The Journal of Medical Education and Development

Introduction: Awareness of faculty members towards the preparation of multiple-choice questions (MCQ) tests could help the educational staffs in improving and enhancing the quality exam questions at the university. The present study was performed with the aim of evaluating the awareness of faculty members about preparation of MCQ tests in Jundishapur University was evaluated in 2014.

Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, the familiarity rate of 200 faculty members about preparation of MCQ tests were evaluated. Data were gathered using a questionnaire that its validity was confirmed by experts and its reliability was determined by Cronbach's alpha (0.725). The data were analyzed by descriptive and analytical statistics and using SPSS software.

Results: The mean score of “familiarity rate” with preparation of MCQ tests was 17.62 (from 24) and mean score of "knowledge rate" was 4.02 (from 9). The t-test indicated that the significant differences existed between the “familiarity rate” of faculty members according to sex and grade (p<0.05). However, no significant difference was observed between the “knowledge rate” of faculty members in terms of sex and grade (p>0.05).

Conclusion: The results showed that the “familiarity and knowledge rate" of faculty members about preparation of MCQ tests at the University was not desirable. Given the importance of MCQ tests in the evaluation of students and the effectiveness of the quality of exam raining courses offered at the faculty members.