Short Answer Questions

Characteristics of Short Answer Questions

Short answer questions generally ask for brief, text-based responses and may also be referred to as fill-in-the-blank; or completion questions.
Variations of the short answer question may request a list of terms or rules in which the order is not important, or may require a numerical or formula response.

Here is some general information about short answer questions:

• Does not measure interpretation.
• Can be used to check for preciseness such as correct spelling (good when using computer grading), proper or specific names of things, especially factual knowledge, and proper creation of formulas.
• Requires specific, definite, exact information.
• Can be used to discriminate whether errors can be detected in a diagram, for example.

Advantages of Short Answer Questions

• Easy to write.
• Reduces possibility of guessing.
• Can have a lengthy stem such as a paragraph. (Caution: You generally should not expect an exact answer character-by-character.)
• May be easy to score if the required answer is short.

Disadvantages of Short Answer Questions

• It can take time to create items with complex formulas.
• Can be turned into a measure of memorization ability.
• Grading can be subjective.
• Correct responses may appear incorrect due to minor errors such as misspellings, order of words, etc.
• Difficult to machine score. Much work is being conducted in this area, but it is still in early stages of development.

Average Response Time

1 - 2 minutes

Constructing Short Answer Questions

Short Answer Content

• Design for recall of specific names, facts, and basic knowledge.
• Focus the question so there a limited number of possible correct responses (or only one) in order to discriminate achievement.
• Make sure that question provides enough information so that students know what constitutes a correct response. For example, if you discussed four books written by a certain author and you want students to name them, be specific on how many constitute a correct answer (i.e., name two of four, or name any three, etc.).

Short Answer Protocol

• Make sure that the answer will require only a few words.
• If a list is expected, limit the number of items to be listed to 6 or so.
• Write the stem in your own words; that is, don’t use wording directly from a text or reading assignments.
• Make the stem complete enough so that the meaning is clear.
• When the stem is an incomplete statement, place the “blank” for the correct choice at the end of the statement.
• When a negative item is used, emphasize the negative word or phrase, that is, underline, capitalize, or italicize, for example, “DOES NOT.”
• Avoid clues to the correct answer such as “a” or “an” as the last word of the stem or plural verbs that match plural choices.

Good Example of a Short Answer Question

In our class discussion on regression, what two terms were used interchangeably with the term “independent variable”?

Answer: predictor variable and explanatory variable

Bad Example of a Short Answer Question

What does the acronym ENIAC mean?

Answer: Electronic Numerical Integrator and Calculator

Main Errors

1. Perhaps knowledge of the exact words is not important.
2. It's not wise to expect an exact response when "numerical" could be remembered as "numeric" and "calculator" could be remembered as "calculation," etc.

Identifying Flawed Short Answer Items

For each item or pair of items, decide what is wrong or which item is better and why. See the answers at the bottom of the page.

1A. In ten words or less, what is the topic of this course?

1B. What is the title of your textbook?

Which is the better question? Why is it better?

(Please note that this type of question must be manually graded.)

Answer

1A is better. 1A is reasonable and expected; 1B is too exact.

2A. What is the name of the cloud formation that can form as high as 50,000 feet?

2B. List two or more clouds that form below 6,000 feet.

Which is the better question? Why is it better?

Answer

2B is better. 2A asks for a single answer. 2B could include three cloud formations that form below 6,000 feet.

3A. In our discussion of classical conditioning, what two “responses” form the previous neutral stimulus?

3B. What type of conditioning is associated with conditioned response?

Which is the better question? Why is it better?

Answer

3A is better. 3B asks the person to recall only the term classical conditioning. 3B asks the reader to recall the relationship between conditioned response and learned response to the previously neutral stimuli in order to form classical conditioning.

4A. Thinking about electrical wiring, what two terms are used interchangeably to describe an ungrounded conductor?

4B. What does the acronym NFPA stand for?

Which is the better question? Why is it better?

Answer

4A is better. 4B requires an exact response, “National Fire Protection Association.” 4A requires the reader to connect the interchangeable terms “hot” and “live wire” with the term undergrounded conductor.