It depends on situation. Sometimes, true or false questions, for instance, are more of a benefit to me to test their perception of procedures.
Hi Charles- Thanks for your post to the forum. Choosing your assessment based on the discipline being taught is a good strategy. Application testing may be more appropriate for a culinary class, while multiple choice or essay would be the choice for a humanities course. Best wishes- Susan
The testing format of our school is multiple choices which mirror the testing format of the national certification organization for our field.
I look at the subject matter and determine from there which test will give the student the best opportunity to show what she has learned.
What material has been covered. Some content relies on application method.
I teach Information Technology. I usually use multiple choice exams. You can cover a lot of different topics using this format. I also use hands on lab as a testing tool. In our environment the student has to know the concept plus peform the task at work.
I usually use the manual's format.
I use a little of everything when I test my students just because it allows to give them all a chance. Some students are great at multiple choice while others are better at essay so I try to incorperate a little of them all.
Hi Allina- Thanks for your post to the forum. You are doing a great job of selecting appropriate assessments! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
I take into consideration the level of the class. Are they at the beginning of the program, or further into the program? I think about the discussions that we had in class and any demonstrations that we had. I look at any homework assignments that they were given, and what those assignments focussed on. We also have a master syllabus that has a list of objectives for the entire course. I look at those ojectives before deciding what types of tests are going to be most accurate.
Allina
It depends on the subject matter. Since the course I teach has both factual and concepts, I use a combination of several methods. Typically I use multiple choice, T/F, completion and word problems.
Hi Robin - Thanks for sharing Easy Test Maker!
Best wishes- Susan
We cover both technical skill and technical knowlege
The email site is www.easytestmaker.com. I love it!
Hi Robin - Thanks for your post to the forum. You are doing a great job at very carefully designing your asessments. Can you share the name of the program for online test creation that you mention?
Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Match the test format to what needs to be evaluated. If skills, hands on or short answer or essay. For basic recall, completion. I am also a big fan of mixing several formats to accurately assess with different applications.
There are many testing formats. Most stunet like multiple choice. I actually like short answer testing. This allows me to evaluate the material overall and how the student has actually grasped the material. Some multiple choice testing is good for key terms but not always.
Due to the fact that Medical Assisting is majority of clinical applications, I try to test students frequently in a clinical setting. Many students can memorize information, but can they apply??
As instructors get to know students and their reasons for pursuing their career studies we may indeed find out much about them which affects our assessment of their learning. On the surface this sounds great, but in reality where there is frequently a right and a wrong answer, how do we gauge these students' learning? I understand Wardell's point, but I do struggle with bringing emotions into the grading process. I try to have tests be as objective as possible and then apply a uniform standard.
I've always used a hodgepodge of test types. Because I teach classes in several disciplines, I change it up. My composition classes have more essay; my computer classes have more skills assessment and project tests. Recently, I've changed my objective tests a bit because I could tell that some of the tests from previous quarters were not successful. Writing tests is sort of a developing skill. This quarter, I have used some "canned" tests from the publisher. I'm rather discouraged because some of the questions that they have included on the tests are unclear and do not cover information that is contained within the book. I probably won't be using the canned tests again. I've been taking questions off of my results percentage and adjusting the total points of the test because of poor questions. But, I will use some of the questions in the future once again when I construct my own tests for the class in the future.
I've been so excited with a program to create tests online. It's an easy test maker and saves soooo much time. I highly recommend it to anyone.
