FLAWS AND ALL MEANING PROFESSIONAL
FLAWS AND ALL MEANING SERIES

To determine вЂњall of the aboveвЂќ is incorrect, students need only identify one false statement. Test-savvy students also recognize that absolute terms (always, never) usually render a statement false.ДЇor students to identify вЂњ all of the aboveвЂќ as the correct response, they need only identify two correct answers among the choices. Students recognize mutually exclusive distractors and conclude that one of the two mutually-exclusive responses is correct, eliminating other options. Implausible distracters are used to create item uniformity when three or four plausible distracters are immediately apparent to the author. Grammatical clues may come in the form of syntax inconsistencies between the stem and incorrect responses (distractors), or may occur if a key word in the stem is repeated in the correct response. The longest option is correct answer is a common mistake made by novice and experienced examination writers in an effort to ensure the correct response is indisputable. Use of absolute terms (always, never, only, all). Grammatical clues or inconsistencies between stem and distractors.* The following standard item-writing flaws are considered to make examination items easier than intended, favoring test-wise students : Some flaws provide clues that allow unprepared students to guess the correct answer whereas awkward, unnecessarily complex or esoteric examination items prevent prepared students from demonstrating their knowledge. Item-writing flaws may render examination questions easier or more difficult than intended. Examination experts estimate a quality multiple choice question requires 20 to 60В min to construct and item-writing flaws are common in faculty-prepared examinations. Discriminating multiple-choice questions are difficult and time-consuming to prepare. Well-constructed multiple choice examinations represent a versatile assessment tool with the potential to assess students for sufficient working knowledge of the tested content. The goal of examination item preparation is to develop testing methods that do not confuse students and yield scores that accurately reflect the extent to which students have obtained a satisfactory working knowledge of the content. Use of implausible distractors to complete a five-option multiple choice question does not strengthen the discrimination value. Preparation of examination questions targeting higher cognitive levels will increase the likelihood of constructing discriminating items. Items with four distractors were not more difficult or discriminating than items with three distractors.

FLAWS AND ALL MEANING SERIES

The probability of writing discriminating, difficult examination items decreased when implausible distractors and all of the above were used, and increased if the distractors were comprised of a series of true/false statements. As item complexity increased, item difficulty and discrimination values increased. Higher cognitive skills (complexity level III-IV) were required to correctly answer 38.4В % of examination items. The most common item-writing flaws were awkward stem structure, implausible distractors, longest response is correct, and responses are series of true-false statements. More than one item-writing flaw was identified in 37.3В % of questions.

FLAWS AND ALL MEANING PROFESSIONAL

The mean (В± SE) percent correct (83.3В %вЂ‰В±вЂ‰17.5) was consistent with target values in professional education, and the mean discrimination index (0.18вЂ‰В±вЂ‰0.17) was slightly lower than recommended (0.20). The impact of item-writing flaws and item complexity (cognitive level I-V) on examination item difficulty and discrimination value was evaluated on 1925 examination items prepared by clinical faculty for third year veterinary students. This study evaluated faculty-authored examinations to determine the impact of item-writing flaws and item complexity on the difficulty and discrimination value of examination items used to assess third year veterinary students. Higher cognitive examination items promote critical thinking and are recommended to prepare students for clinical training. Item complexity describes the cognitive skill level required to obtain a correct answer. Failure to adhere to standard item-writing guidelines may render examination questions easier or more difficult than intended.

Flaws and all meaning