Multi-Choice Examinations

By Janine Gee

Multi-Choice examinations are gaining in popularity with academic staff. Though multi-choice examinations do take longer to prepare, they are definitely much faster to mark. As lecturers are typically faced with increasing numbers of students and shorter deadlines in regard to finalising examination results, the use of multi-choice examinations in on the increase.
John Elms is the author of a most helpful series of informative texts which clearly advise, in the minimum number of words, how a novice student can more successfully undertake the assessment demands of a university, in this instance, multi-choice exams.
Contents include:
The Components of a Multi-Choice Examination
A Simple Illustration of a Multi-Choice Question
What is required of a Multi-Choice Exam Candidate?
A Simple Classification of Types of Knowledge that Comprise a Unit of Study
A Trick to be Aware of in Multi-Choice Examinations
Introductory Comments about the Recommended Multi-Choice Examination Strategy
The Recognition or Reward Aspect
The Penalty Aspect
The Typical Multi-Choice Examination Conditions and How to Benefit
The Passing Mark Aspect
Consideration of these Three Aspects
What to Learn about Multi-Choice Examinations
A SIMPLE STRATEGY FOR OPTIMISING YOUR MULTI-CHOICE EXAMINATION SCORE
~ The First Time through a Multi-Choice Examination
~ The Second Time through the Multi-Choice Examination
~ The Third Time through the Multi-Choice Examination
~ Action to Take Just before the End of the Examination
Advice Regarding How to Prepare for a Multi-Choice Examination
The Success of this Simple Multi-Choice Examination Strategy
Concluding Comments
***
John Elms spent more than 20 years at the University of Southern Queensland in Toowoomba Queensland. During this time he has conducted comprehensive applied research in regard to improving higher education student productivity. After directly observing many novice higher education students struggling with the various forms of 'progressive assessment' he formulated a simple and practical set of productivity strategies to cope with the most common forms of assessment.
His books are respected by students because the strategies described in them are easy for most students to implement and readily produce improved results.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Janine Gee
• Release date: May 27, 2011
• ISBN: 9781458197245

Janine Gee

Janine Gee was born, raised and educated in Adelaide, South Australia. Throughout her diverse career she has worked all around Australia in documentation and training in the software implementation environment (Information Technology in a variety of clients' industries). This experience facilitated her progression into a career as author. On a personal level Janine, a serial monogamous dieter, tried diet after diet, each with the same disappointing result. In 2001, a lengthy juggle of dieting and many minor ailments culminated in a battle with a persistent migraine. Janine's 30-year battle with her weight and abrupt solution to a six-week migraine sparked a journey of unimaginable discovery which became the foundation of the book The Epigenetics of Diet. It is about foods, imitation foods and contaminants and their effects on our emotions, bodies and behaviour. Her first book explains how the reader can discover their ideal body shape without the need for drugs ... simply by eating real food ... a *dietary* survival guide! It dispels the myths asserted by the agricultural, pharmaceutical and psychiatric industries! Epigenetics is a fascinating science that bridges the gap between nature and nurture. People evolve in order to survive. Children born on the Gaza strip with PTSD live longer than children born there without PTSD ... and they certainly aren't medicated either. A number of elderly Australians have also teamed up with Janine to co-author many other titles about travelling safely and surviving natural disasters and man-made emergencies (Survival Guide) and University booklets that detail what is required and expected of tertiary students. Her diverse experience and extensive skill set support her talent as a gifted author and co-author of books that appeal to a wide audience. Simply take a look at the growing diversity of her titles. There is likely to be something for even the most discernible reader.

Book preview

Chapter 1. The Components of a Multi-Choice Examination

Chapter 2. A Simple Classification of Types of Knowledge that Comprise a Unit of Study

Chapter 3. A Trick to be Aware of in Multi-Choice Examinations

Chapter 4. The Recognition or Reward Aspect

Chapter 5. The Penalty Aspect

Chapter 6. The Typical Multi-Choice Examination Conditions and How to Benefit

Chapter 7. The Passing Mark Aspect

Chapter 8. Consideration of these Three Aspects

Chapter 9. What to Learn about Multi-Choice Examinations

Chapter 10. A Simple Strategy for Optimising Your Multi-Choice Examination Score

Chapter 11. The Success of this Simple Multi-Choice Examination Strategy

Conclusion

About the Author

A note from the co-author

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Chapter 1. The Components of a Multi-Choice Examination

A multi-choice examination most commonly comprises:

~ a stem or part statement and

~ two or more completions or responses to each stem (or question).

Typically, a multi-choice examination question offers more than two completions or responses and the candidate is required to choose the 'best answer.'

One of the responses is deemed, by the individual or group setting the multi-choice examination, to be the 'best answer'.

In addition, there is one or more 'distracters'. A 'distracter' response is considered to be correct ~ but not as 'correct' or pertinent as the 'best answer' response.

To complement these two or more responses there are 'incorrect responses' that should be evidently wrong to the well prepared examination candidate. The purpose of these evidently wrong or spurious suggested responses is to guide the assessor in regard to identifying candidates who are merely guessing at the answers. Some experienced multi-choice examination assessors analyse the totals of the 'best responses', 'the distracter(s)' and the evidently wrong responses scored by each candidate.

The set of scores for each candidate provides the assessor with a profile of the preparedness or competence of each candidate in multi-choice examinations. This profile can be used to appreciate whether