PROCEEDINGS OF THE 18TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON RESEARCH IN UNDERGRADUATE MATHEMATICS EDUCATION
2015
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Extending multiple choice format to document student thinking
Page: 1079
The purpose of this preliminary report is to introduce a new type of assessment instrument to the mathematics education research community and to reflect with our colleagues about the possible affordances and constraints of this instrument. The questions that comprise the instrument consist of a multiple choice (MC) stem followed by a series of options from which students choose explanations (E) that support their multiple choice response. We call this style of question multiple-choice with explanation (MCE). Our decision to use MCE style questions is informed by cutting edge work in physics education research (Wilcox & Pollock, 2013) and introduces an innovative idea for assessing student thinking in mathematics. Our work is part of a larger project in linear algebra; as such, the mathematical context of the assessment instrument is linear algebra. The format of the questions, however, could be used for other subject matter as well.