Constructing Multiple

Choice Test
- A generalization of the true-false test, the multiple-choice
type of test offers the student with more than two (2) options
per item to choose from. Each item in a multiple-choice test
consists of two parts: (a) the stem, and (b) the options. In the
set of options, there is a “correct” or “best” option while all
the others are considered “distracters”.
Guidelines in constructing Multiple Choice Items

Rule 1: Do not use unfamiliar words, terms and phrases. 

The ability of the item to discriminate or its level of difficulty should stem
from the subject matter rather than from the wording of the question.

Example: What would be the system reliability of a computer system whose

A student completely unfamiliar with the terms “slave” and “peripherals” may
not be able to answer correctly even if he knew the subject matter of reliability.
Rule 2: Do not use modifiers that are vague and whose meanings can differ from one person
to the next such as: much, often, usually, etc.

Example: Much of the process of photosynthesis takes place in the:

The qualifier “much” is vague and could have been replaced by more specific qualifiers like:”
90% of the photosynthetic process” or some similar phrase that would be more precise.

Rule 3: Avoid complex or awkward word arrangements. Also, avoid use of negatives in the stem
as this may add unnecessary comprehension difficulties.

Example:
(Poor) As President of the Republic of the Philippines, Corazon Cojuangco Aquino would stand next
to which President of the Philippine Republic subsequent to the 1986 EDSA Revolution?

(Better) Who was the President of the Philippines after Corazon C. Aquino?

Example:
(Poor) Which of the following will not cause inflation in the Philippine economy?
(Better) Which of the following will cause inflation in the Philippine economy?

(Poor) What does the statement “Development patterns acquired during the formative years are
NOT Unchangeable” imply?
A.
B.
C.
D.
(Better) What does the statement “Development patterns acquired during the formative years are
changeable” imply?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Rule 5: Each item stem should be as short as possible; otherwise you risk testing more
for reading and comprehension skills.

Rule 6: Distracters should be equally plausible and attractive.

Example: The short story: May Day’s Eve, was written by which Filipino author?
a. Jose Garcia Villa
b. Nick Joaquin
c. Genoveva Edrosa Matute
d. Robert Frost
e. Edgar Allan Poe

If distracters had all been Filipino authors, the value of the item would be greatly increased.

Rule 7: All multiple choice options should be grammatically consistent with the stem.
Rule 8: The length, explicitness, or degree of technicality of alternatives should
not be the determinants of the correctness of the answer. The following is an
example of this rule:

Example: If the three angles of two triangles are congruent, then the triangles are:
a. congruent whenever one of the sides of the triangles are congruent
b. similar
c. equiangular and therefore, must also be congruent
d. equilateral if they are equiangular

The correct choice, “b,” may be obvious from its length and explicitness alone.

Rule 9: Avoid stems that reveal the answer to another item.

Example: What causes ice to transform from solid state to liquid state’?
a. Change in temperature
b. Changes in pressure
c. Change in the chemical composition
d. Change in heat levels

The options a and d are essentially the same.

Rule 11: Avoid presenting sequenced items in the same order as in the text.

Rule 12: Avoid use of assumed qualifiers that many examinees may not be
aware of.
Rule 13: Avoid use of unnecessary words or phrases, which are not relevant to the
problem at hand (unless such discriminating ability is the primary intent of the
evaluation). The items value is particularly damaged if the unnecessary material is
designed to distract or mislead. Such items test the student’s reading
comprehension rather than knowledge of the subject matter.

Example: The side opposite the thirty degree angle in a right triangle is equal to half
the length of the hypotenuse. If the sine of a 30-degree is 0.5 and its hypotenuse is 5,
what is the length of the side opposite the 30-degree angle?

a. 2.5
b. 3.5
c. 5.5
d. 1.5

The sine of a 30-degree angle is really quite unnecessary since the first sentence
already gives the method for finding the length of the side opposite the thirty-degree
angle.
Rule 14:  Avoid use of non-relevant sources of difficulty such as requiring a complex
calculation when only knowledge of a principle is being tested.

Note in the previous example, knowledge of the sine of the 30-degree angle would have led
some students to use the sine formula for calculation even if a simpler approach would have
sufficed.

Rule 15: Avoid extreme specificity requirements in responses.

Rule 16: Include as much of the item as possible in the stem. 

This allows for less repetition and shorter choice options.

Rule 17: Use the “None of the above” option only when the keyed answer is
totally correct. 

When choice of the “best” response is intended, “none of the above” is not
appropriate, since the implication has already been made that the correct
response may be partially inaccurate.
Rule 18: Note that the use of “all of the above” may allow credit for partial
knowledge. In a multiple option item, (allowing only one option choice) if a
student only knew that two (2) options were correct, he could then deduce the
correctness of “all of the above”. This assumes you are allowed only one
correct choice.

Rule 19: Having compound response choices may purposefully increase difficulty
of an item.

Rule 20: The difficulty of a multiple choice item may be controlled by varying the
homogeneity or degree of similarity of responses. The more homogeneous, the
more difficult the item.
Example:
(Less Homogeneous) Thailand is located in:
a. Southeast Asia
b. Eastern Europe
c. South America
d. East Africa
e. Central America 
(More Homogeneous) Thailand is located next to:
a. Laos and Kampuchea
b. India and China
c. China and Malaya
d. Laos and China
e. India and Malaya