Guidelines For Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)

[Pages:10]Guidelines For Multiple Choice

Questions (MCQ)

09-20-2006

TCH 345 Assessment & Evaluation Department of Teacher Education

Shippensburg University

Han Liu, Ph.D.

Multiple Choice Question Development

MCQ Structure

Stem: Question or Statement Key: The correct answer Distractor (foils): The incorrect answers

MCQ Guideline-1

Stem

Stem should be clearly and completely stated Keeping the stem simple Including all necessary information in the stem Accommodating the lower level readers when

developing a stem Omitting irrelevant materials Asking only one question or making only one

statement in the stem Eliminating the clues to the correct answer

MCQ Guideline-2

Choices

Be sure all choices are plausible Limit the number of options to 3-4 Varying the number of response options when

necessary Choices and the stem are grammatically consistent List choices in columns rather than across the

page in lines (Put responses vertically below the stem) Put choices in logical order Keep the length of the options fairly consistent Keep all the choices in the same category Make the choice exclude each other

MCQ Guideline-3

Key

Balance the key in position by varying where the correct key should be placed

Be sure that only one response is considered best or correct

Write the correct answer before creating the distracters

Double check the scoring key before put the test in actual use.

MCQ Guideline-4

Try to Avoid Using ...

Avoid using "None of the above" Avoid using "All of the above" Avoid using negative phrase in the stem Avoid using double negatives in the stem Avoid using humor when developing options Avoid using slang Avoid unnecessary repetition in the response options (put

the repeated part in the stem) Avoid using the option "I don't know" Avoid grammatical clues (such as a/an) Avoid interdependent items where the answer to one item

is necessary to help figure out the next item

MCQ Guideline-5

Don'ts

Don't lift phrases directly from the text or lecture. This encourages rote learning

Don't use foolish or nonsense distracters Don't mix persons, places, and things in choices Don't use kangaroo choices Don't let the alternatives overlap each other Don't make the stem statement too long and too

complicated Don't use "all of the above" or "none of the above"

for the sake of having four options

Advantages of MCQs

Useful for assessing many learning outcomes Adaptable to most subject areas Effective for diagnosing student difficulties (e.g., when

using common errors as distracters) Can tap into different cognitive levels Less subjectivity Provides an excellent basis for post-test discussion

(students can discuss why distracters are wrong) Requires relatively little time to answer Can be reliably marked as all answers are predetermined. Easy to score manually and by computer

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