Multiple Choice Problems - Current State, Gaps, and Opportunities

They can be built in the simple editor or the advanced editor. In the simple editor, they are generally formatted as follows:

>>Here is the question<<

(!) This answer is incorrect, the ! symbol indicates that all of the options in this problem should be shuffled.
( ) This answer is incorrect.
(x@) This answer is correct, the @ symbol indicates that this option should not be shuffled.
(x) This answer is also correct, and can also be selected.

In addition to the extra options shown above (shuffling and fixed shuffling), and non-specific options such as hints, feedback, and explanations, multiple choice problems can have the following features which require using the advanced editor and/or authoring the problem in OLX:

Partial credit - Award 0.5 points if this answer is chosen.
Randomised answer pools - Present 4 random choices of this pool of 10 possible answers, including the correct answer.
Script elements that define variables for use in problems
Other HTML elements supported by XHTML but not markdown

The simple editor supports a limited range of HTML elements, including images, headings, and formatting tags (such as <strong> or <em>), allowing for some flexibility, but the majority of allowed tags are not present in the UI, and require additional knowledge of HTML to be used.

Multiple choice problems perform well, and deliver a perfectly acceptable user experience for learners in courses. The creation of problems in the simple and advanced problem editors, however, is a much more painful process for course authors, and needs significant improvements related to the problem editor itself. These will be covered at greater length elsewhere.

Community Opinions

Multiple choice problems are so ubiquitous that very little is said about them outside of the context of the simple editor as a whole.

Time estimates for Open edX MCQs from HSBO contain the following information:

Multiple Choice: 1.9 min, same time for single-answer and select-all

This is not so much feedback as simply interesting community information related to multiple choice questions compared to checkbox problems.

While searching, mention of including audio and other media has been mentioned on multiple occasions by different authors, particularly in the context of multiple-choice. This is feasible using the advanced editor or by using HTML in the simple problem editor, but is not feasible without knowledge due to the weaknesses of the simple editor UI.

In general, multiple choice problems are fine. They are not significantly lacking in any areas, nor do they particularly shine.