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 Forms of Assessment

Short-answer Questions

Description

Slightly less structured than multiple-choice questions, short answer questions are often used in examinations to award a few marks as a "starter", followed by a question which requires more writing.

• They may simply ask the student to write in a missing word or phrase: “The Spanish Armada was sent during the reign of ...................... in England, and ..................... in Spain (2 marks)";      
• or they may call for brief listings: "List three of Schneider's first-rank symptoms of schizophrenia (1 mark each)"      
• or for a one-sentence answer: "What is the basic principle of utilitarianism? (2 marks)"

Indications

• As the examples above indicate, such questions tend to test the lower levels of the cognitive domain. They are most effective when there can be no disagreement about acceptable answers.            
• As with multiple choice questions, they are convenient for use when a number of assessors will mark the papers, and all alternatives can be considered. Thus for the last example, "The greatest happiness of the greatest number" would be expected; "the hedonic calculus" would be acceptable; but "maximising happiness" would be too vague. Should it get one mark, or none?  
• For formative assessment, such questions are often used in class questioning, or in simple informal tests to check recall.

Contra-Indications

• Apart from the last circumstance, where there might be a profitable discussion about the acceptability of an answer, such questions should not be used unless the potential correct answers are clear. Note that in the "schizophrenia" example, the student can select just three out of a much longer list, and get credit for each correct item.        
• Some students may reasonably find such questions patronising! They do smack of very traditional schooling.

Special precautions

• Short answer questions are suited to convergent forms of knowledge. 
• When students get used to being asked them, they will revise just to produce the "right" answers, and thus drift towards surface learning.

Notes

• The story (probably apocryphal) goes that when A J Ayer was sitting his philosophy finals, one question read: "This is a question." He responded, "Is this an answer?" and got a First.

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