Examinations
Examinations
Examinations generally fall into two categories : objective and subjective. MurrayData is very experienced in objective examinations, and the setting up of automated examination systems to process, mark, score, grade and report on these assessments. Objective examinations are suited to this automated process, as there is little, or no room for interpretation or conjecture over the outcome. Subjective testing, on the other hand, is very much dependent on human intervention, views, opinion and interpretation, such as in essay writing and artistic subjects.
Within objective examinations there are also several categories, such as the commonly known Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ), True/False and Extended Matching variety. MurrayData has come across a wide range of other objective examinations, such as Objective Structured Clinical Exams (OSCE) used by medical and nursing schools and Objective Structured Practical Exams (OSPE) used by police training colleges. Other variations such as Single Correct Answer (SCA) and Multiple Correct Answer (MCA) can complicate the picture further, so in simple terms, it is our strong recommendation to speak to an independent advisor on objective testing, such as MurrayData, before launching straight into this arena.

Most objective examinations which are automated in terms of processing and classed as ‘high stakes’, such as university end of year or final exams, are still performed using paper answer sheets and scanning devices. This is usually for control, security and economic reasons. However, for less ‘high stake’ examinations, online testing and assessment is becoming more and more popular, such as theoretical testing of the highway code and revision systems in universities.

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