Making Good Tests

A well-formatted exam is one that is so transparent to the Learner that they don’t see anything but the content.

A well-written test is one that tests subject knowledge instead of reading comprehension.

A well-designed multiple choice assessment is one that is constructed so every distractor is a plausible answer which evokes a revealing and real-world scenario in mind of the Learner.

And as I say every time I get the chance, write your assessments first! Always make your measures before making your content. When testing is our first step instead of our last, we can take the time to do this right, we naturally align our emphasis with that of our Learners, and we stop the scope creep that SMEs will inevitably request.

And lastly, when we make these right, with randomized question banks & such, it doesn’t matter if anyone read the content or not. It is more work to cheat than to learn. Yes, tests are absolutely learning tools! But only if we design them for this, and use them in that way.

We can make only good tests. We can! It’s simple, it's just not easy: Stop making bad ones