UPSC Mains Answer Writing – Chapter 7: Evaluation Rubrics and Self-Assessment (20 MCQs)

← Back

UPSC Mains Answer Writing – Chapter 7: Evaluation Rubrics and Self-Assessment (20 MCQs) – 20 questions, subject: Mains Answer Writing. Every question has the correct answer with a one-line explanation; tap "Show Answer". Free practice for TNPSC, UPSC, SSC, Bank and RRB exams – Shanmugam IAS Academy, Coimbatore.

Get daily current affairs & exam alerts – follow us YouTube WhatsApp Channel Telegram Channel Facebook Page Instagram
Share with friends & study groups
Link to this page from your website / blog (HTML code)
1.  

In Shanmugam IAS Academy's ten-mark rubric for GS answers, the two criteria with the most marks are:

Correct Answer: B [demand coverage and content]

Explanation:

Demand coverage and content carry 3 marks each, out of 10.

2.  

The 24-hour rule means:

Correct Answer: A [reviewing your answer the next day]

Explanation:

The rule is to re-read your answer the next day, because a fresh reading finds gaps a tired one misses.

3.  

On Shanmugam IAS Academy's five bands for a GS answer, an answer scoring 6.5 out of 10 falls in the band:

Correct Answer: D [Good]

Explanation:

The good band covers scores from 6 to 7.75 out of 10, so 6.5 falls inside it.

4.  

On Shanmugam IAS Academy's ten-mark rubric, a score of 6 out of 10 on a 15-mark answer equals:

Correct Answer: D [9 marks]

Explanation:

6 × 1.5.

5.  

The peer-feedback format suggested by Shanmugam IAS Academy is:

Correct Answer: A [one strength, two improvements]

Explanation:

Peer feedback follows a fixed format: name one strength and two improvements.

6.  

In the headings-only read you look at:

Correct Answer: B [headings and underlined words]

Explanation:

Reading only headings and underlined words imitates an examiner skimming and shows whether all demands are visible.

7.  

On Shanmugam IAS Academy's ten-mark rubric, an answer to a 'difference' question that ends 'Both were great Indians', with no comparison, earns nothing under:

Correct Answer: A [conclusion and balance]

Explanation:

A close with no verdict or comparison scores 0 out of 0.5 on conclusion and balance.

8.  

"Self-score minus peer score" measures:

Correct Answer: C [your bias in judging your own work]

Explanation:

Both scores judge the same answer, so the gap shows how generously or harshly you mark your own work.

9.  

The SOLO taxonomy, which grades answers by the structure of understanding they show, was proposed by:

Correct Answer: D [Biggs and Collis]

Explanation:

John Biggs and Kevin Collis set out the SOLO taxonomy in 1982.

10.  

Consider the following statements:

1. UPSC publishes a question-wise marking scheme for the Mains.
2. The notice provides for a deduction for illegible handwriting.
3. Shanmugam IAS Academy's ten-mark rubric is a practice tool built from the notice's instructions.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: B [2 and 3 only]

Explanation:

The notice provides for a deduction for illegible handwriting, and the academy's rubric is a practice tool built from its instructions.

11.  

Assertion (A): An answer that misses one part of a two-part question cannot reach the good band.

Reason (R): The good band in Shanmugam IAS Academy's ten-mark rubric requires every demand of the question to be answered.

Correct Answer: A [Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A]

Explanation:

Missing one part breaks the good band's 'all demands' requirement, so R directly explains A.

12.  

Tagore founded his school at Santiniketan in:

Correct Answer: C [1901]

Explanation:

Tagore opened his school, the Brahmacharyashram, at Santiniketan in December 1901.

13.  

"An Examination of Examinations" (1935) showed that:

Correct Answer: D [different examiners gave very different marks to the same scripts]

Explanation:

Hartog and Rhodes had the same scripts re-marked by several examiners and found wide differences in the marks given.

14.  

Cohen's kappa measures:

Correct Answer: C [agreement between two raters beyond chance]

Explanation:

Jacob Cohen's 1960 statistic measures how far two raters agree beyond the agreement expected by chance.

15.  

According to Xuanzang, at the gate of Nalanda applicants were:

Correct Answer: D [questioned by the keeper of the gate, and most withdrew or failed]

Explanation:

Xuanzang wrote that the keeper of the gate posed hard questions and only two or three in ten succeeded.

16.  

Arrange the following in chronological order:

1. Cohen's kappa
2. An Examination of Examinations
3. SOLO taxonomy
4. Philosophical Transactions first published

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Correct Answer: C [4-2-1-3]

Explanation:

1665, 1935, 1960, 1982.

17.  

"D-C-S-E-P-C", the order of Shanmugam IAS Academy's ten-mark rubric criteria, lists them in order of:

Correct Answer: B [weight]

Explanation:

The order follows the marks: 3, 3, 1.5, 1, 1 and 0.5.

18.  

In the error log, each answer should normally add:

Correct Answer: A [only its biggest error]

Explanation:

Logging only the biggest error keeps the log short enough to read and shows a pattern within a month.

19.  

A practice answer scored 4.25 out of 10 on Shanmugam IAS Academy's rubric. A rewrite gains 1 mark in demand coverage, 0.75 in structure and 1.75 across the other criteria. The rewritten total is:

Correct Answer: B [7.75]

Explanation:

4.25 + 1 + 0.75 + 1.75 = 7.75.

20.  

In peer evaluation, the most useful comment is one that:

Correct Answer: B [points to a specific gap and how to fix it]

Explanation:

A comment naming a specific gap and its fix tells the writer exactly what to change in the rewrite.

➤ Directive words, answer templates, model answers with marginal notes, evaluation rubrics and paper-wise Mains practice – U28 · Mains Answer Writing (UPSC book, ₹249): www.shanmugamiasacademy.in/study-materials/upsc-mains-answer-writing

📘 U28 · Mains Answer-Writing Workbook – UPSC Civil Services (Mains – Essay and GS Papers I–IV)
Here you get the answer with a one-line explanation. 20 chapters · directive words, structure templates, diagrams · model answers with marginal notes · rubrics · 163 Mains practice questions incl. PYQs
Get the book – ₹249 ₹499 →
Score: 0 Answered: 0 / 0