Neural Alignment and Learning

Neural Alignment and Learning Usually in this blog, we write about ideas and research applicable to our roles as practitioners of corporate learning. But every so often we come across a research study with results so fascinating, we are compelled to share it, even though it is unlikely to impact how you do your day-to-day …

Which Works Better: Learning Objectives or Pre-Quizzes?

As readers of this column, and anyone who has ever attended my one of my workshops knows, I am a limited fan of learning objectives (LOs). I do think they are useful, and even essential, for two purposes: Structuring content and ensuring all important content is covered when creating learning materials.Creating fair, valid, and reliable …

Creating Valid Skills/Performance Evaluations

In our previous two posts we reviewed the problems that occur when using rating scales for evaluations. First, we discussed (The Problem with Rating Scales) the difficulties that arise when rating data, which is ordinal, is treated as if it was ratio data prior to its use in mathematical operations, such as averaging. Then, we …

Reporting Level One Evaluations

In our last blog post we pointed out the many problems with rating scales. We hope we convinced you that doing traditional math on these scales is a mathematically invalid exercise. So, the question becomes: How do we report results from Level One and Skills Evaluations? The answer is somewhat different for each. We will …

The Problem with Rating Scales

What’s wrong with rating scales? A lot. They are ubiquitous in learning and assessment, appearing primarily in two types of evaluations: Level One “smile sheets”Skills evaluations The same criticisms apply to both usages, though the proposed solutions are different. In Level One evaluations rating scales are primarily used as responses to statements about a learning …

Does Question Order Affect Exam Difficulty?

In my last blog post I made the assertion that randomizing questions does not affect exam difficulty. In other words, if Person A gets a set of exam questions in one order and Person B gets the same questions but in a different order, I asserted that both exams will be of the same difficulty. …

Randomizing vs. Subsetting Exam Questions

In discussions with clients I notice that some people inadvertently use the terms randomizing and subsetting interchangeably, though they are really quite different with entirely different consequences for exam validity. Randomization means that all test takers get the same questions but in different order. Subsetting means that each test taker gets a different subset of …

Validating Questions and Exams. How Much is Enough?

I do a lot of exam validation and one of the questions I am frequently asked is: Do we need to validate ALL of our questions and exams? The answer is: It depends on what you are using the questions and exams for. Based on many years of experience here are my best practice guidelines: …

Storytelling Works. Doesn’t It?

It is conventional wisdom in the learning community that storytelling is an effective form of training. I think we all have an intuitive sense that storytelling engages the emotions of our learners and helps them understand concepts in context. But what does the research show? If you google “storytelling and learning” you will find the …

Did Someone Actually Invent the Multiple-Choice Question?

Often, when a product or service has existed throughout our entire lifetime it is hard to imagine what life was like before its invention. I remember asking my parents what they did before there were TVs. Similarly, children growing up today will have a hard time conceiving of a world before the mobile phone or …