Examination Questions and Answers in Basic Anatomy and Physiology; 2400 Multiple Choice Questions; Second Edition
Abstract
Two thousand four hundred multiple choice questions that could be asked of a student of introductory human anatomy and physiology are presented in 40 categories. In addition, there are 62 topics for a written assignment (essay topics) that may be used in such a course and as an assessment task for such students.
It is assumed that users of these questions are teachers or students who have completed at least part of an Anatomy and Physiology course that might be offered in the first year of a university degree program. It is also assumed that they would have access to one of the Anatomy and Physiology textbooks (or similar) listed in the bibliography below. Each question category has an Introduction containing a summary of useful knowledge pertinent to that category of question. However, not all possible information is provided within these Introductions, so a textbook is indispensable. The summary Introductions are composed with vocabulary that may be unfamiliar to the beginning student but which should be known in order to understand the questions. You will need to look up the meaning of many unfamiliar words as your studies progress.
All questions have been used at least once, during the author’s teaching career, in end of semester examinations of a university first-year undergraduate introductory anatomy and physiology course or a physical science course for Health Sciences students to support their anatomy and physiology study. Consequently, they reflect the author’s choice of content. Students enrolled in the courses for which these questions were written include nursing, midwifery, paramedic, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, nutrition & dietetics, health science students, exercise science students and students taking the course as an elective. Many of the students do not have an extensive background in science from their secondary schooling. Some knowledge of physical science is required to understand physiology; hence, physical science questions are included. Students without some background knowledge in chemistry and physics will find such questions challenging and will need to work a little harder to develop their background knowledge. The boundary between chemistry and biochemistry is not distinct; nevertheless, chemistry is implicit in physiology. Furthermore, the physics of the body becomes physiology so gradually that sometimes the boundary between the two is only noticed after it has been crossed.
Some questions were difficult to categorise and may span two (or more) categories. Furthermore, in order to answer some questions, you may need knowledge drawn from other “sections” of anatomy different from the name of the section in which the question appears. This is not a bad thing as it emphasises the connected nature of human anatomy and physiology. Each question is unique (there are no duplicates). However, many questions will be examining the same (or similar) material albeit with a differently worded question or a different selection of answers.
If the questions are to be used to compile an examination, then care should be taken to exclude questions that are too similar to already selected ones. On the other hand, if the questions are to be used for instruction or study purposes, I would suggest including several similar questions in consecutive order to emphasise the point and to give the student practice.
