Fast Assessments with Digital Tools Using Multiple-Choice Questions by Dusti D. Howell, Daphne ChingYu Tseng & Jozenia T. Colorado-Resa, College Teaching, 10 Mar 2017. “This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in College Teaching online on March 10, 2017, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/87567555.2017.1291489.”
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) have come a long way since they were used in The Kansas Silent Reading Test in 1915. After 100+ years of MCQs, new innovative digital tools using this form of assessment can help foster interactivity in today’s classrooms. Here are three free online MCQ tools that are relatively quick and easy to use that instantly allow teachers to assess what students know. 1) Plickers is an economical alternative to classroom clickers. This simple tool allows teachers to collect clicker type data using cards with unique shapes printed on them (Figure 1). Teachers can download and print up to 63 different Plickers cards on card stock paper from Plickers’ website (http://plickers.com/card) and download the app on either a smartphone or tablet (apple or android). Before handing out the individual Plickers (cards), teachers fill out a simple spreadsheet that links each student with each card. By following the online directions, it is easy to add class sections, student rosters, and MCQs to the website. Before the quiz, each student is given a numbered visual Plicker. After teachers ask an MCQ, students answer by holding up their Plickers in one of four ways. Students who think the answer is ‘A’ hold the Plicker card with the tiny ‘A’ facing up. For ‘B’ they rotate their card so the ‘B’ is facing up, and so forth. When all the students are holding their Plickers up, the teacher scans the room using the Plicker Apps built-in camera feature on a mobile device. The software immediately shows the teacher a visual bar graph indicating how many students answered A, B,
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C and D, with the correct answer highlighted in green. The teacher knows immediately if the class understands the concept being assessed.
Figure 1: Here are two Plickers. Student #1 answers the MCQ with “B” while student #3 answers “D.” Plicker cards have small letters so that selected answers are not visible to other students.
2) Google Forms is an online tool. Students click on a web link or type in a URL to access an online quiz. Students don’t need a Gmail account, so assessment is easy and fast. To create a quiz, go to https://docs.google.com/forms/ and sign in with a Google account. Most recently, Google Forms has added new built in templates and automatic grading features. Use the “Start a new form” link with the large plus sign to add a new quiz and begin by giving it a title and adding a question. The vertical menu bar to the side contains options to add questions, and insert images, videos, and sections.
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Click “Responses” to choose to stop accepting responses, view how many students took the quiz, and view a graphical summary of the class results simply by scrolling down the page (Figure 2). This visual overview, without any personal data, can help teachers figure out which questions students do not understand. A spreadsheet of student answers can be created by clicking below ‘Responses’ on the small green icon with a white cross on it (Figure 3). This icon is only accessible from the teacher’s account.
Figure 2: Graphical summary of one MCQ when scrolling down the “Responses” page in Google Forms.
Figure 3: Black arrow points to the “View responses in Sheets” icon to generate a spreadsheet.
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To reduce the possibility of cheating, teachers can select the “shuffle questions” option found under “Settings” (icon shaped like a cog) and then “Presentation.” To turn on the autograding features, select “Quizzes” under “Settings” and slide the toggle switch to the right next to “Make this a quiz” and Save. Identify correct answers and add answer feedback for each question in the “Answer Key” below each question. When finished creating the quiz, click the “Preview” button at the top that resembles an eye to view the quiz, to see how it will appear to students. This is the web URL students will need to access the quiz. 3) Kahoot! adds fun and pizazz to any class (https://create.kahoot.it). This game-based learning program has built-in tools for creating MCQs. Kahoot quizzes are projected on a screen in the classroom while students join the class competition with a smart device or computer. Students like the competitive aspects of the quiz game that uses optional countdown timers, time limits (Figure 4), and leaderboards that reward students more points for correctly answering questions faster than classmates.
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Figure 4: Kahoot MCQ with 13 seconds left on the timer. After the teacher selects the ‘Play’ option for the game, a PIN number is generated. Students go to https://kahoot.it/ on their smart devices and enter the PIN number. The game then asks them to type in their nickname. Tell students to enter their names accurately if they want to receive credit for participating. As students enter their names, they get a green screen that reads, “You’re In.” At the same time, their names start to appear on the teacher’s screen. If students type in an inappropriate name, Kahoot does a good job of filtering the name by adding ‘Inappropriate’ on the teacher’s screen. Teachers can elect to kick inappropriate students out of the game by clicking on their name. The name disappears and the student is notified that they can no longer participate. In addition, the student’s screen turns from green to red to make it easier to identify the culprit if needed.
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When starting a game, the teacher clicks the ‘Start’ button. In a few seconds, a question appears. A few seconds after that, the MCQ answer options appear on the teacher’s screen. Students read the answers off the projected screen and then choose one of the matching colored squares on their devices. No text appears on the student’s device. When ready to go to the next question, the teacher selects the ‘Next’ button. At the end of the game, the ‘Final Scoreboard’ showcases the winning names and scores. At the bottom of that screen, click on ‘Save Results > Download’ to save the results of the quiz in an Excel spreadsheet. Conclusion While MCQs have been around for a long time, these three apps have made them more interactive and engaging in the classroom. Overall, Google Forms is easy to use if all of the students have access to computers. It is also the only one of these tools that can be practically used in both online and face-to-face classes. For teachers in a self-contained classroom, Plickers is an optimal choice since the only device required is the teacher’s smart phone or tablet. However, for teachers meeting with multiple classes each day, assigning the same card to different students requires more management. Kahoot! makes MCQs exciting by turning them into interactive, game-based activities. The downside to this app is that it requires a projector for the questions and each student needs a smart phone or computer to select answers. Overall, these power tools are excellent resources for giving fast assessments using Multiple-Choice Questions. But keep your eyes open. As always in the digital arena, new tools are constantly emerging. For example, Quizlet Live (https://quizlet.com/features/live) is a new collaborative tool that is similar
A Modern Look at Multiple-Choice Questions - Quick Fix 6 to Kahoot! but is built around a team approach to answering MCQs. This is a really engaging and fun new tool that takes a new spin on MCQs.
APA Citation: Howell, D., Tseng, D.C., & Colorado-Resa, J.T. (2017). Fast Assessments with Digital Tools Using Multiple-Choice Questions. College Teaching, 65(3), 145-7. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/87567555.2017.1291489
Contact: Dusti D. Howell,
[email protected], Emporia State University, 1 Kellogg Cir, Emporia, KS 66801, USA.
