diff --git a/episodes/formative-assessment.md b/episodes/formative-assessment.md index 13e22012a..6f12dfee0 100644 --- a/episodes/formative-assessment.md +++ b/episodes/formative-assessment.md @@ -134,6 +134,28 @@ But choosing incorrect answers can be difficult, especially early in a lesson wh to encounter misconceptions that learners have arrived with as opposed to those they have picked up while following the lesson. +:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: callout + +## Prior Knowledge and Plausible Distractors + +When identifying plausible distractors, +it is essential to consider the prior knowledge you expect learners to have of your lesson topic. + +The plausible distractors in the MCQ example above +are chosen on the assumption that learners have been taught +addition by "carrying" numbers: +the incorrect answers are designed to diagnose misconceptions +associated with that method. + +However, as [pointed out by Maneesha Sane](https://github.com/carpentries/instructor-training/issues/1403), +if a learner has been taught to add numbers by another method, +e.g. first rounding them up or down to values that are more easy to remember and combine +(e.g. 27 to 30), +they might have misconceptions that cause them to arrive at an answer that is incorrect +but not represented in the MCQ options. + +:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: + To help identify plausible distractors, you can think about problems or questions from previous training events and what people struggled with, think about your own misconceptions in the past,