ERA Short Answer Questions 16-12-14

By
Dr Razia Khatoon
Dr Noor Jahan
1
5th Basic Course Workshop in Medical Education Technologies 12/9/2014
What are Short Answer Questions (SAQs)?
Structure of SAQs.
Advantages of SAQs.
Disadvantages of SAQs.
How to design good SAQs.
Marking rubrics of SAQs.
5th Basic Course Workshop in

Medical Education Technologies 12/9/2014 2
Short-answer questions (SAQs) are open-
ended questions that require students to
create an answer, rather than choose from a
selection of responses.
Its a practical alternative to the long essay

question.
They are commonly used in examinations to

assess the basic knowledge and
understanding of a topic before more in-
depth assessment questions are asked.

Short Answer Questions do not have a
generic structure.
Questions may require answers such as

complete the sentence, supply the missing
word, short descriptive or qualitative
answers, diagrams with explanations etc.

For Example:-
One may simply ask the student to write in a
missing word or phrase: The current Prime
Minister of India is _____? (1 mark).
Or one may ask for brief listing: List the

three types of plastic surgery procedures (1
mark each).
Or for a one sentence answer: What is the

basic principle of Grams staining ? (2 marks)

Hence, SAQs tend to test the lower levels of
the cognitive domain and assesses mainly
knowledge, comprehension, and some
application.
They can also incorporate clinical scenarios.

This type of question assesses higher-level
thinking, but is less reliable because a
teacher must interpret the responses.
They are most effective when there can be no

disagreement about acceptable answers.

SAQs are relatively easy to set compared to
many assessment methods.
They are relatively fast to mark and can be

marked by different assessors, as long as the
questions are set in such a way that all
alternative answers can be considered by the
assessors.
Better content coverage as compared to long
essay question.
Improved objectivity as the marking scheme

can be structured and predetermined.
Higher chance for assessment of clinical

reasoning.

They can be used as part of a formative and
summative assessment, as the structure of
SAQs are very similar to examination
questions, students are more familiar with
the practice and feel less anxious.
Unlike MCQs, there is no guessing on

answers, students must supply an answer.

SAQs are only suitable for questions that can
be answered with short responses.
There can be difficulties in grading if the

question is not worded carefully.
As they are typically used for assessing

knowledge only, students may often
memorize SAQs with rote learning.

If assessors wish to use SAQs to assess
deeper learning, careful attention (and many
practices) on appropriate questions are
required.
Also, if a large amount of knowledge needs to

be tested, it is more efficient to use MCQs.

Accuracy of assessment may be influenced by
handwriting/spelling skills.
There can be time management issues as

SAQs are not as easy to complete or score as
MCQ or true-false questions.

1) Design short answer items which are
appropriate assessment of the learning
objective.
2) Make sure the content of the SAQs measures

knowledge appropriate to the desired
learning goal.

3) Make the questions clear and easy to
understand with wordings and language
appropriate to the student population.
4) Set the questions explicitly and precisely

with clear instructions to test the desired
knowledge and get the specific response.

5) Ensure that the item clearly specifies how
the question should be answered.
e.g.
Student should answer it briefly and
concisely using a single word or short
phrase?
Is bullet point format acceptable, or does it
have to be an essay format?
Is the question given a specific number of
blanks for students to answer?

Example:
Family planning methods most appropriate
for adolescents are:
a._______________,
b. _______________,
c._______________.
Questions that involve possible multiple

responses demands more from students and
addresses broader content.

6) Instructions and teachers expectations about
filling in blanks should be made clear.
Indicate whether each blank of equal length

represents one word or several words, whether
long blanks require sentences or phrases, and
whether synonymous terms are accepted.
E.g:- Neurocysticercosis is caused by _____.

7) Consider whether the positioning of the item
blank promote efficient scoring.
Word completion or filling questions (so that

missing information is at or near the end of
the sentence) makes reading and responding
easier.
Example:
Poor: In the year ______ , Canada turned 100
years old.
Better: Canada turned 100 years old in the
year _____ .
8) When an answer is to be expressed in
numerical units, the unit should be stated.
Example
Poor: If a room measures 7 metres by 4

metres, the perimeter is _____ .
Better: If a room measures 7 metres by 4

metres, the perimeter is _____ metres (or
m).

