 Testing, Testing: A, B, C, D, None of the Above
| Mitchell M. Handelsman, University of Colorado at Denver Joseph J. Palladino, University of Southern Indiana
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We can't believe the summer is over and we are back in our
offices ready to teach. OK, at least we're back in the office! And we know
students will have lots of questions about tests: how to take them, how they
are graded, and, of course, what will be on them.
Students have a lot to learn about tests, and we're here to
help. First, we'll introduce some basic elements of test-speak, the
language used by faculty about the tests they give. Here are some examples of
test-speak:
When the teacher says:
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What the teacher means:
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There will be no questions from
chapters 12, 13, and 14.
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The entire exam will cover
chapters 12, 13, and 14.
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The exam will emphasize a
conceptual understanding of the material.
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I can't remember the facts either.
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This time I've decided to give an
essay exam. It is time to assess your critical thinking skills.
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The secretary wouldn't type the
175-item multiple-choice test last night at 5:00 p.m.
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One of the unique features of this
class is the oral exam at the end of the semester.
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My dissertation defense was a
nightmare, so someone has to pay.
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I am disappointed with your
performance on the exam.
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I am disappointed with the prospects
for world peace too, but I'm not going to do anything about it.
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The test shouldn't take the entire
period.
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Don't make dinner plans.
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Now, for extra credit why don't
you . . .
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You will be filling out teacher
evaluations next week, and I hope you remember my kindness in granting extra
credit.
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Grades are not important; what is
important is how well you understand the material.
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Look, enough arguing about the
questions, I'm losing most of these arguments.
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Don't worry, it's not as bad as it
looks.
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Posttraumatic stress disorder is
the most common diagnosis after taking one of my exams.
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When answering these
multiple-choice questions, select the best answer.
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When answering these
multiple-choice questions, select the one you think I would select.
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I want you to feel free to raise
questions about the items on the exam when I return them.
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As long as you don't question my
answers.
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Feel free to use your creativity
in answering the essay questions.
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Answer the way you think I would
answer.
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You are unlikely to graduate from
college without answering hundreds of multiple-choice questions. These
questions have two advantages: (a) they can be scored by machine, and (b) the
odds of answering correctly are usually 1 in 4. To be successful, you should
develop strategies for answering these questions (several strategies are
illustrated in the cartoon accompanying this column). Here are a few
multiple-choice items to give you an opportunity to practice test-taking
strategies before your first exam or quiz of the semester.
- Which of the following is true?
a. B and C
b. A and C
c. A and B
d. all of the above
e. none of the above
f. both D and E (see chaos theory for an explanation) - What is paranoid schizophrenia?
a. Who wants to know?
b. I KNOW why you asked this.
c. C is for conspiracy.
d. It doesn't matter; as emperor, I've outlawed it. - Which group has the highest prevalence of
humor-impaired personality disorder?
a. accountants
b. stat professors
c. members of Congress
d. students who attend Psi Chi business meetings - What was B. F. Skinner's nickname as a child?
a. "Butch"
b. "Bar Press"
c. "The Operator"
d. "The Reinforcer" - What is state-dependent learning?
a. a new DSM category
b. a federal welfare program
c. 2 + 2 = 5 (in Indiana or where prescribed by law)
d. belief that people in Colorado can't learn anything - When does Stage 4 sleep occur?
a. 3 minutes after experimental psychology class
b. 3 minutes before experimental psychology class
c. while reading the APA Publication Manual
d. during theater class - I am anxious
a. never
b. sometimes
c. always
d. A and C, wait . . . often B but definitely C at times. But then again,
on Tuesday, I, I, I, uh . . . uh . . . , I uh, uh. - Ted and Agnes are observing the eyes of their
newborn daughter as she sleeps. They are amazed they can see her eyes
darting back and forth. Ted was a psychology major (GPA = 1.26) in college
and Agnes was an English major, so Agnes (GPA = 4.00) asks Ted what the
darting eyes mean. What does Ted say in response?
a. "I think our child has variable-interval eyes."
b. "I think our child needs glasses."
c. "Our child has extrasensory perception."
d "How did I ever graduate?" - Mary was driving to school when a tire suddenly
blew; she struggled in vain to gain control of the car. The car hit a
truck and flipped over, coming to rest in the median of a busy highway. A
van full of graduate students in social psychology just happened to be a
mile behind Mary. What happens at this point?
a. The students tried to turn the car over, but social loafing took its
toll and they failed miserably.
b. The students counted the number of people who drove past the accident
and did not stop, then they packed up and left.
c. Mary asked the students to serve as witnesses for a professor who gives
makeup exams only for legitimate, verifiable excuses.
d. The students spent an hour brainstorming about what they should do. - Which of the following students is going to have
the best material for his or her term paper?
a. Al who consults the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
for his paper on altruism.
b. Dan who consults the Journal of Abnormal Psychology for his
paper on schizophrenia.
c. Beth who consults the Journal of Experimental Psychology for her
paper on memory.
d. Carol who consults the TV Guide while searching for material for
a term paper and spends hours reading every article.
As you see, writing multiple-choice
questions is quite an art; it takes years of painstaking effort and practice to
perfect the skills necessary to write questions that look like they cover
important material but are trivial enough so students can't complain and
professors obtain a good distribution.
We tried to provide some insights
into the design and rationale for quizzes and exams. We hope you earn an A or B
(not C or D), either always, most of the time, or sometimes.
SEND US YOUR BEST QUESTIONS. In future columns we hope to present
more of our unbelievably helpful comments about tests, both multiple-choice and
essay (or, if there's not enough space, short answer). We invite you to send us
the best psychology test questions you've ever seen, whether you wrote or
answered them. After we get finished being amazed that you actually read this
far in the column, we'll publish some of the best questions we receive. 
Leadership
| Copyright 1996 (Volume 1, Issue 1) by Psi Chi, the
International Honor Society in Psychology
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Eye on Psi Chi is a magazine designed to keep members
and alumni up-to-date with all the latest information about Psi Chi’s programs,
awards, and chapter activities. It features informative articles about careers,
graduate school admission, chapter ideas, personal development, the various
fields of psychology, and important issues related to our discipline.
Eye on Psi Chi is published quarterly: Spring (February) Summer (April) Fall
(September) Winter (November)
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