Objective tests, learning to learn and learining styles

Abstract

This paper describes the 5 year adjustment process followed in one university when formative objective test (OT)-based assessment was introduced into a second level course in order to support the student-centred use of a proprietary CAL package. It then compares the performance and background characteristics of students on two of those years. It finds the OTs identify a different ranking among the students compared to traditional essay-based assessment, that learning styles have an impact upon performance on OTs, finds evidence to suggest that students with low levels of learning styles may be disadvantaged when faced with a need to change their approach to learning and concludes that any explanatory study of student performance should includelearning styles as an independent variable.

Keywords:

• assessment
• formative assessment
• objective test
• learning styles