The following two-question test is something I've found helpful for teaching recruits and EMT students how to do better on those multiple-choice certification tests we all love hate so much.
Question 1
The sun is:
A) A planet
B) A moon
C) A star
D) A celestial body that gives off light and heat
Question 2
When playing American football, the most important equipment item is:
A) the helmet
B) the jersey
C) the kicking shoe
D) the team bus
You guys have fun with the thought process, and post your answers.
Once we get some answers up, I'll give the correct answers and explain the rationale.
If you get them both correct, you probably already have good multiple choice test scores.
Some of your posts are pretty insightful, and one of the posters has picked up on a key point for Question 1. Keep this up - there is some good discussion here.
The answers and some teaching points have been posted, but there is still some good discussion going on, particularly about some of the context of Question 2. If you have additional comments or if you disagree with my points, feel free to keep posting.
Wade, actually, you're right. Helmets are not unique to American football.
Further, the question was not what is "unique" to American football, but what was the most important item.
Depending upon the missing context, any of the four answers could have been correct.
Further, I didn't say that I'm an expert at writing test questions, either. :-)
Ben, good stuff! Every once in awhile I give a 10 question multiple choice quiz to our members, I will implement this on the next one! Thanks for the brain work, if you get the time do another one on the safe-ish line.
Canadians play what is essentially American football - just not as well. The helmet is unique to American football in the sense that soccer (football) players and rugby (football) players don't wear them. (But they do have buses, jerseys, and shoes.) If we're looking for the "best" answer, it's helmet.
Philly, just because something is unique doesn't mean that it's the most important.
It's possible to have unique items that are also trivial.
Remember, in order to improve testing success, you have to think like the question writer, and not view the question through a pre-determined set of personal rules.
I'm not equating unique with important. Important is a relative term which, to me, didn't matter in answering the question. I viewed the question as a matter of which item stood apart (or was unique) from the others with respect to American football.
IT'S HELMET, DAMMIT! NOW, WHO WANTS TO FIGHT? WHERE"S THAT CANADIAN CHICK?