Matching Questions

Matching questions can be written, administered, and scored quickly. Although they are frequently used to assess learning of a variety of topics (e.g., events, dates, persons, etc.), it is difficult to assess higher-order learning (Worthen et al., 1999). Instructors should not use matching questions as the only way to assess student learning.

The following are some guidelines to write good matching questions (Worthen et al., 1999).

• Provide a clear instruction to complete the matching exercises. This includes: what the left-column list is, what the right-column list is, what direction to match (from left to right or from right to left), how to mark answers (write a letter or drag and drop), and the number of times each option can be used.
• Questions (left-column) should be relatively homogeneous (e.g., all about communication tools, trees, birds) to reduce chances of guessing.
• Make all options plausible.
• Use no more than ten questions in a matching exercise.
• Place all questions, options, and direction on the same page
• Include more options than questions (Kubiszyn & Borich, 2003).
• Use numbers to identify questions and use letters for options (Kubiszyn & Borich, 2003), or vice versa.

Practice

Are the following matching questions good or poor and why? (Flashcard)

 

Reference

• Kubiszyn, T., & Borich, G. (2003). Educational testing and measurement: Classroom application and practice (7th ed.). New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.
• Worthen, B. R., White, K. R., Fan, X., & Sudweeks, R. R. (1999). Measurement and assessment in schools (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Addison Wesley Longman.