I am often asked about how one knows whether a multiple choice question is “good” or not. Expertise in the field always makes the final decision, but there are guidelines and statistics that can provide very helpful support in writing and refining multiple choice questions.

Nikole Hicks, PhD, RN, CNE, wrote a Fairness of Items tool (FIT) to guide writing and assessment of multiple choice questions. Read more about her development of this tool. I have her permission to share it with OSU College of Nursing faculty, so email me (Joni) to obtain a copy.

If you are somewhat familiar with statistics and need a quick guide to quiz item analysis, refer to this PDF from Anne Schoening, PhD, RN CNE.

A more detailed explanation of item analysis of quiz questions is presented in this article McGahee and Ball (2009). You can access the full text of the article through the OSU Health Sciences Library.

As always, please consult with the your instructional design experts on the CON-IT team if you need additional assistance with question writing and evaluation.