Good test questions are clear, unbiased, and designed to measure fundamental skills - not guessing, interpretation, or test-taking tricks.
Whether you’re hiring new employees, training teams, or teaching students, high-quality questions are the foundation of reliable evaluation.
Key takeaways:
- Strong questions focus on one skill at a time
- Multiple-choice questions need realistic distractors
- Poor wording creates bias and unreliable results
- AI speeds up question writing - but structure still matters
What Makes a Test Question High-Quality?
A well-designed test question should do three things:
- Measure a specific skill or knowledge area
- Produce consistent, repeatable results
- Minimise ambiguity, stress, and bias
Different question types work best in different contexts:
- True/False - fast comprehension checks
- Multiple Choice - scalable evaluation at volume
- Open-Ended - deeper reasoning and explanation
There is no universal “best” format - the right choice depends on your goal.
Best Practices for Writing True/False Questions
True/false questions are easy to prepare, which makes them popular in quizzes and onboarding tests. But they offer limited insight unless written carefully.
Do
- Keep each statement short and focused
- Include only one idea per question
- Make sure answers are entirely true or fully false
Avoid
- Negatives (“Which is NOT correct?”)
- Double negatives
- Words like always, never, every, none
- Answer patterns (true/false/true/false…)
Example (Good):
Kaizen is a philosophy focused on continuous improvement.
Clear, factual, and unambiguous.
Examples of Strong Multiple-Choice Questions
Multiple-choice questions are one of the most reliable formats for hiring, certification, and professional training - when written correctly.
A good MCQ includes:
- One correct answer
- 3–5 plausible alternatives
- Similar length and structure across options
- No trick wording
Example question:
Which framework is most commonly used in SOC 2 compliance?
A. HIPAA
B. PCI DSS
C. Trust Services Criteria ✅
D. ISO 14001
Why it works: Only one option is correct, distractors are realistic, and nothing stands out visually.
Examples of Bad Multiple-Choice Questions (And Fixes)
Poor multiple-choice questions often measure confusion instead of competence.
Mistake 1: Overcomplicated stems
Overly complex wording increases reading difficulty instead of testing knowledge.
Better approach: ask one direct question that matches the skill being evaluated.
Mistake 2: Answers that visually stand out
Avoid options like “All of the above” or alternatives that are much longer than the others.
These patterns reduce reliability because respondents can guess without knowing the answer.
Mistake 3: Leading or biased wording
Biased: What problems do users have with this product?
Better: How would you describe your experience using this product?
How to Write Better Distractors (Wrong Options)
Distractors are incorrect answer choices. Their purpose is to ensure only knowledgeable respondents choose correctly, not to confuse people unfairly.
Good distractors are:
- Believable
- Similar in category
- Clearly wrong only to someone who understands the topic
Example:
Which country is located in South America?
A. Peru ✅
B. Chile
C. Argentina
D. Spain
All alternatives feel plausible until the respondent knows geography.
Examples of Strong Open-Ended Questions
Open-ended questions work best when you want respondents to explain, compare, or demonstrate reasoning.
They are especially useful in:
- Leadership training
- Marketing roles
- Education settings
- Feedback evaluation
Guidelines
Use prompts like:
- Explain
- Describe
- Compare
- Justify
Add clear boundaries (word count, topic focus), so answers stay measurable.
Example:
Explain how Kaizen improves team productivity in a modern workplace (150–200 words).
Avoiding Bias in Test Questions
Bias reduces fairness, validity, and inclusivity, especially in hiring or global training environments.
Common types of bias include:
Cultural bias
Questions requiring culturally specific knowledge may unfairly exclude respondents.
Method bias
If respondents are unfamiliar with a question format, results may reflect test-taking skill rather than knowledge.
Construct bias
Some concepts are emphasised differently across education systems and countries.
Rule: Test what matters for the role or learning goal, not what favours one background.
Quiz Question Strategy (Fast, Low-Stakes Evaluation)
Quizzes work best when they are:
- Short (5-10 questions maximum)
- Quick to complete
- Mixed across formats (True/False + MCQ + short answer)
Avoid long essay-style questions in quizzes unless reflection is your explicit goal.
AI-Assisted Question Writing in 2025
AI has changed how HR teams, recruiters, educators, and trainers build assessments.
Modern tools can generate:
- Questions from training documents
- Multiple difficulty variations
- Better distractor suggestions
- Large question banks in seconds
This is especially valuable for professionals who regularly create evaluations.
However, AI output still requires human review to ensure:
- Clarity
- Fairness
- Lack of bias
- Alignment with the testing goal
Summary: How to Write Better Test Questions
To create assessments that produce reliable results:
- Keep question stems short and focused
- Test one concept at a time
- Build realistic distractors
- Avoid leading language and cultural assumptions
- Match question type to evaluation intent
- Use AI for speed, but edit for quality
Good questions don’t just test knowledge.
They create trust in the evaluation process.
Creating practical test questions takes time, especially when you’re building assessments for hiring, onboarding, or training. With Quilgo, HR teams, recruiters, trainers, and educators can design, deliver, and manage evaluations in one place with the structure and consistency needed for reliable results. If you want to make assessments easier to create, faster to run, and simpler to scale, Quilgo can help.
Sources
- AERA Standards for Educational Testing (2024)
- OECD Assessment Design Principles (2023)
https://www.oecd.org/content/dam/oecd/en/publications/reports/2023/04/innovating-assessments-to-measure-and-support-complex-skills_b0255009/e5f3e341-en.pdf
.webp)
