Algorithms for Developing Test Questions from Sentences in Instructional Materials: an Extension of an Earlier Study

摘要

The purpose of this effort was to extend or replicate an earlier study that examined the feasibility of generating multiple-choice test questions by transforming sentences from prose instructional materials. In that study, a computer-based algorithm was used to analyze prose subject matter and to identify high-information words. Sentences containing selected words were than transformed into multiple-choice items by four writers who generated foils or question alternatives informally and by an algorithmic method. These items were then organized into tests and administered to 24 college students before and after they had studied the instructional materials.