Students are asked to give brief answers to questions. This measures students analysis, application of knowledge, problem-solving abilities and evaluative skills.
Advantages & Challenges
Advantages
Challenges
Advantages
SAQ’s can assess students’ comprehension of specific concepts, theories, or facts. They require students to demonstrate their understanding by providing concise and focused responses.
They can reveal students’ ability to explain, reason, create, analyse, synthesise and evaluate.
SAQ’s are relatively quick to carry out and grade compared to essay or long-answer questions.
SAQ’s allow for flexibility in assessing different levels of cognitive skills, from recalling information to applying concepts or analysing data. They can be tailored to target specific learning objectives.
This form of assessment can be done in-person or online via a VLE or software. It can also be used as an in class learning activity using software’s such as Vevox.
Challenges
SAQ’s may not allow students to fully articulate complex ideas or demonstrate deep understanding of the topic area.
Assessing SAQ’s can be subjective, as evaluators may interpret the adequacy of responses differently. Grading criteria/rubric must be clearly defined to minimize subjectivity, but some degree of interpretation may still exist.
SAQ’s can limit the range of content that can be assessed. However, they can be used as part of a larger assessments or to assess specific topic areas.
Tips for Use
Identify the mode by which this assessment will be carried out (in-person or online) and what you are looking to assess by using SAQ’s.
Consider developing a question bank (particularly if you are doing this online), this would allow for you to randomise questions and/or give students different questions.
