Improving Learning Outcomes through Well Designed MCQ Tests

The rapid growth in the number of students pursuing engineering degrees worldwide has resulted in an overburdening of teachers at many universities and engineering colleges. This situation makes it challenging for them to maintain high standards of assessments and provide personalized feedback to students. In large classes, many teachers use MCQ-based examinations for assessments, but these exams suffer from high incidences of copying and guesswork by students. In addition, large class sizes also make it difficult for the teacher to provide effective personalised feedback to each student. To address both these issues, we have developed a specialized protocol for conducting online MCQ-based examinations. We tested this protocol in a few courses at two universities, and our findings suggest that its use can significantly reduce incidences of copying and guesswork in MCQ-based assessments, and also help in providing personalized feedback to each student for further improvement.