Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 27, 2026
12:55
Multimodal Protocol for Assessing Metacognition and Self-Regulation in Adults with Learning Difficulties
Published on: September 27, 2020
Assessment of learning with multiple-choice questions
1School of Nursing and Midwifery Studies, Trinity College Dublin, TCD Faculty of Health Sciences Building, St. James' Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.
Nurse Education in Practice
|November 29, 2008
Summary
Multiple-choice questions (MCQ) can enhance nursing education assessments by providing objective, reliable, and valid evaluations. Developing effective MCQ examinations requires significant commitment but supports student learning and timely feedback.
Area of Science:
- Nursing Education
- Educational Assessment
Background:
- Nurse educators aim to develop competent practitioners through effective learning outcomes.
- Assessment strategies must align with desired learning outcomes and require diversified approaches.
- Objective testing, such as multiple-choice questions (MCQs), offers a method to diversify assessment in nursing education.
Purpose of the Study:
- To discuss the implementation of multiple-choice questions (MCQs) as an assessment strategy in Irish undergraduate nursing education.
- To evaluate the use of MCQs within Quinn's cardinal criteria for assessment: practicality, reliability, validity, and discrimination.
Main Methods:
- Literature review and discussion of assessment principles.
- Application of Quinn's cardinal criteria to the use of MCQs in nursing education.
- Analysis of the potential benefits and challenges of implementing MCQ examinations.
Main Results:
- Well-constructed MCQ examinations can effectively assess student performance and align with educational outcomes.
- MCQs facilitate timely feedback, contributing to the self-learning process for nursing students.
- Appropriately designed MCQs are efficient, objective, and capable of discrimination.
Conclusions:
- MCQ examinations, when consistent with curriculum objectives, can be a valuable component of a comprehensive nursing student assessment strategy.
- Significant commitment is necessary to develop reliable and curriculum-aligned MCQ test items and examination formats.
- MCQs can be integrated with other assessment methods to create a robust evaluation system for nursing education.
Related Concept Videos
01:26Metacognition
Metacognition is a conscious process where individuals are aware of their cognitive and executive processes, such as planning before solving a problem or self-monitoring during reading. For instance, a writer may need help with composing a piece. The situation involves a writer who is working on a piece of writing, but while doing so, they realize that something is missing. They notice that their characters lack depth or details. This realization occurs because the writer is reflecting on their...
01:13Multiple Comparison Tests
Multiple comparison test, abbreviated as MCT, is a post hoc analysis generally performed after comparing multiple samples with one or more tests. An MCT will help identify a significantly different sample among multiple samples or a factor among multiple factors.
It would be easy to compare two samples using a significance alpha level of 0.05. In other words, there is only one sample pair to be compared. However, it would be difficult to identify a significantly different sample if the number...
It would be easy to compare two samples using a significance alpha level of 0.05. In other words, there is only one sample pair to be compared. However, it would be difficult to identify a significantly different sample if the number...
01:25Multiple Regression
Multiple regression assesses a linear relationship between one response or dependent variable and two or more independent variables. It has many practical applications.
Farmers can use multiple regression to determine the crop yield based on more than one factor, such as water availability, fertilizer, soil properties, etc. Here, the crop yield is the response or dependent variable as it depends on the other independent variables. The analysis requires the construction of a scatter plot...
Farmers can use multiple regression to determine the crop yield based on more than one factor, such as water availability, fertilizer, soil properties, etc. Here, the crop yield is the response or dependent variable as it depends on the other independent variables. The analysis requires the construction of a scatter plot...
01:20Nursing Process for Patient and Caregiver Teaching III: Evaluation and Documentation
Evaluation of the teaching process enables the nurse to determine if the patient's learning needs were met and if training was effective. If the expected outcomes are not met, the care plan is revised, and additional education or reinforcement is provided. Nurses can ask questions after the session or obtain feedback to assess the patient's understanding of the topic.
Nurses can use several methods to evaluate patient outcomes. For example, oral questions can assess cognitive learning, patient...
Nurses can use several methods to evaluate patient outcomes. For example, oral questions can assess cognitive learning, patient...
02:16Surveys
Often, psychologists develop surveys as a means of gathering data. Surveys are lists of questions to be answered by research participants, and can be delivered as paper-and-pencil questionnaires, administered electronically, or conducted verbally. Generally, the survey itself can be completed in a short time, and the ease of administering a survey makes it easy to collect data from a large number of people.
01:24Nursing Process for Patient and Caregiver Teaching I: Assessment and Diagnosis
The nursing process provides a clinical decision-making framework for patients and families to establish and implement a personalized care plan. Since part of the nurse's duties is to teach patients, the steps of the nursing process are the most effective way to approach instruction. The nursing process and the teaching-learning process are inextricably linked.
It is critical to determine the patient's learning needs during the assessment. Determination of learning needs compounds data from the...
It is critical to determine the patient's learning needs during the assessment. Determination of learning needs compounds data from the...