Pick a clinical scenario
Each case is built like an ADC item: one clinical vignette with five single-best-answer questions. Here every answer is a word you crack in six guesses.
Your cluster report card
The ADC grades the written exam by cluster. You pass only with an A or B in all four. This card grades your games the same way.
How the grades work
| Grade | ADC description | In this game |
|---|---|---|
| A · clear pass | More than 10% above the passing score | Above 71.5% |
| B · close pass | Within 10% above the passing score | 65–71.5% |
| C · close fail | Within 10% below the passing score | 58.5–64.9% |
| D · clear fail | More than 10% below the passing score | Below 58.5% |
The ADC does not publish a fixed pass mark. Each cluster's cut score is set by modified Angoff standard setting and Rasch-model test equating, at the level of a minimally competent recent Australian graduate. This game uses a 65% practice benchmark per cluster so you have a target. An item counts as correct when you crack the word within six guesses.
How to play Spore Test
- Read the clinical vignette and the question, just as you would in the ADC written exam.
- Type the one-word answer. The tiles show how many letters it has. You get six guesses.
- After each guess the tiles change colour, like a chemical indicator. Teal means right letter, right spot. Amber means the letter is in the word but in another spot. Grey means it is not in the word.
- Stuck? Hint 1 is a vague nudge (−10 points). Hint 2 is a strong clue (−20 points) and opens after Hint 1.
- Solved or not, you then see the question as a real ADC-style item with options A–E, the correct answer, why each distractor is wrong, and a pass-level explanation with its guideline source.
- Each question is tagged to one of the four ADC clusters. Your report card grades each cluster A–D.
Example
S is in the right spot. O is in the word but somewhere else. L and P are not in the word.
Scoring
Solve in one guess for 100 points. Each extra guess costs 15. Hints cost 10 and 20. A solved word never scores less than 10. Numbers are spelled out (e.g. SEVEN). Drop hyphens and spaces (e.g. BOWIEDICK).
Where the content comes from
Questions are original and written in the ADC scenario format. Answers and explanations follow:
- Australian Dental Association, Guidelines for Infection Prevention and Control, 5th edition (2024).
- Therapeutic Guidelines: Oral and Dental, version 4.
- ADC Written Examination candidate handbook (structure, clusters and grading).
Photographs and the steriliser diagram are reproduced from the ADA guidelines. This is a study aid. Always check the current guideline before applying anything in practice.
Keyboard
Type letters, press Enter to submit, Backspace to delete. Press Enter on the review screen to go to the next question.