Asymmetry in student achievement on multiple-choice and constructed-response items in reversible mathematics processes

By C. Sangwin, Ian Jones. 2017

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In this paper we report the results of an experiment designed to test the hypothesis that when faced with a question involving the inverse direction of a reversible mathematical process, students solve a multiple-choice version by verifying the answers presented to them by the direct method, not by undertaking the actual inverse calculation. Participants responded to an online test containing equivalent multiple-choice and constructed-response items in two reversible algebraic techniques: factor/expand and solve/verify. The findings supported this hypothesis: Overall scores were higher in the multiple-choice condition compared to the constructed-response condition, but this advantage was significantly greater for items concerning the inverse direction of reversible processes compared to those involving direct processes.

Subfields: Computer Science Applications, Education, Statistics and Probability

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/c7d9150567a9f250b2ee2745eec3fc4ebcc70f73