Multiple Choice

This article shows you how to build a multiple-choice question.

Overview

Multiple-choice questions present students with a single question followed by a set of possible answers, where only one answer is correct.

The key to a good multiple-choice question is to create good functional distractors.

Why Use It

This question type is suitable for quickly gauging students’ factual knowledge, conceptual understanding, or the application of theories. Multiple-choice questions are auto-graded, making them efficient for both high-enrollment lecture courses and smaller seminar-style classes.

• Reinforce key terminology, concepts, or principles in a low-stakes quiz setting.

• Offer immediate feedback to help students identify gaps in their knowledge.

• Encourage critical thinking by challenging common misconceptions.

Use Cases

• Knowledge Checks: Test foundational understanding of course material before deeper discussions.

• Reading Quizzes: Ensure students complete and comprehend assigned readings.

• Exam Questions: Provide a fair and standardized means of assessing a wide range of course content.

Create and Configure

1

Write Your Question Stem

2

Add Multiple Choice Block

3

Input the Correct/Incorrect Answers

4

Add Randomization

Use the + and x symbols to add more correct and incorrect alternatives. EXAMIND will only show one correct choice at a time.

5

Configure Settings

Remember to click Update to save your settings.

Points: The point value for this question in an assessment.

Choices: The total number of choices to display (ex. 4 would show choices A-D). Useful for increasing randomization.

None of the above: Add a "none of the above" answer choice to the bottom of each question and EXAMIND will randomly serve this as a correct answer choice.

Instructor Tips

Ensuring Academic Integrity

• Randomization: Shuffle answer choices for each student attempt.

• Dynamic Questions: Use a combination of independent and dependent variables.

• Time Limits: Set a time limit to reduce the likelihood of external help.

• Question Pools: Draw from a bank of related questions to increase randomization.

EXAMIND automatically shuffles answer choices by default to support integrity.

Common Issues

• Vague Question Stems: Make sure the question stem clearly indicates the context.

• Unclear Distractors: If too similar, consider adjusting wording for clarity.

Best Practices

• Run a quick pilot with a colleague or teaching assistant to ensure clarity.

• Analyze student results to identify patterns. If a significant percentage of students select a specific incorrect option, it may indicate confusion or a gap in instruction.