Post II-1: Questions asked in curriulum courses

 Post II-1: Questions Asked

In Curriculum Courses 
(Part 1)

by 

J.Pendaeli

Revised Jan 2012)

Summary.

We first ask why teachers ask questions in assignments, tests and examinations. They ask questions in order to find out the extent to which students have achieved the intended learning targets/objectives of instruction or exposure to study materials. We ask this question at his point because far too often teachers forget to match the questions they ask to the learning targets/objectives of their instruction. Lets look at a selection of questions and how best to handle them.

Introduction

We need to clarify two things right from the outset.

1 1. Why do teachers ask questions in class, in assignments, in tests and in examinations?

In general, they do so to find out if students know the answer to the questions they have asked. More specifically and more technically, they want to find out the level at which the student is cognitively functioning; or, to find out the level at which the student is capable of thinking in the topic/subject under consideration. This point is being made here because experience has shown, time and time again, that teachers fail to give enough thought to the purpose for which they are asking a question in class. Often, coverage of content is given more thought than coverage of mental skills. It should be the other way round; more thought should be given to thinking which is achieved through the instrumentality of content. Remember, we go to school primarily to learn to think and secondarily to learn content in different subjects or courses of study. Achievement of thinking skills is the end in view while content is the means for achieving that end. You may not fully agree with me on this but we are both entitled to our professional opinions. So, we ask questions in tests etc to find out the extent to which we have achieved the end in view,--thinking, following a period of instruction or period of exposure to and interaction with study materials/activities/programs/etc.Lets take a closure look at this point.

2.  2. We take it as self evident that in distance education, if a student cannot answer questions in assignments, tests and examinations he/she is in real trouble. The purpose of this tutorial is to give students some practical help in dealing with different types of questions in their written work.

The following are common problems noted in students’ assessment programs:

a) Reading and understanding what the examiner expects in a given question.

b) Planning answers to questions.

c) Matching the language used in the answer with the language used in the question.

d) Deciding how much to write in a given question.

e) Difficulty in how to answer certain types of questions, e g comparison questions and discussion questions.

f) Difficulty in answering high/university level questions.

g) Weakness in expressing themselves in the language of instruction

h) Poor or inadequate revision.

In this tutorial we shall focus on the following topics with the above points in mind:

·       i)  Types of questions asked in assignments, tests and exams

·      ii)   Reading, understanding and planning answers to questions.

·      iii   Theory vs practical questions? One type of question?

·         Revising a course using past test and examination questions

Topic I:      Types of questions asked and how to handle them.

Example 1:    Remember/recall type of question

·         Define the following terms:

= curriculum

= curriculum development

= curriculum balance

A definition question requires the student to remember or recall from memory the definition of the term given. In this material case the student simply gives one of the definitions of the term curriculum. However, in this example, it would be a good idea to preface your definition with an indication that there are many definitions of the term curriculum and that the definition given is one of them; otherwise you just give the definition and leave it at that.

NB:

A recall or remembering skill is the lowest thinking skill in the taxonomic hierarchy of thinking skills. Thus we can say that a recall question determines whether or not a student possesses the lowest thinking skill. There is nothing wrong with this, but unfortunately, experience suggests that far too often our examinations and tests tend to have too many questions testing for the possession of low level thinking skills at the expense of higher level thinking skills. Experienced teachers will tell you in no uncertain terms that this is a reflection of what transpired in the classroom— students were taught to think at this level at the expense of the higher thinking levels.

Example 2:    The understanding/comprehension type of question

Sometimes the examiner asks for your understanding of a term instead of your definition of it. We often, but not always ask this, when it is difficult to give a clear or precise definition, or in a case where there is an appreciable disagreement among scholars on the definition of the term. Typical examples include curriculum, assessment and validity.

For example, an examiner would ask you: What do you understand by the term “curriculum” rather than ask you to define the term “curriculum”. In this case you are advised to give a definition known to you but follow it up with some clarification, elaboration, examples or articulation, in an attempt to make your meaning of the term as known/understood by you, clearer.

The intellectual skill to understand or comprehend something is a slightly higher mental skill than the skill to remember it. According to Bloom’s taxonomic classification of human intellectual skills; you must be able to recall something before you are able to understand it; understanding something subsumes the skill to recall it; this is the idea implied in the adjective, “taxonomic.”

Example 3:    The description/essay type of question

Typically, the examiner asks:

Describe (something)………………..      Or

Write short notes on (something)…………..   Or

Write a short essay/an essay on (something)……………………..And so on.

Let’s look at these types of questions more closely.

A definition question is a typical recall type of question; a description question is another recall-type of question in the sense that it asks: What do you know about this term, for example? However:

·         A description question is a little more demanding on the student than a definition question. How? In a description question you not only need to remember something but you also need to be able to present your points or what you remember in some sensible/organized/logical order.

·         The examiner can make a description question more demanding on the student than a simple recall question by asking for an “analytical description.” This is the type of description in which the examinee must break down the term/issue/problem/process/etc under consideration into its component parts before presenting these parts in some meaningful order.

When an examiner asks a student to write short notes on something, (s)he is essentially asking a description question without indicating whether the description required is a simple one or a complex/analytical one? However, it is usually understood that the student will go beyond the recall level, and, if (s)he does so (s)he is given credit for doing it.

When an examiner asks examinees to write an essay (long or short) on something (s)he is asking several types of description questions: analytical, “synthesis type”, evaluative, reflective, imaginative and other types of descriptions. In other words, the examiner is asking questions which test the student at the higher intellectual/cognitive levels at the analysis, synthesis and evaluation levels in the Bloom’s hierarchy of cognitive skills. It should be evident from the foregoing discussion that essay questions are the best for finding out the level and extent to which your students can think after your teaching or instruction in a given topic, subject, or course of study.

Example 4: Comparison/contrast type of question

In “comparison” you are required to show similarities; in “contrast” you are required to show dissimilarities. However, quite often when a question asks for a comparison it is assumed that the candidate will also show both similarities and dissimilarities.

The following are comparison/contrast types of question:

1.  What are the differences and similarities between informal school curriculum, non-formal school curriculum and formal school curriculum?

2.  Briefly compare the formal and informal dimensions of the school curriculum

3.  Make a comparative analysis of the formal, non-formal and informal school curricula.

To answer the question the student must first decide on the criteria to be used as bases for making the comparison or the contrast; this step requires a recall of the salient features of each curriculum dimension; it is these features which are to be compared. In some topics this step can be difficult because these features have not been clearly articulated in the standard text book. Sometimes the question asks for a comparative analysis as shown in the example below.

Notice the appearance of the word ‘analysis’ in the question, which is a middle-to-high level intellectual skill

Secondly, the candidate must decide on the best format for presenting the answer— prose or table format. A comparison question is thus more intellectually demanding than a simple recall or descriptive question.

Table 1:      Comparative analysis of formal, non-formal and informal school curricula.

Factor/feature/criterion	Formal curriculum	Non-formal curriculum	Informal Curriculum
1.Typical features	a)Written b)Examinable c)Compulsory/official d)Taught and resourced	a)Partially written b)Partially examinable c)Not compulsory but recommended d)Not formally taught and inadequately resourced	a)Not at all written; assumed b)Not formally examinable c)Not compulsory Not taught and not normally resourced
2.Main topic/content areas	Sciences Arts Languages Art and craft	Games and sports	Cultural topics Community and other projects including religion.
3.
4.

The question asks “compare”. Look at the table, what is it showing, similarities, dissimilarities or both?

Example 5: Discussion type of question

This is the end of Part I of this tutorial. Part II to come later.
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