Initial short-answer tests outperform initial multiple-choice tests mainly when feedback follows them; without feedback, the higher initial success of multiple-choice tests can favor multiple-choice¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (3 entries) · review r3 · q2
Currency · newest study 2017 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? The chapter reports, citing Kang et al. (2007, Experiment 1), that without feedback students answered 86% of initial multiple-choice versus 54% of short-answer items correctly and did better on the final test after multiple-choice. → Karpicke 2017 q2 i? The chapter reports that in Kang et al.'s second experiment, with feedback, students who took initial short-answer tests performed better than those who took initial multiple-choice tests. → Karpicke 2017 (2) q2 i? The chapter reports, citing Little et al. (2012), a slight advantage of initial short-answer over multiple-choice testing only when students received feedback. → Karpicke 2017 (3)

Evidence¶

Karpicke 2017¶

Karpicke, J. D. (2017). Retrieval-Based Learning: A Decade of Progress. Learning and Memory: A Comprehensive Reference, 2nd edition, Volume 2. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-809324-5.21055-9

q2 · i? · review · r3

The chapter reports Kang et al. (2007), who crossed initial and final formats with 2500 word articles: students did much better initially on multiple-choice "(86% vs. 54% correct in their Experiment 1)" and also on the final test.

"Students did much better on initial multiple- choice tests than they did on initial short-answer items (86% vs. 54% correct in their Experiment 1)."

Karpicke 2017 (2)¶

Karpicke, J. D. (2017). Retrieval-Based Learning: A Decade of Progress. Learning and Memory: A Comprehensive Reference, 2nd edition, Volume 2. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-809324-5.21055-9

q2 · i? · review · r3

In Kang et al.'s second experiment, as the chapter reports, students studied correct answers as feedback, and "students who took initial short-answer tests performed better than did students who took initial multiple-choice tests".

"In this experiment, students who took initial short-answer tests performed better than did students who took initial multiple-choice tests."

Karpicke 2017 (3)¶

Karpicke, J. D. (2017). Retrieval-Based Learning: A Decade of Progress. Learning and Memory: A Comprehensive Reference, 2nd edition, Volume 2. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-809324-5.21055-9

q2 · i? · review · r3

The chapter reports Little et al. (2012), who found multiple-choice better without feedback, and "when students received feedback, there was a slight advantage of initial short-answer testing".

"However, when students received feedback, there was a slight advantage of initial short-answer testing over initial multiple-choice testing."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Feedback Enhances Retrieval Practice
• Initial multiple-choice tests with plausible, competitive alternatives outperformed initial short-answer tests on final questions that were related to but not directly tested initially — related
• Having more multiple-choice alternatives benefits later retention when initial retrieval success is high but hurts learning when it is low — related
• Providing feedback after initial multiple-choice tests cut lure intrusions on final short-answer tests roughly in half, with immediate and delayed feedback equally effective — related
• Taking initial multiple-choice tests without feedback can lead students to later produce the incorrect lure answers they selected, even when an overall retrieval practice benefit occurs — related
• Initial retrieval conditions that provide less cue support, such as free recall rather than recognition or fewer letter cues, tend to produce better retention despite lower initial success — reports the opposite
• Short-answer (production) and multiple-choice (recognition) retrieval practice produce no statistically significant difference in undergraduates' reading comprehension on a final MCQ test — related
• Evidence on whether initial short-answer questions produce more learning than initial multiple-choice questions is mixed, with recent studies finding little or no difference — related
• Prior meta-analyses of feedback (Li 2010; Kang & Han 2015; Van der Kleij et al. 2015) reported positive effects but none was devoted entirely to feedback in CALL — related
• Multiple choice practice items produce significantly higher performance during retrieval practice than short answer items, with applied short answer the most difficult condition — related
• Subtle indirect cueing feedback tends to have higher impacts on learning outcomes than other forms of feedback, per research the review cites — related
• Providing corrective feedback on practice tests does not significantly change the testing effect (g = 0.63 with feedback vs. g = 0.60 without) — related
• Taking a multiple-choice test produces a testing effect on later cued recall, but testing without study or feedback can be net harmful — related
• In authentic undergraduate courses, taking more voluntary practice tests predicts higher final-exam performance, with and without corrective feedback — related
• Students who received corrective feedback post-processed practice tests more intensely and rated the tests as more useful for monitoring than students without feedback — related
• Retrieval-based learning research emphasizes both direct and indirect effects of retrieval on learning — related