Effectiveness of constructed responses and multiple-choice questions on recall and recognition in a web-based language learning environment

The present study investigated the effect of constructed responses and multiple-choice item types with cueing in students' vocabulary learning in a self-guided web-based language learning environment. 70 sixth grade students participated in this study and were assigned to one of the four conditions: (1) MC (multiple-choice only), (2) MC-C (multiple-choice with cueing), (3) CR (constructed responses only), and (4) CR-C (constructed responses with cueing). The results of this study suggest that constructed responses items had greater effect than the multiple-choice items on students' posttests (recall and recognition). The interaction effect between item types with cueing was not significant. Students reported higher cognitive load when receiving multiple-choice items than constructed responses. The present study supports the findings of other research in vocabulary learning; however, future research should explore the interaction of cognitive load and learning tasks to enhance the merit of online learning using different item types.