What does a 'fill in the blank' type of examination question measure?

Answer 1

"Fill in the blank" questions assess remote and long term memory. It also asseses how well a person has learned the practical side of learning, i.e. how well a person can apply what has been learned. For example, these 2 questions assess different types of learning:

1. "Name three types of foods or food spreads that you can use on bread to make a sandwich." Possible answers might be: butter; mayo; peanut butter; preserves or jelly. Any "name several things" tests item recall. These are usually 1 or 2 word answers.
2. "Describe the first 5 steps you would use to make a peanut butter sandwich." This fill-in question has 5 blanks and requires partial or full sentences. The instructor might be looking for specific "first" things to do, depending on the class and topic. The exact first 5 steps to make a sandwich wouldn't be as important as, say, the exact first 5 steps to doing a wound-dressing change in the hospital, or the exact first 5 steps to re-start an atomic reactor. Longer "describe how to" questions assess practical knowledge and application of learning.
3. In psychology, "fill ins" might be used to assess psychological and personality traits. Many employment applications or job interviews include a question that includes an open-ended question that could generate numerous and varying replies. Example: "How would you handle a situation where a co-worker made bad comments about other employees?" or "What types of supplies are okay to take home from your job? (answer : None) The paper might include several or more lines for your answer, which encourages the person to write a lot to fill up the lines--thus, giving an employer more insight into how the person thinks, the person's loyalty to a company vs. co-workers, etc. The question about taking supplies home from a job gives insight into whether a person is aware that taking supplies home is technically employee theft.