Very short answer questions: a viable alternative to multiple choice questions

BMC Medical Education

Table 3 Students’ feedback on MTF and BAQ

*Statements*	*Year-3 (n = 37)*			*Year-5 (n = 39)*			*p-value*
*Statements*	*Agree*	*Not sure*	*Disagree*	*Agree*	*Not sure*	*Disagree*	*p-value*
MTF is more efficient than VSAQ for testing knowledge	16.2	64.9	18.9	15.4	46.2	38.5	p > 0.05
BAQ is more efficient than VSAQ in testing knowledge	29.7	40.5	29.8	15.4	41.0	43.6	p > 0.05
MTFs, which I encountered had been clear and unambiguous	29.7	29.7	40.6	28.2	15.4	56.4	p > 0.05
BAQs are easy, as most distractors are easy to exclude to reach the answer	62.2	10.8	27.0	53.8	20.5	25.7	p > 0.05
	*Very often*	*Sometimes*	*Seldom*	*Very often*	*Sometimes*	*Seldom*
Did you encounter confusing items in MTF?	0.0	10.8	89.2	59.0	35.9	5.1	*p < 0.001*
Did you encounter confusing items in BAQ?	0.0	43.2	56.8	28.2	51.3	20.5	*p < 0.001*
	*Very confident*	OK	*Not confident*	*Very confident*	OK	*Not confident*
How confident have you been while answering MTF?	0.0	73.0	27.0	53.8	20.5	25.7	*p < 0.001*

ISSN: 1472-6920