Questions not only measure what students know but can reveal different levels of knowledge and learning.
Considerations for Developing Good Test Questions
Good test questions:
assess what you intend for them to assess
allow students to demonstrate what they have learned
elicit answers that reveal students’ intellectual progress
motivate students and help them structure their academic efforts
can discriminate between students who have learned what you had intended them to learn and those who have not
Getting Started with Developing Good Test Questions
Determine what you want students to know. Revisit thelearning outcomesyou may have articulated at the beginning of the course.
UseBloom’s Taxonomyto review verbs that could inform test questions, such asapply, compare, describe,etc.
Examine the different types of questions: fill-in the blank, short answer, multiple choice, matching, essay question, etc. Use multiple question types, as different students may be better or worse at answering various types of questions.
Come up with a few possible questions after each lecture. This may increase the quality of test questions because they are more likely to be more representative of your instruction.
Consider having students create and submit test questions after a class. Review them for possible use.
Have a colleague or teaching assistant review and provide feedback on test questions.
Avoid asking leading questions, those that prompt or suggest the answer, and yes/no questions. If a yes/no question is warranted, be ready with a follow-up question to encourage students to critically evaluate the material and engage in discussion.
Questions are a way of engaging with students to keep their attention and to reinforce their participation. Questions can review, restate, emphasize, and/or summarize what is important. Questions stimulate discussion and creative and critical thinking, as well as determine how students are thinking.
Asking children open-ended questions starts a conversation—and builds a relationship—and it even helps develop children's brains. Asking them open-ended questions that help them think about how they want to behave, supports reflection, and increases self-control over time.
Questioning techniques – a set of methods used by teachers when asking questions, such as wait time and bounce. Experienced teachers recognise the power of questions. When skilfully delivered, questions boost student engagement, improve understanding and promote critical thinking.
Socratic questioning (or Socratic maieutics) is an educational method named after Socrates that focuses on discovering answers by asking questions of students.
A HOT question is simply any question that requires a student to fall back on previously digested taxonomies. We'll stick with Bloom's for simplicity's sake. A HOT question within Bloom's taxonomy would look something like: Analyse the effectiveness of x. Evaluate the consequences of x.
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Introduction: My name is Maia Crooks Jr, I am a homely, joyous, shiny, successful, hilarious, thoughtful, joyous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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