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Multiple choice tests |
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Author: David Holloway Multiple choice tests
Multiple-choice tests are a curious breed. Those in favor of using them as a standardized method of testing will swear by the years of research and practica done to make multiple-choice tests reflect learning. Those against the format will argue that they are too subjective and not a good measurement tool for many non-subjective courses—such as philosophy of art, for example—that they do not reflect what a learner knows or what a learner can do. Still others see this type of exam only good for testing how well a person takes tests or how well the teacher administers them.
Regardless of the conflicting opinions of and attitudes toward multiple-choice tests, by the time a person has reached high school graduation he/she has taken some number of them, be they for a class, for a national college board, or for the military.So how does one take multiple choice tests with confidence? Following are a few general tips on test-taking:
Practice at Home Using the Same Format - Get into the habit of multiple choice test-taking by creating or having someone create for you a multiple choice test. As well, follow the advice of those who believe in in-state learning: whatever state you will be in for the test is the state you should be in while you study. Some of these theories were developed using alcohol and drugs, so that if one were high during study, that person would do better (!) if high while testing…but you don't have to go to these extremes. Just be rested for study, and rested for the test. Or eat well for studying and eat just as well before the test.
Follow Directions - Sometimes part of the test aim is to find out how well students follow directions. I once took a test in high school that had one direction at the top of the page, followed by thirty questions. The instructions included this prompt: Only do numbers 3, 4, 5, and 10. The whole test was, then, a trick of sorts…to see who not only followed directions but bothered to read them!
Budget Your Time - Though you don't want to get obsessive, checking the clock every minute, you do want to balance time spent on each question.
So at the start of the test, knowing how many questions there are and how much time you have, allocate a few minutes for each question. If you find yourself stuck on one, move on, and if you have any spare time, come back to the question you need to answer. (You might even find that after taking the focus off the particular problem that you are freshly approaching it now and can answer with more ease!)
Check Your Test Before Turning it in - If you have time (or make time), go over the answers once more, just in case you missed one or need to re-do one.
Read through Every Prompt and All Answers - We might be tempted to treat multiple choice tests the way we approach trivia quizzes or horse race betting theories (go with your first hunch), but this might not always work. Whereas letter a. might feel absolutely right, letter d. might be even better.
Watch for Clever Word Usage in the Prompts - Though testers and teachers don't typically play games with our grades, there may be a manner of testing that requires closer attention. Such words to watch for are the clarifiers, qualifiers, or absolutes: for example, words or phrases like "always", "never", "used to be", "except" are specific to the question. So if you are told that all of the following items are ways to start a business "except" one…find the one that is the exception. If a word like "always" shows up in the question, look at all the possible answers for the one that will fit the always criteria.
And as is part of the nature of subjective tests like multiple choice tests, give the answers a break by not demanding they be perfectly right on. That is, when choosing, the best you can do is choose the "best possible answer." The rest will be up to the examiner and to the ever-continuing battle over whether there is any such thing as a "right" answer for many of these exams.
If you're in school and you've managed to learn how to read, you probably have to deal with multiple choice tests. Though they've become a little scarcer in the very early and very late levels of education, and perhaps in some charter schools, multiple choice tests are stand-by assessment devices for most educators in America. Why are they so popular? Part of the reason has to do with the fact that multiple choice tests are extremely easy to create and extremely easy to grade. In a multiple choice test a teacher or professor can decide on a "right" answer (though reality may be a bit more arbitrary) and give students credit for choosing the right answer out of a group of four and not give any credit to students who choose the wrong answer.
This form of assessment leaves no gray area, making the tests extremely easy to grade, even doing some of them automatically on specially designed computers. That way a large number of students can be assessed at once without creating an enormous workload for an educator.
Though other forms of assessment like essay exams may give educators a better idea of how well students understand and absorb the assigned material, they are much harder to grade. Unlike multiple choice tests, essay exams are almost all gray area, and though most educators know the difference between a terrible essay and a great essay, it's tough to discern between two "good" essays. Though few teachers would like to admit it, grading essay exams is largely a subjective act, and different educators could vary considerably when grading the same essay.
Since multiple choice tests are so common, both in the classroom, in college entrance exams, and in graduate school entrance exams, it always helps to know how you can improve your score. When looking at some multiple choice questions the correct answer should (hopefully) jump out at you as being obviously the right choice. If this is the case, choose the answer that jumped out at you and go on. If you're only pretty sure you've seen the right answer right away, read the other options just in case you find a better one. If not, go with your gut reaction and move on. Don't second guess yourself, as your brain will instinctively let you know if you've found the answer that fits. If you're not sure of the answer, eliminate any choices that obviously aren't correct. If you still don't know which to choose among the remaining options, just guess and move on, coming back to the question later if you happen to have an epiphany along the way through the rest of the test.
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