Formulating exam questions

Attention! Generative AI is likely to make this task format much less effective.

Letting students think up their own test or exam questions on the subject matter, and possibly answer them, helps them to process the material more deeply. It activates and motivates students to be more involved in their learning process. By letting them think up the questions themselves, you can stimulate skills such as critical thinking, problem-solving and creativity. As a teacher, this gives you more insight into the students' knowledge and understanding, and you can give them targeted feedback. In addition, as a teacher, you may get new test questions.

There are several ways you can let your students come up with their own test questions and assess this:

• Peer feedback or assessment - have students assess each other's test questions and provide feedback. For example, in pairs, groups or with the whole group together.
• Self assessment - have students test themselves by coming up with and answering questions. For example, they can compare their answers with the teacher's answers.
• Group work - have students work in groups to think up and possibly answer test questions, or have groups answer another group's questions.
• Online tools - let students use online tools to create their own test questions and share them with the whole group. For example, Mentimeter, Quizlet or PeerWise.
• Individual - have students work individually to come up with test questions. You can use these questions again later to evaluate students' knowledge.

Want to know more?

• Student creates own exam question - Utrecht University

See also: Students design their own formative test questions.

See also: PeerWise