Are you assessing learning goals or prior knowledge? A critical approach in constructing calculus exam questions

The quality of exam questions is one of several factors that are essential for students’ success. In this study we analyzed two exam questions of a calculus exam of students at the Anton de Kom universiteit van Suriname. We conducted a thorough analysis of the two questions and students’ solutions to ascertain whether the questions are suitable for assessing the related learning goals. We found that one of the questions required modification due to the fact that prior knowledge obstructed the assessment of the learning goal. We constructed an alternative question that required less specific prior knowledge to address this issue. We also calculated the difficulty level and discrimination level of both the questions and the findings supported our recommendations. We concluded that the examiner should be thoughtful when constructing exam questions, particularly regarding specific prior knowledge at the beginning of a question.