thing called affirmative action. This means that colleges give greater higher educational acceptances to minorities than they do the average Joe. For example, one college accepts people if they score above 140 points on their point scale. However, minority groups receive 20 free points just for being themselves! Now is this fair? In a country that is trying to abolish racism, this little thing called affirmative action is fueling it. On college campuses around the nation, the admissions office is not doing their job. They are not granting admissions to the most qualified or the most talented candidates, instead they want to make their education center culturally diverse. To do so, these education centers are granting â€Å"gifts† or giving â€Å"tokens† to these minority groups so is doesn†t look like the average Joe is all the college is made up of. Isn†t this racism at its finest? Statistically, white students have a better chance of getting into college because of their cultural background and emphasis their ancestors put on education. The same thing is happening in work forces across America. Employers have hired the less qualified minority to make a certain quota or to have their company look more diverse. However, a new law in California government prohibits this from happening. Their new law requires the most qualified person to have the job, regardless of race, color, and nationality. More employers and college admission offices throughout the country should abolish affirmative action. It is destroying higher education institutions, and workforces. This same affirmative action is tearing apart the greatest nation on earth, which was built on the words. â€Å"All men are created equal†, and obviously with affirmative action in place, all men are not created equal.

Louisiana Serial Killer Ronald Dominique

Ronald J. Dominique of Houma, LA has confessed to murdering 23 men over the course of nine years and dumping their bodies in sugarcane fields, ditches and small bayous in six southeast Louisiana parishes. His reason for killing? He did not want to return to jail after raping the men. The First Victims In 1997, authorities found 19-year-old David Levron Mitchells murdered body near Hahnville. The body of 20-year-old Gary Pierre was found in St. Charles Parish six months later. In July 1998, the body of 38-year-old Larry Ranson was found in St. Charles Parish. Over the next nine years, more bodies of men ranging in age from 19 to 40 would be found dumped in sugarcane fields, desolate bayous, and ditches in remote areas. Similarities in 23 of the murders lead investigators to suspect the men were victims of a serial killer. The Task Force A task force made up of nine South Louisiana parish sheriffs offices, the Louisiana State Police and the FBI were formed in March 2005, to investigate the murders. Investigators knew the 23 victims were mostly homeless men, many who led high-risk lifestyles, which included drug use and prostitution. The victims had been asphyxiated or strangled, some raped and several were barefooted. The Arrest After receiving a tip, authorities armed with forensic evidence, arrested Ronald Dominique, 42, and charged him with the murder and rape of 19-year-old Manuel Reed and 27-year-old Oliver Lebanks. Just days before his arrest, Dominique had moved from his sisters home into the Bunkhouse shelter in Houma, LA. Residents of the home described Dominique as odd, but no one suspected he was a killer.​ Dominique Confesses to 23 Murders Soon after his arrest, Dominique confessed to murdering 23 southeast Louisiana men. His tactics in capturing, sometimes raping then murdering the men was simple. He would lure homeless men with the promise of sex in exchange for money. Sometimes he would tell the men he wanted to pay them to have sex with his wife and then show a picture of an attractive woman. Dominique was not married. Dominique then led the men to his home, asked to tie them up, then raped and eventually murdered the men to avoid arrest. In his statement to the police, Dominique said the men who refused to be tied up would leave his home unharmed. Such was the case with one unnamed man who reported the incident to the task force, a tip that eventually led to Dominiques arrest. Who Is Ronald Dominique? Ronald Dominique spent much of his youth in the small bayou community of Thibodaux, LA. Thibodaux sits between New Orleans and Baton Rouge and is the type of community where everyone knows a little about each other. He attended Thibodaux High School where he was in the glee club and sang in the chorus. Classmates who remember Dominique say he was ridiculed for being homosexual during his teen years, but at the time he never admitted he was gay. As he got older, he seemed to live in two worlds. There was the Dominique who was helpful to his neighbors in the small trailer parks where he lived. Then there was the Dominique who cross-dressed and did bad impersonations of Patti LaBelle at the local gay club. Neither world embraced  him, and among the gay community, many remember him as someone who was not particularly well liked. Through most of his adulthood, Dominique struggled financially and would end up living with his mother or other relatives. In the weeks before his arrest, he was living with his sister in a single-wide trailer. He was suffering from declining health, having been hospitalized for a severe heart condition and forced to use a cane to walk. Outwardly, there was side to Dominique who enjoyed helping people. He joined the Lions Club just months before his arrest and spent Sunday afternoons calling out Bingo numbers to senior citizens. The membership director said he was well liked by everyone he had met through the Lions Club. Maybe Dominique had finally found a place he felt accepted. What sparked Dominique to move from the comfort of his sisters home to the dismal surroundings of a shelter for the homeless is uncertain. Some suspect the family grew uncomfortable by the 24-hour police surveillance and Dominique, knowing he was soon to be caught, moved away to avoid getting his family involved in his arrest. A Criminal History Dominiques past arrests include forcible rape, disturbing the peace and telephone harassment. Feb. 10, 2002 - Arrested in Terrebonne Parish after he allegedly slapped a woman during a Mardi Gras parade. According to the reports, Dominique accused a woman of hitting a baby stroller in a parking lot. The woman apologized, but Dominique continued to verbally assault her, and then slapped her across the face. He was arrested but entered a parish offenders program instead of standing trial. Reports show he met all his conditions in the program in October 2002.May 19, 2000 - He received a summons to appear in court on disturbing the peace charges. Since it was a misdemeanor, he was able to plead guilty and pay a fine to avoid appearing in court.Aug. 25, 1996 - Dominique was arrested on forcible rape charges and booked on a $100,000 bond. According to neighbors, a partially dressed young man escaped from the window of Dominiques home in Thibodaux, screaming that he had tried to kill him. When the case was brought to court, the victim could not be found to testify. In November 1996, the judge continued the case indefinitely.May 15, 1994 - Arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated and speeding.June 12, 1985 - Arrested and charged with telephone harassment. He pleaded guilty, paid a $74 fine and court costs. Three days after Dominiques arrest for killing Mitchell and Pierre, investigators said Dominique confessed to 21 other murders, giving details only the killer would know.