Balanced answers

[SES]

Seome people say that the exams have a perfectly balanced answers, I mean the same amount of a,b,c,d as correct answers? From your experience, what can you say about that?????

 

[snickerd3]

false

 

[Capt Worley PE]

Some people are full of it.

 

[SES]

thanks for quick reply :wave2:

 

[ptatohed]

Maybe I am missing something.

1.) Why is this relevant in the first place?

2.) But 2, if the answers (A, B, C, D) are random and each have equal opportunity of being the answer, why wouldn't the amount of A,B,C,D's be pretty close to balanced?

 

[IlPadrino]

I say "true" or very nearly so. Why not?

 

[mrt406]

If there were in infinite number of questions then this would be true. But I'm sure they don't go out of their way to make sure there's the exact same number of each answer.

Balanced? Probably. Perfectly balanced? Probably not.

 

[civilized_naah]

Maybe I am missing something.

1.) Why is this relevant in the first place?

2.) But 2, if the answers (A, B, C, D) are random and each have equal opportunity of being the answer, why wouldn't the amount of A,B,C,D's be pretty close to balanced?

It is relevant because in your guessing period, if you do a count of those already answered (with a high degree of confidence, of course - otherwise this has no significance) and IF you observe that one of those choices (A,B,C,D) has a markedly lower frequency than the other three, then you are better off putting down that choice for the unanswered questions.

 

[IlPadrino]

But I'm sure they don't go out of their way to make sure there's the exact same number of each answer.

You're sure? How could you be sure?

 

[mrt406]

But I'm sure they don't go out of their way to make sure there's the exact same number of each answer.

You're sure? How could you be sure?

Because that would be retarded, and they're smarter than that.

 

[civilized_naah]

Because that would be retarded, and they're smarter than that.

How are you sure of THAT?

 

[IlPadrino]

Because that would be retarded, and they're smarter than that.

Now you're just talking out of your ass... 'cause I sure smell the ****! Ever heard of psychometrics?

 

[mrt406]

Because that would be retarded, and they're smarter than that.

How are you sure of THAT?

Ok, ok.... granted I'm not SURE of it. But I'm most nearly completely sure of it. I'm also not sure that a team of sealions wrote the test, or that the whole PE license/test/industry isn't a fabrication of my imagination.... but I'm pretty darn certain of it.

Ever heard of psychometrics?

Yes, which is why I'm "sure" that they don't specifically make the exact same number of each answer choice. If that were the case, you could determine the answer to a question based upon the number of answer choices selected on the other questions, and not on the question itself. That would degrade the quality of the exam, which is the exact opposite of what psychometrics hopes to achieve.

That being said, my assumption is that the answers are randomized within the choices, with each having the same probability. As I said before, if you had an infinite number of questions then, yes, each choice would appear the same number of times. But there isn't. So you might get the same number of answer choices, you might not. I certainly wouldn't go into the exam expecting there to be.

 

[MA_PE]

Because that would be retarded, and they're smarter than that.

How are you sure of THAT?

Ok, ok.... granted I'm not SURE of it. But I'm most nearly completely sure of it. I'm also not sure that a team of sealions wrote the test, or that the whole PE license/test/industry isn't a fabrication of my imagination.... but I'm pretty darn certain of it.

Ever heard of psychometrics?

Yes, which is why I'm "sure" that they don't specifically make the exact same number of each answer choice. If that were the case, you could determine the answer to a question based upon the number of answer choices selected on the other questions, and not on the question itself. That would degrade the quality of the exam, which is

the exact opposite of what psychometrics hopes to achieve.

Wouldn't this be true only if you were sure all of the other answers were correct? When you got to the end of the test and the answers were not balanced, how would you know which answers to change to balance it?

 

[Ble_PE]

Just pick C every time.

 

[snickerd3]

It was A when I took it. scared the crap out of me too. a run of 6-8 questions all with the same letter for the correct answer and I was certain of my selection too.

 

[knight1fox3]

Wouldn't this be true only if you were sure all of the other answers were correct? When you got to the end of the test and the answers were not balanced, how would you know which answers to change to balance it?

I was also wondering this.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

Choose E.

Don't be a slave to the machine.

 

[ptatohed]

So, let's say that among a cluster of questions that you felt really, really good about, the answer was B for each. Now, later in the exam when you are guessing..... do you choose B because B is the "common answer for this exam" or do you choose one of the other answers, because "all the B's have surely been used up"?

 

[IlPadrino]

That being said, my assumption is that the answers are randomized within the choices, with each having the same probability. As I said before, if you had an infinite number of questions then, yes, each choice would appear the same number of times. But there isn't. So you might get the same number of answer choices, you might not. I certainly wouldn't go into the exam expecting there to be.

But you don't know how they do it? There are certainly tests that use a balanced answer key - you could google this if you'd like to learn more.