Questions tagged [test-design]
For questions about designing effective tests and writing exam problems.
37 questions
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1st time math teacher 1st test feedback appreciated
I'm not a math teacher but I've stepped into the role to assist a small private school who lost their math teacher during the holidays (I'm a mechanical engineer by trade). The course is Algebra 1 (...
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What to do with "wild goose chase" or "quantum leap"-types of incorrect solutions when you ask students to prove/show something?
So in an advanced mathematics course for engineers, there are often problems of the type:
Prove claim A.
Given equation A, show that you can obtain equation Z.
I am frequently faced with a problem ...
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Does there exist a (statistical) topology induced by students on the space of algebraic formulas? :)
It's kind of a serious question even if the title seems silly.
As math educators, we all know that students link together different algebraic expressions thinking that they mean the same thing, e.g.
\...
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What's it called when multiple concepts are combined into a single problem?
A lot of students complain about "never being shown that before". What's the idea called when you test multiple concepts or one or two new ones along with some old ones in a word problem, ...
- 303
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Online math quiz: students make short video explaining solution
I am teaching high school math. My students are generally hardworking and competent. Class sizes are about 35.
We were recently forced online due to the pandemic, and I have been searching for a way ...
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As a tutor, should I make students who did badly on timed, closed book past paper tests, do the exact same test again?
As a maths tutor, when I set tests (past papers in particular), if a student does poorly (~50/60% or below), obviously some topics need to be retaught. But should I make them do the exact same test - ...
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Ideas and resources helpful in evaluating students with diverse backgrounds
Context
In the case of recently arrived refugee classes (e.g. Ukrainian classes during current times), a first challenge is to establish the individual level of the students in order to tune the ...
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How should I grade true-or-false questions if the student's writing is unclear?
See the attached image:
I am having a difficult time grading this paper as I am not sure if the student intentionally wrote the answers in such a way that each answer looks like both "T" (...
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Quiz in locked mode without managed Chromebooks?
Google Forms enables locked mode (where students cannot move to other tabs or apps without submitting the form) only if students use certain laptops called Chromebooks.
I'm looking for any platform to ...
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Write calculus multiple choice questions with only numerical answer choices?
What are the best type of answer choices for multiple choice questions? Numerical only like the probability and financial math actuarial exams?
I have an opportunity to utilize a multiple choice ...
- 159
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help thinking of conceptual or open-ended Intro Algebra and Intermediate Algebra test questions
Like many other math teachers, I am teaching remotely in Spring term. I teach Math 60 (Intro Algebra) and Math 95 (Intermediate Algebra) at a community college. In the age of math solving technology ...
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Measuring ones mathematics ability regularly - how to avoid getting better at the tests
This question might not suit the site, if so I apologise.
I'd like to regularly test my maths skills, essentially finding out if I'm getting better or worse at a maths in general and then plot the ...
- 129
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Acceptability of creative questions in assessments
I am a math teacher and I have been for a decade now. One of the foundations of my philosophical approach to teaching has to do with Synthesis. For the purposes of this query, I consider Synthesis to ...
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Suggested idea: Course exams written by someone else other than the instructors/coordinators. Good or Bad?
As you might know already evaluating learning outcomes is very difficult. For example, student feedback is not always reliable; there are studies showing inverse relations between student learning and ...
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Take-Home Examination on Ordinary Differential Equations?
I am planning to give my students a take-home examination on ODE. The main topic that I would like to cover is Linear Differential Equations of Order Greater than One. For example, I will give my ...
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How can I learn to write better questions to test for conceptual understanding?
I'm worried that I'm bad at realizing when a question I've written requires little or no conceptual understanding to answer. Like, when I'm writing a question for a homework assignment or exam, I'll ...
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How can I measure the mathematical computation skills of high school students through a test?
How to analyze the level of difficulty of mathematical computation of a problem on a standard mathematical test designed for high school students? I mean how to choose some indices that can reflect ...
