Grading Blogging: Halfway Through Multiple Choice

The questions that seem to be the most challenging are the ones that ask for something very specific, but include an ‘all of the above’ option. For example:

  1. The ultimate goal of Upanishadic Hinduism is
    1. mercy, charity, and forgiveness of sin
    2. reincarnation as a king, emperor or higher being
    3. reunion of the soul with the Brahman of the universe
    4. all of the above
  1. While some religions have state support, and some have missionary movements, all religions seem to be spread by
    1. letter-writing
    2. trade
    3. warfare
    4. all of the above

The number of actual ‘all of the above’ answers is down this time, sorry.

Looking over the fourth page, I ditched a question: poor question design, honestly. Seemed clever when I wrote it, but it just doesn’t distinguish between right and wrong answers properly:

  1. The conquest of the Abbasids by the Seljuk Turks was
    1. good for the Islamic state
    2. bad for the Islamic state
    3. good for the state but bad for Islam
    4. good for Islam but bad for the state

In the early stages, it looks like the slavery question is giving people trouble. We’ll see how it comes out in the end.