Unlike the traditional multiple-choice (MC) format, the discrete-option multiple-choice (DOMC) format does not necessarily reveal all answer options to an examinee. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the reduced exposure of item content affects test security. We conducted an experiment in which participants were allowed to view…

The New York State Education Department (NYSED) has a partnership with NWEA for the development of the 2024 Grades 3-8 English Language Arts Tests. Teachers from across the State work with NYSED in a variety of activities to ensure the validity and reliability of the New York State Testing Program (NYSTP). The 2024 Grades 6 and 7 English Language…

It has long been debated whether the Open-Book-Open-Web exam was useful and efficient as the traditional closed book exams. Some scholars and practitioners have doubted the efficiency and the possibility of cheating in the OBOW as it is not directly monitored. This paper tends to investigate the effectiveness of OBOW exams by comparing them with…

A technique is described for reducing the incidence of cheating on multiple choice exams. One form of the test is used and each item is assigned multiple numbers. Depending upon the instructions given to the class, some students will use the first of each pair of numbers to determine where to place their responses on a separate answer sheet, while…

Using an index of answer copying developed by Houston, it was found that rearranged questions alone did not reduce answer copying, whereas rearrangement of both questions and answers effectively eliminated detectable cheating. (Author)

College undergraduates (n=38) were administered identical multiple choice tests with randomly presented answer-sheets numbered either vertically or horizontally. Of the originally-scheduled four tests during the semester, tests one and three were retested with entirely different test questions, also multiple choice, resulting in scores from tests,…

A solution to reduce the likelihood of one examinee copying another's answers on large scale tests that require all examinees to answer the same set of questions is to use multiple test forms that differ in terms of item ordering. This study was conducted to determine whether varying the sequence in which blocks of items were presented to…

When multiple-choice answer sheets are printed in the latent-image format, students may be required to select alternatives until they identify the correct one. This provides immediate feedback and permits use of more complicated test formats, but it also introduces novel ways to cheat and may engender substantial anxiety in test-takers unless…

Investigates the effects on multiple choice test performance of altering the order and placement of questions and responses. Shows that changing the response pattern appears to alter significantly the apparent degree of difficulty. Response patterns become more dissimilar under certain types of response alterations. (LS)