Extended matching items

Extended matching items/questions (EMI or EMQ) are a written examination format similar multiple choice questions but with one key difference, that they test knowledge in a far more applied, in depth, sense.

It is often used in medical education and other healthcare subject areas to test diagnostic reasoning.

Structure

EMQ example

The structure has three key elements:

• Answer option list
• Lead in question
• Two or more scenarios or vignettes

Research evidence

Students sitting this test item format have a greater chance of answering incorrectly if they cannot synthesise and apply their knowledge as shown through the work of Susan Case and David Swanson (1989).

Evidence suggests that this format works best when there is a single best answer to each successive scenario or vignette.[1]

Other variants

In other subjects areas the EMQ format is used to simply 'match' descriptions with terms, though this only succeeds in testing surface level knowledge.

Example

• This organelle stores the genetic information of an eukaryotic cell.
• This organelle synthesises polypeptides using information provided by mRNA.
• This organelle, found in plants, contains chlorophyll.

List of options

1. Chloroplast
2. Mitochondrion
3. Lysosome
4. Nucleus
5. Endoplasmic reticulum
6. Peroxisome
7. Golgi apparatus
8. Ribosome

Answer Key

(In order of questions) • 4
• 8
• 1

External links

[2]

Extended matching items (EMIs): solving the conundrum