9) Do not use too many blanks in completion
items. The emphasis should be on knowledge
and comprehension, not mind reading!
Example
In the year _____ , Prime Minister _________

signed the __________ , which led to a
___________ which was __________ .

10) Direct questions are better than those
which require completing the sentences.
Example:
Poor: Wellington defeated Napoleon in _____ ?
Better: In what battle fought in 1815 did

Wellington defeat Napoleon?
OR
In what year did Wellington defeat
Napoleon at Waterloo?

11) Prepare a structured marking sheet.
12) Make the marking sheet easy to

understand so that other teachers can use it
if necessary.
13) Ensure there is only one clearly correct

answer in each question.
14) Clearly state if a point will be given for

each correct response or if the student must
have all the correct responses to obtain one
point.
15) In case a question involves possible
multiple responses then, list all of the
acceptable responses, and be prepared to
consider other answers which you may not
have predicted, but they may be equally
acceptable.
16) Allocate marks or partial-marks for

acceptable answer(s).

Simple Short Answer Questions Rubric
4 3 2 1 0 Total
Defining
Answers Answer 75% of all 50% of all 25% of all 0% of all
/Points: all the the the the
points points points points points
answered answered answered answered

Question: What are two characteristics of
mammals? Give two examples.
Answer: Two characteristics of mammals are

they are warm-blooded (1 point) and give
birth to their young(2 points). Two examples
of mammals are humans (3 points) and bears
(4 points).

In another scenario :
If there are 6 possible arguments to a

question, and the student scores all 6
arguments, he will get full mark in that
question. If he scores only 4 arguments, he
will get a relative mark.
Example : Enumerate 3 screening tests and 3

confirmatory tests for diagnosing HIV
infection. (1 mark each; total 6 marks)

You may also decide to be lenient, if there are
6 arguments in a question, and the student
scores any 4 out of 6, he will get full mark.
Example : Enlist laboratory tests to diagnose

enteric fever. (6 marks)
This would be an assessor decision, however,

this decision must be clear and consistent.

Prepare short answer question on following
topics:
Tuberculosis Group A.
Malaria Group B.
Hepatitis B Group C.
Cholera Group D.


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How to design good SAQs.

Marking rubrics of SAQs.

5th Basic Course Workshop in

Its a practical alternative to the long essay

They are commonly used in examinations to

5th Basic Course Workshop in

Questions may require answers such as

5th Basic Course Workshop in

Or one may ask for brief listing: List the

Or for a one sentence answer: What is the

5th Basic Course Workshop in

They can also incorporate clinical scenarios.

They are most effective when there can be no

5th Basic Course Workshop in

They are relatively fast to mark and can be

Improved objectivity as the marking scheme

Higher chance for assessment of clinical

5th Basic Course Workshop in

Unlike MCQs, there is no guessing on

5th Basic Course Workshop in

There can be difficulties in grading if the

As they are typically used for assessing

5th Basic Course Workshop in

Also, if a large amount of knowledge needs to

5th Basic Course Workshop in

There can be time management issues as

5th Basic Course Workshop in

2) Make sure the content of the SAQs measures

5th Basic Course Workshop in

4) Set the questions explicitly and precisely

5th Basic Course Workshop in

5th Basic Course Workshop in

Questions that involve possible multiple

5th Basic Course Workshop in

Indicate whether each blank of equal length

E.g:- Neurocysticercosis is caused by _____.

5th Basic Course Workshop in

Word completion or filling questions (so that

Poor: If a room measures 7 metres by 4

Better: If a room measures 7 metres by 4

5th Basic Course Workshop in

In the year _____ , Prime Minister _________

5th Basic Course Workshop in

Poor: Wellington defeated Napoleon in _____ ?

Better: In what battle fought in 1815 did

5th Basic Course Workshop in

12) Make the marking sheet easy to

13) Ensure there is only one clearly correct

14) Clearly state if a point will be given for

16) Allocate marks or partial-marks for

5th Basic Course Workshop in

5th Basic Course Workshop in

Answer: Two characteristics of mammals are

5th Basic Course Workshop in

If there are 6 possible arguments to a

Example : Enumerate 3 screening tests and 3

5th Basic Course Workshop in

Example : Enlist laboratory tests to diagnose

This would be an assessor decision, however,

5th Basic Course Workshop in

5th Basic Course Workshop in

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In the year _ , Prime Minister _____