How to design a good Short Answer Question?
1.Design short answer items which are appropriate assessment of the learning objective
2.Make sure the content of the short answer question measures knowledge appropriate to the desired learning goal
3.Express the questions with clear wordings and language which are appropriate to the student population
4.Ensure there is only one clearly correct answer in each question
5.Ensure that the item clearly specifies how the question should be answered
6.Consider whether the positioning of the item blank promote efficient scoring
7.Write the instructions clearly so as to specify the desired knowledge and specificity of response
8.Set the questions explicitly and precisely.
9.Direct questions are better than those which require completing the sentences.
10.For numerical answers, let the students know if they will receive marks for showing partial work (process based) or only the results (product based), also indicated the importance of the units.
11.Let the students know what your marking style is like, is bullet point format acceptable, or does it have to be an essay format?
12.Prepare a structured marking sheet; allocate marks or part-marks for acceptable answer(s).
13.Be prepared to accept other equally acceptable answers, some of which you may not have predicted.