Hi John and everyone, I give out the following website for those that have problems with multiple choice questions in particular. It is entitled, "Test-taking advice: Especially for the multiple-choice challenged", by Tim Rogers and Don Kline at the University of Calgary.
www.psych.ucalgary.ca/CourseNotes/mcadvice.html Cheers, Martha ----- Original Message ----- From: "John W. Nichols, M.A." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Teaching in the Psychological Sciences" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Sunday, March 07, 2004 10:04 AM Subject: Re: "poor test-takers?" > What you are describing is a byproduct of the anti-testing movement, I > think. > > I agree with you in part, and disagree with you in part. For the most > part, the agreement and disagreement involve different parts. > > I agree that, for the most part it is students who are poor students > (poor study skills and inadequate study time and skills) who make the > claim. > > Test taking, however, does involve a number of skills that might be > considered at least partially independent of study skills. There are > also test-taking attitudes that are involved. > > I am addressing multiple choice testing only. That is what I use and am > most familiar with. I think mc tests can be as good at assessing the > acquisition of information as essay questions, if they are properly > done. > > One skill that I am thinking of in particular is the ability to maintain > mental flexibility -- to hold several "what ifs ..." in mind at the same > time while the question is being considered. > > Also, many students seem to have not learned the "tricks of the trade". > I direct them to their Study Guides and some of the sites on my "Study > Skills" page ( http://www.tulsa.oklahoma.net/~jnichols/skills.html ). > It may be woefully out of date, but there are several outstanding > sites. Most of them also have tips on taking tests. (Consider that to > be a thinly veiled invitation to Tipsters to recommend other good sites > they know about.) > > And, finally, many seem to have had teachers who have used the kinds of > questions that I call "give-aways". The distractors are so obviously > wrong that the correct answer is the only possibility (example, Columbus > discovered the Americas in 1425 BC, 1492, 1962, 2002). In my always > humble opinion, there must always be at least one distractor that is a > plausible answer except for something fairly distinct that the student > should be expected to know. (I am thinking of something like the > amnestic characteristic that usually distinguishes "night terrors" from > regular nightmares in children.) > > Beth Benoit wrote: > > > > As the winter term ends, I'm once again faced with the confident, unshaken > > belief by some students that they "just don't test well." This phrase seems > > to have become very well-known and is most certainly over-used. > > > > I'm skeptical that such a condition exists. > > > > I think that there's probably no specific reason why a person who is bright, > > well-studied, and has the expected amount of academic ability and language > > skills (taking a test in a second language would be a different kind of > > challenge, for example) would routinely do poorly on a test because they > > have some anomaly - genetic or otherwise - that makes them unable to > > demonstrate their brilliance on a test. > > > > I'm not referring to people with anxiety disorders or phobias or learning > > disorders. The "poor test-takers" in my experience are students who just > > whip that phrase out as though it's a personality characteristic, and I'm > > tired of it. They often announce this even before the first test. An > > apparent expectation is that I should create some magical test that will > > demonstrate the brilliance that lies deep in the soul of this untestable. > > > > I don't mean for this to get into another one of those endless diatribes, > > with the same posters replying and arguing with each other about whether > > tests are the perfect collegiate vehicle while the rest of us drum our > > fingers and click on the delete key. > > > > I'm more inclined to believe that having failed to learn good study skills > > seems a more likely description to me than that the hapless student is > > saddled with some cognitive defect. > > > > Send me something. (Just kidding.) > > > > Beth Benoit > > University System of New Hampshire > > > > --- > > You are currently subscribed to tips as: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > -- > > ----------==========>>>>>>>>>> ��� <<<<<<<<<<==========---------- > Sometimes you just have to try something, and see what happens. > > John W. Nichols, M.A. > Assistant Professor of Psychology > Tulsa Community College > 909 S. Boston Ave., Tulsa, OK 74119 > (918) 595-7134 > > Home: http://www.tulsa.oklahoma.net/~jnichols > MegaPsych: http://www.tulsa.oklahoma.net/~jnichols/megapsych.html > > --- > You are currently subscribed to tips as: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] > --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
