SST2772-ABED_1: How to Write Multiple Choice Exams

You will be expected to apply your Social Studies knowledge, skills, and understandings through a variety of multiple choice questions. Multiple choice questions are asked throughout the course.

While there is no substitute for studying Social Studies, here are some tips you can use that will make taking a multiple choice a little bit less stressful.

Be proactive. Nothing is more effective than being prepared. Study effectively, throughout the course, and often. Don't cram at the last minute. Use flash cards to remember your terms, and review feedback on assignments, quizzes, and forums to clarify areas where you need help or may be confused.
Practice taking Social Studies multiple choice tests.

A good resource for this is Exambank.

Username: phrd.adlc

Password: online
Take your time. Skim the entire exam before you start. Note or highlight any questions that have bolded words, italics, or questions you know you have difficulty with (source analysis, graphs, quotes, etc.). Put a star or make a note on a separate sheet of paper to take your time with these questions.
Use your test in a way that works for you. If you're taking the exam online, ask for a blank piece of scrap paper to take notes about the reading(s), rephrase the question so you understand it, or note if you need to come back to a question. If you are using a print exam, highlight, make notes, or cross out answers to help you narrow down your options.
Don't leave any answers unanswered! Answer every question, even if you aren't entirely sure. But, make a note on a sheet of paper or on the exam itself to come back to the question causing you difficulty. Nothing is worse than not even giving yourself a chance to get it right.

Suggestions for Answering Multiple Choice Questions

DO...

Make sure you understand the question being asked. Review what you know, and then reword the question on paper or in your head. Highlight terms in bold and other key words to help clarify the meaning of the question.
Read the question in full, and come up with an answer before reading the options. Select the answer that is closest to your own.
In the question, pay attention to words such as most, primarily, and mainly. These terms can indicate "distracters" that may only be partially correct. You must discriminate between the alternatives and select the one that is the most correct.
Watch for terms such as as always or never. They may indicate a false option. Look for options, such as often or sometimes, because they are more likely true.
In a source-based question, read the question before you read the source so you are clear about what you are looking for.
In a source-based question, analyze the source carefully. Look for details in the text or image. Make sure to read any footnotes, descriptions, titles, or captions for images as they may help you choose the correct answer.
Consider all the alternatives carefully before choosing the answer you think is best.
If two of the possible choices seem similar, look for subtle differences, then reread the question. Instead of thinking "which option is more wrong," ask yourself "which option is more right" based on what the question is asking.

DON'T...

Don't panic! Remain calm and go through the exam from start to finish. If you find questions you aren't sure about, pick one of the options and move on, leaving yourself enough time to come back to it later.
Don't spend too much time on questions you don't know. If you are stuck on a question, eliminate the alternatives you know are incorrect. Choose from the ones that are left by rereading the question and double-checking with each answer.
Don't leave any questions blank, even if you are unsure of the correct answer.
Don't dismiss an answer because it seems too obvious or easy. If you're prepared, some questions may seem straightforward.
Don't change your answers unless you have a good reason for doing so. Do not change an answer on a hunch. Make sure you can justify the change.
Don't waste your time looking for patterns of As, Bs, Cs, and Ds. There are none. The same goes for second-guessing yourself if you have four Ds in a row. Sometimes it just happens.

About Multiple Choice Exams

There are several types of multiple choice questions. Some are designed to test your knowledge (memorization/recall), and others are designed to test your ability to evaluate and synthesize information presented. Some questions may be source-based, while others may reference content directly from the course.

Exam Terms

A question stem is the actual question being asked. Sometimes it has a question mark at the end, and sometimes it is the first part of a sentence that the correct answer completes.

A distracter is the name given to the alternatives from which you must choose the correct answer. They are called "distracters" because they are designed to do just that, distract you from choosing the right answer.

A source or selection is the required information you will need to complete a source based question. It may be a reading passage, an image, a graph, a chart, a diagram or a cartoon.

Types of Multiple Choice Questions

Understanding and Analysis

These questions test your knowledge of important events, ideas, and people.

Example:

Economist John Maynard Keynes greatly influenced the evolution of economic liberalism by advocating for
1. governments to use fiscal and monetary policies to more closely regulate the economy and thus prevent excessive fluctuations in the economic cycle
2. corporations to work cooperatively, rather than competitively to ensure the prices of goods and services could be set collectively
3. consumers to be informed about the environmental and labour practices of businesses, thus enabling to make ethical decisions when purchasing goods and services
4. labourers to use collective action to bring about the nationalization of the productive forces of the nation and thus ensure sustainable economic growth

Evaluation and Synthesis

These questions test your ability to apply and connect your knowledge and skills. You will need to select the best answer from several options by discriminating between several alternatives that have an element of truth. These questions include bold-faced terms such as most, mainly, or primarily. Often, all the alternatives are correct to some degree, but one of them will be best because of the context established by the question (and maybe even its source).

Use the following information to answer question 2.

Some scholars have adamantly argued that a number of the founding fathers of the American government in the eighteenth century were significantly influenced by their observations and knowledge of the First Nations societies to which they had been exposed as members of early colonial American society. These scholars contend the democratic structures and civil liberties of the United States were developed by these men using their learning of First Nations societies to inform their creation of the foundation documents of the United States. Other scholars dispute such claims, in some cases making the accusation that revisionist history is being created to achieve political aims. These scholars argue the constitutional foundations for the government of the United States were influenced almost exclusively by ideas that evolved in Western civilization from the time of ancient Greece through the Enlightenment period. Complicating the debate is the fact that none of the founding fathers or First Nations representatives can be questioned in an effort to discover what role First Nations societies played or did not play in the creation of the government of the United States.

If this source was being considered for use in a research project, it would be most appropriately used
1. as a summation of the arguments of one side of an important issue
2. to identify resources from which research information can be gathered
3. as a primary document that can be quoted and cited as historical evidence
4. to establish the context for which exploration of an issue can be undertaken