Deze simpele truc maakt meerkeuzevragen effectiever voor retrieval practice

Onlangs verscheen in het tijdschrift Journal of Educational Psychology een studie van collega Gesa van den Broek. Deze studie laat zien hoe meerkeuzevragen effectiever gemaakt kunnen worden voor retrieval practice. In een reeks experimenten werd onderzocht of meerkeuzevragen effectiever worden voor retrieval practice als er een pauze van vier seconden zit tussen tussen het moment dat de meerkeuzevraag in beeld verschijnt en het moment dat de antwoordopties in beeld verschijnen. De auteurs onderzochten de effecten van deze stapsgewijze meerkeuzevragen bij het leren van de vocabulaire van een vreemde taal. De experimenten in deze studie laten zien dat deze stapsgewijze meerkeuzevragen leerlingen helpen effectiever vocabulaire te leren dan “gewone” meerkeuzevragen. De verklaring hiervoor is dat leerlingen de pauze tussen het verschijnen van de vraag en de antwoordopties kunnen gebruiken om actief het antwoord uit hun geheugen op te halen. De auteurs suggereren dat het gebruiken van stapsgewijze meerkeuzevragen een gemakkelijk in te zetten verbetering zijn voor bijvoorbeeld online oefenprogramma’s. Extra tof aan deze studie is dat studenten van onze opleidingen mee hebben gewerkt aan de dataverzameling en de publicatie.

Multiple-choice questions (MCQs) are popular in vocabulary software because they can be scored automatically and are compatible with many input devices (e.g., touchscreens). Answering MCQs is beneficial for learning, especially when learners retrieve knowledge from memory to evaluate plausible answer alternatives. However, such retrieval may not always occur (e.g., with easy-to-guess answers). Therefore, we tested whether we could optimize MCQs for retrieval practice with a stepwise display, which presents the question before the answer options. This creates an opportunity for cued recall. In an experimental classroom study (N = 75) and three online experiments with adult participants (N = 45, N = 77, and N = 79), participants practiced vocabulary with either standard MCQs or stepwise MCQs: In standard MCQs, a word was presented with three possible translations; in stepwise MCQs, it was shown for 4 s before the translations appeared. In three of the four experiments (Experiments 1, 3a, and 3b), stepwise MCQs enhanced retention significantly compared to standard MCQs, measured by a posttest several days after practice. Benefits of stepwise MCQs were found for different translation directions (Experiments 1 and 3) and both with easy-to-guess answers (noncompetitive answer options, Experiment 1) and hard-to-guess answers (competitive answer options, Experiment 3). However, the effect was most robust for questions with noncompetitive answer options (Experiments 1, 3a, and 3b) and for learners who reported trying to retrieve the answer from memory during the stepwise display (Experiments 1 and 3). Moreover, retention was generally enhanced by competitive, hard-to-guess answer options (Experiments 3a and 3b). Overall, a stepwise display is a promising and easy-to-implement manipulation to optimize MCQs for retrieval practice. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Impact Statement

Educational Impact and Implications Statement: We aimed to optimize multiple-choice exercises for vocabulary learning, and tested stepwise multiple-choice questions (MCQs), in which the question was presented for four seconds before the answer options became visible. With such a stepwise display, learners can try to recall the answer from memory before being prompted by answer options. In both children and adults, stepwise MCQs led to better vocabulary learning than standard questions, which immediately showed the answer options. Stepwise MCQs are an easy-to-implement improvement of computerized vocabulary exercises and might also improve learning of other materials and in other settings (e.g., classroom quizzes, mobile apps). Vocabulary learning was also better when answer options prevented learners from guessing the correct response and for those learners who tried to recall the answer from memory before seeing the answer options. Multiple-choice exercises should be carefully designed to optimize learning.