Objective Test Items

Simple Forms
Unique Characteristics of Items
• The construction of good test items is an
art.
• The skills required are the same as those
found in effective teaching.
• What is needed is a thorough grasp of
subject matter, a clear conception of the
desired learning outcomes, a psychological
understanding of students, sound
judgement, persistence, and a touch of
creativity.
• The ONLY additional requisite for
constructing good items is the skillful
application of an array of simple but
important rules and suggestions.
The Types

Multiple Choice True False

Matching Short-Answer
Measuring Complex Achievement

The Interpretive Exercise

Essay Questions

Performance- Based Assessments

The Multiple Choice Item
Rules for Writing

Multiple Choice Items

Objective Type: Multiple Choice Items
• Objective test items are not limited to the
measurement of simple learning outcomes. MC item
can measure both knowledge and understanding
levels and is free of many of the limitations of other
forms of objective items.

• The MC item is generally recognized as the most

widely applicable and useful type of objective test
item.

• It can measure many of the simple learning

outcomes measured by T-F, matching, short
answer, etc.

• The flexibility plus the higher quality has led to its

extensive use.
The Stem
Characteristics of MC items
• Consists of a problem and a list of suggested
solutions
• Problem stated as a direct question as a
complete sentence unless an incomplete
statement makes easier reading and is called
the stem
• Item tests a single idea, concept, skill, or
problem
• Stem is clearly worded and stated in the
positive
 A Multiple-Choice Item
Format
• A multiple-choice item consists of one
or more introductory sentences
followed by a list of two or more
suggested responses.

• The student must choose the correct

answer from among the responses you
list also known as alternatives.
Example
• How many sides does • Stem
a heptagon have?
a) Three
b) Five • Alternatives
c) Six /Distractors
d) Seven *
• Keyed
alternative
 The Item Stem
• The stem is the part of the item that asks the
question, or sets a task a student must perform.

• The item tests a single idea, concept, skill, or

problem. It should be meaningful by itself.

• The item is written as a complete sentence unless

an incomplete statement or a question format
makes easier reading.

• The stem is clearly worded and stated in the

positive. The use of negative statements
only when significant.
• Key words (best, first, one, only, etc.) are
emphasized by using bold, underline, or CAPS

• As much of the item as possible is in the stem

(repetitive words & phrases)

• Units of measurement are included in the stem if

possible

• No irrelevant or grammatical cues

• No qualifying words such as “always”, “never”,

“none”

• The examinee is not addressed or referred to as

“you”
Response Options
• Only one correct answer which is clearly correct to
those who possess the knowledge or skill

• Distractors are plausible alternatives to examinees

who do not possess the skill being assessed or have
partial or incorrect knowledge

• Response options are as homogeneous as possible

• Response options are grammatically consistent with

the stem

• Response options are about the same length and

complexity

• The correct response does not contain a key word or

phrase that is not in one or more of the distractors
• The alternatives should always be arranged in a meaningful way
(logically, numerically, alphabetically, etc.).
• The chronological sequence in which events occur and the size of
objects (large, medium, small) are examples of logical orders. If none
exists then alphabetical order.
• The reason is to avoid establishing a pattern that can clue to the
answer.
• The correct response does not contain a
synonym of or the same key word or phrase
that is in the stem

• No options that are outliers or synonyms or

polar opposites of other response options

• Options are presented in a logical sequence if

there is one (esp. numbers and dates)
Check the items below and explain the difference?
1. In what year did the United States enter World War I?
a. 1776
b. 1812
c. 1917 *
d. 1981

2. In what year did the United States enter World War I?

e. 1901
f. 1917 *
g. 1941
h. 1981

3. In what year did the United States enter World War I?

i. 1913
j. 1915
k. 1916
l. 1917 *
• The distractors are plausible alternatives
to examinees who do not possess the level
of knowledge being assessed or have
partial or incorrect knowledge, those who
have not learned the material well enough.

• The response options are as homogeneous

as possible, i.e. belongs to the same set.
• They need to be functional, i.e. attract at

least one student. No deadwood or

fillers
• The response options are
grammatically consistent with the
stem.

• The response options are about the

same length and complexity.

• The correct response does not contain

a key word or phrase that is not in one
or more of the distractors.
• The correct response does not
contain a synonym of or the same key
word or phrase that is in the stem

• No options that are outliers or

synonyms or polar opposites of other
response options
 Varieties of MCQs
There is a variety of MC Items:
a) The correct-answer variety
b) The best-answer variety
c) The multiple-response variety
d) The incomplete-statement variety
e) The negative variety
f) The substitution variety
g) The incomplete-alternative variety
h) The combined response variety
 The correct-answer
variety
• Who invented the sewing machine?
A. Fulton
B. Howe *
C. Singer
D. White
E. Whitney
 The best-answer variety
The "best answer" question is a difficult one to
answer because more than one answer might seem
true, but the correct answer is the one that is most
true.

• What was the basic purpose of the Marshall Plan?

A. military defended western Europe
B. reestablish business and industry in western Europe*
C. settle United States’ differences with Russia
D. directly help the hungry and homeless in Europe
 The negative variety
Careful reading is important because this question
examines whether you are reading the questions and
answers carefully. The "negative" question
specifically asks you to choose the answer that is
not correct.
• Which of these is NOT true of viruses?
A. Viruses live only in plants and animals
B. Viruses reproduce themselves
C. Viruses are composed of very large
living cells *
D. Viruses can cause diseases.
 The multiple-response
variety
• What factors are principally responsible
for the clotting of blood?
A. Contact of blood with a foreign
substance
B. Contact of blood with injured tissue*
C. Oxidation of hemoglobin
D. Presence of unchanged prothrombin
 The incomplete-
statement variety
• Millions of dollars of corn, oats,
wheat, and rye are destroyed
annually in the United States by
A. mildews
B. molds
C. rusts
D. smuts *
 The combined response
variety
• In what order should these sentences be
written in order to make a coherent
paragraph?
A. Xxx
B. Yyy
C. Zzz
D. Ggg
E. Mmm
 Advantages and
Criticisms of MC Items
Advantages are:
A. Versatility: can be written to assess
various levels of learning outcomes
B. Writing and elaboration are not
required thus greater opportunity for
bluffing and also more items answered.
C. Reading and thinking focused
D. Guessing: less chance for that
E. Distractor: diagnostic insight into
students’ difficulty
Criticisms are:
• Students do not create or express their
own ideas.
• Poorly written items tend to focus on
low level learning objectives.
• Results may be biased by reading
ability or test-wiseness.
• Development of good items is time
consuming.
Best-Answer Items
 What are they?
• Multiple-choice items for which
every option is at least partly
correct.
• The student’s task is to select the
best or most correct option.
• In this format, each distractor
contains partial misinterpretations or
omissions.
• The best answer contains no
misinterpretations nor omissions
• Only one option can be the “best”.
• No use of “all of the above” or “none of
the above” with this format. Neither
“both a & c” options.
• Advantage is that they assess students’
ability to make fine distinctions among
the choices. They assess higher-order
verbal reasoning skills.
• Criticism: They are difficult to
write,more difficult. Best is relative.
 Remember…
Objective items!