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Conference Paper: An assessment of functioning and non-functioning distractors in multiple-choice questions: a descriptive analysis
Title | An assessment of functioning and non-functioning distractors in multiple-choice questions: a descriptive analysis |
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Authors | |
Issue Date | 2010 |
Publisher | Association for Medical Education in Europe. |
Citation | The 2010 Conference of the Association for Medical Education in Europe (AMEE), Glasgow, UK., 4-8 September 2010. In Abstract Book of AMEE, 2010, p. 120 How to Cite? |
Abstract | BACKGROUND: Four- or five-option multiple choice questions (MCQs) are the standard in health-science disciplines, both on certification-level examinations and on in-house developed tests. Previous research has shown, however, that few MCQs have three or four functioning distractors. The purpose of this study was to investigate non-functioning distractors in teacher-developed tests in one nursing program in an English-language University in Hong Kong. SUMMARY OF WORK: Using item-analysis data, we assessed the proportion of non-functioning distractors on a sample of seven test papers administered to undergraduate nursing students. A total of 514 items were reviewed, including 2056 options 1542 distractors and 514 correct responses). Non-functioning options were defined as ones that were chosen by fewer than 5% of examinees and those with a positive option discrimination statistic. SUMMARY OF RESULTS: The proportion of items containing 0, 1, 2, and 3 functioning distractors was 12.3%, 34.8%, 39.1%, and 13.8% respectively. Overall, items contained an average of 1.54 (SD=0.88) functioning distractors. Only 52.2% (n=805) of all distractors were functioning effectively and 10.2% (n=158) had a choice frequency of 0. Items with more functioning distractors were more difficult and more discriminating. CONCLUSIONS: The low frequency of items with three functioning distractors in the four-option items in this study suggests that teachers have difficulty developing plausible distractors for most MCQs. TAKE-HOME MESSAGES: Test items should consist of as many options as is feasible given the item content and the number of plausible distractors, in most cases this would be three. |
Description | Session 3W - Posters: Written Assessment and Portfolio Assessment: abstract no.3W5 |
Persistent Identifier | http://hdl.handle.net/10722/130323 |
DC Field | Value | Language |
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dc.contributor.author | Tarrant, M | en_US |
dc.contributor.author | Ware, J | en_US |
dc.contributor.author | Mohammed, A | en_US |
dc.date.accessioned | 2010-12-23T08:49:26Z | - |
dc.date.available | 2010-12-23T08:49:26Z | - |
dc.date.issued | 2010 | en_US |
dc.identifier.citation | The 2010 Conference of the Association for Medical Education in Europe (AMEE), Glasgow, UK., 4-8 September 2010. In Abstract Book of AMEE, 2010, p. 120 | en_US |
dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10722/130323 | - |
dc.description | Session 3W - Posters: Written Assessment and Portfolio Assessment: abstract no.3W5 | - |
dc.description.abstract | BACKGROUND: Four- or five-option multiple choice questions (MCQs) are the standard in health-science disciplines, both on certification-level examinations and on in-house developed tests. Previous research has shown, however, that few MCQs have three or four functioning distractors. The purpose of this study was to investigate non-functioning distractors in teacher-developed tests in one nursing program in an English-language University in Hong Kong. SUMMARY OF WORK: Using item-analysis data, we assessed the proportion of non-functioning distractors on a sample of seven test papers administered to undergraduate nursing students. A total of 514 items were reviewed, including 2056 options 1542 distractors and 514 correct responses). Non-functioning options were defined as ones that were chosen by fewer than 5% of examinees and those with a positive option discrimination statistic. SUMMARY OF RESULTS: The proportion of items containing 0, 1, 2, and 3 functioning distractors was 12.3%, 34.8%, 39.1%, and 13.8% respectively. Overall, items contained an average of 1.54 (SD=0.88) functioning distractors. Only 52.2% (n=805) of all distractors were functioning effectively and 10.2% (n=158) had a choice frequency of 0. Items with more functioning distractors were more difficult and more discriminating. CONCLUSIONS: The low frequency of items with three functioning distractors in the four-option items in this study suggests that teachers have difficulty developing plausible distractors for most MCQs. TAKE-HOME MESSAGES: Test items should consist of as many options as is feasible given the item content and the number of plausible distractors, in most cases this would be three. | - |
dc.language | eng | en_US |
dc.publisher | Association for Medical Education in Europe. | - |
dc.relation.ispartof | Conference of the Association for Medical Education in Europe, AMEE 2010 | - |
dc.title | An assessment of functioning and non-functioning distractors in multiple-choice questions: a descriptive analysis | en_US |
dc.type | Conference_Paper | en_US |
dc.identifier.email | Tarrant, M: tarrantm@hkucc.hku.hk | en_US |
dc.identifier.email | Ware, J: jamesw@hsc.edu.kw | - |
dc.identifier.email | Mohammed, A: ahmedm@hsc.edu.kw | - |
dc.description.nature | link_to_OA_fulltext | - |
dc.identifier.hkuros | 178334 | en_US |
dc.identifier.spage | 120 | - |
dc.identifier.epage | 120 | - |
dc.description.other | Conference of the Association for Medical Education in Europe (AMEE 2010), Glasgow, UK., 4-8 September 2010. In Abstract Book of AMEE, 2010, p. 120 | - |