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Verifying Simple Expression Equivalence in a Spreadsheet
For simple expressions with easily derived canonical forms (eg polynomials and simple rational expressions), is there a way to leverage existing tools to verify that two expressions are equal when ...
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Downloadable MCQs on Mathematics
I am looking for multiple choice question (MCQ) based tests on some Mathematics' topics (details below), which could be downloaded in most preferably tex (LaTex) format or doc/docx format. Kindly ...
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What is known about discrimination and difficulty in test questions?
I am interested in looking at any design resources or "guiding principles" on the distribution of different types of question difficulties on evaluative examinations.
We can use Item Response Theory ...
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What is the mathematical value of children learning and being tested on Roman numerals?
My 11 year old child recently took an important numeracy test. One of the questions required her to know that M = 1000 in Roman numerals. This made me very angry: I could not see how this relatively ...
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Comprehensive Assessment Test for Undergraduate Math Program
My department uses the Major Field Assessment Test in Math (I think we refer to it as the "MFT") and that is great for its purpose. However, I am currently teaching a capstone course where we spend ...
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What is your workflow for producing high school mathematics test papers?
I need to produce at least 30 test/exam papers a year, plus a few assignments and investigations. I have good source material but need to change numbers and contexts and output original papers that ...
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Software for randomizing multiple choice tests
I would like to give multiple choice tests with randomized questions and order of the answers that is unique for each test, to be printed and given on paper sheets. Is there a software that would do ...
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Source of conceptual, multiple choice calculus questions
I'd like to give my Calculus 1 class periodic multiple choice questions that really test conceptual understanding. Ideally, I'd like these questions to require very little computation. I know that a ...
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A Method to Grade a Multiple Statement or True and False Question
I am trying to come up a method to grade a multiple choice question. I prepared a test that consists of some questions and each question has 10 options for which 3 to 5 options are correct. When I ...
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Grading scale: how to handle multiple choice questions with different number of choices
Suppose you have been told to give a multiple choice exam, and to nullify the effects of random guessing by penalizing incorrect answers. Suppose there are $N$ available choices, of which exactly one ...
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What is the proper verb for "doing" an integral?
It's time to write exams, and when writing in committee we often discover differences in usage between various instructors. Here's an example I noticed today.
What is the proper verb to use in a ...
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Item Analysis in Mathematics Exams
I'd like to process data like the following, from my most recent seven-question exam.
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Should tests given after the drop date be made less difficult in order to help the remaining students raise their grades? [closed]
It is that time of the semester again (after the final drop date) and my colleagues and I are once again having the discussion on whether or not the two remaining tests should be made so they are less ...
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Should true-false questions ask for an explanation?
I like to ask true-false questions on exams, because I feel that they can be an efficient way to assess students' understanding of concepts and ability to apply them to somewhat unfamiliar situations. ...
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Should one visualize properties of a matrix or/and state its properties?
Sometimes, if you want students to manipulate some sort of special matrices (like, asking if they are invertible or ask for a LU decomposition, etc.), you have to possibility to state all properties ...
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Should I design my exams to have time-pressure or not?
Is it better to design an exam with fewer questions and relaxed timing or with more questions and a resulting time-pressure?
One the one hand, it seems that students who really know the stuff will ...
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How can I encourage my students to team work?
I have a motto, "My class is not an Olympic swimming pool! It is a museum full of the masterwork paintings! Relax and enjoy all of this mathematical beauty which I am drawing on the blackboard!"
By ...
user230
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What are effective alternatives to a written math exam to evaluate knowledge?
Some students do not do well under pressure or testing situations and cannot demonstrate their knowledge of a math subject with a written exam. On the other hand, I think that students that do not ...
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Placing incoming college freshmen: basic algebra, pre-calc, calc
Assume that you have incoming college freshmen, so you might have access to their high school courses and grades, as well as their results on a placement test offered by your college. Also, assume ...
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How can I estimate the length of an exam?
Background: I am fairly new at teaching, and in every subject I have taught, I have had difficulty estimating the length and difficulty of an exam. I need to write an exam for a university senior-...
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