Immediate Feedback Assessment Technique

There’s a new twist in multiple choice quizzing that teaches while testing, giving students immediate feedback on whether they’ve gotten the answer right. It’s called the Immediate Feedback Assessment Technique (IF-AT). Using scratch-off answer sheets, similar in action to the common scratch-off lottery tickets, students are provided with immediate results to their answers.

Senior lecturer in Operations and Management Sciences and PACE Director, Dr. Steven Huchendorf, recently used this technique with his OMS 3001: Introduction to Operations Management students. While there are multiple ways one can use multiple choice tests, Dr. Huchendorf has employed the IF-AT quiz to assess students' entry knowledge in a new topic area.

Steve has collected and documented a series of active learning strategies for the advancement of classroom excellence. Dubbed ALT-CATs, active learning techniques and classroom assessment techniques, the IF-AT answer sheets provide one more tool in his repertoire of classroom activities.

“I don’t have to go through the base material, terms and definitions, but rather concentrate on activities and simulations that apply their knowledge”

Classroom Implementation

The content of the quiz was pulled from the text readings that are assigned for an upcoming class session. At this point, no lecture had been given on the content. Students were given approximately 8 minutes to take the quiz individually and derive their own answers. They recorded their responses on the question sheet, as you would a traditional paper-based quiz.

Following that, the students assembled into small groups; Steve refers to them as ALT-CAT teams. The teams, given approximately 12 minutes, then review the questions and discuss their individual answers with the task of coming to consensus on the correct answer. It is then recorded (and immediately assessed) on the IF-AT scratch-off answer sheets.

Steve created a short 10 question multiple choice quiz, with four response options to each question. Points are assigned per the number of attempts it takes to answer correctly.

Tiered scoring permits the allocation of partial credit. The IF-AT uses a multiple-choice answer sheet with a thin opaque film covering the answer options. Instead of using a pencil to fill in a circle, teams scratch off their answers as if they were scratching a lottery ticket. The team scratches off the coating of the rectangle corresponding with the first-choice answer. If the answer is correct, a star appears somewhere within the rectangle.

The student’s learning is immediately re-enforced, and the team receives full credit for the answer. If incorrect, the team must re-read the question and remaining answer options and scratch off a second or even third choice until the correct answer is identified. Teams will earn partial credit for multiple attempts and learn the correct response for each question while taking the test.  For example:

Correct answer on:
 - 1^st  try =  4 points
 - 2^nd  try = 2 points
 - 3^rd  try = 1 point
 - 4^th  try = 0 points

Effect on Learning

 The team approach to using the IF-AT sheets, allows students to engage each other in discussion as they work to find the correct answer.

From a pedagogical perspective, the IF-AT has several advantages over standard multiple-choice testing procedures.

• it provides immediate rather than delayed feedback for the test items.
• the feedback allows students to learn the correct answer to every item before they leave the test situation.
• students can still earn points even if their first attempt is not correct. They are rewarded for their proximate knowledge of the correct answer. IF-AT provides students with a real-time opportunity to demonstrate that they have learned from their mistakes.
• students can calculate their test marks, given thru immediate feedback on their overall performance before leaving the test situation.

The creator of the IF-AT is Dr. Michael Epstein, Professor of Psychology at Rider University. Epstein demonstrates that the IF-AT increases retention of knowledge. One theory is that once students have seen the correct response, they will understand why it is correct and, thereby, learn from the question.

Students who use traditional multiple-choice test forms, Scantrons especially, leave the test without knowing the correct answers. What’s more, psychologists know that the last answer a test-taker gives is most likely to be repeated - even if it’s wrong. That means students exit tests remembering incorrect information, answers they gave without corrective feedback.

Through a show of hands, students in Dr. Huchendorf’s course thought it was a valuable tool and are interested in using it again.

If you’re interested in using the IF-AT answer sheets, contact the Office of Learning Excellence. We have an inventory of the blank sheets and a guide for classroom integration.