Chapter 6: Creating Good Test Questions

Tests should not be a list of tiring questions that may or may not judge a students comprehension. They should test a students mastery, and should keep the student engaged and give them freedom to answer questions with their own knowledge. It is a good idea to mix traditional and non traditional questions and writing essays. Mixing up questions with forced choice questions (questions that require students to choose from assessments from the teacher) and constructed response questions (questions that require the student to generate information themselves) are ways to effectively set up an assessment. "By using a variety of questions and prompts, we get a better picture of students' mastery"(FIAE page 75). Providing "T" and "F" rather than true or false make grading easier for the teacher because they get rid of interpretations of messy letters or words. Keeping matching questions on the same page and having fill in the blanks toward the end of the sentence are both things that help with comprehension issues. When giving a prompt, the teacher needs to create questions that do not give room to roam. Providing specific instructions on how a question should be answered keeps the responses concise and on target. A fun way to construct an exam is to include students name in questions. They will have more fun answering the questions and will look forward to seeing their name appear in print on the exam. The fashion in which a teacher gives feedback on an exam is equally important. Students spend a lot of time studying and taking the test, it is the teachers job to grade them promptly and provide feedback so the student can learn from mistakes before further learning is implemented.