DEVELOPING A MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTION BANK TO ASSESS LEARNING OUTCOMES FOR THE COURSE ‘FOUNDATIONS OF MATHEMATICS IN ELEMENTARY EDUCATION 1’ AT HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION

Abstract

Assessing student learning outcomes is a crucial component of university education, playing a vital role in ensuring and enhancing educational quality. This research focuses on developing a multiple-choice question (MCQ) bank for the course ‘Foundations of Mathematics in Elementary Education 1’ to support student assessment. The study employs a mixed-methods approach, combining qualitative and quantitative methods, and draws upon theoretical foundations of test construction and MCQ design. The question bank development follows a rigorous, five-step scientific process. A total of 300 multiple-choice questions were initially developed, of which 30 were piloted on a sample of 140 students. The pilot results confirmed the feasibility and initial effectiveness of the question bank, while also highlighting areas for improvement. Specifically, 13.3% of the items were classified as difficult, 23.3% as moderate, and 63.3% as easy, based on item difficulty indices. The overall test difficulty was 0.7113—slightly above the optimal range (0.555-0.695)—indicating the test was relatively easy for the target group. These results suggest a need to adjust the distribution of item difficulty, particularly by increasing the proportion of moderate and difficult questions, improving content clarity, and broadening the sample in future pilots. Such adjustments aim to enhance the test’s discriminatory capacity, reliability, and alignment with course learning outcomes.