While working on the Word-Moodle tool to allow editing of questions in Microsoft Word that are then converted to XML and imported into Moodle, I wonder if the same idea can't be integrated into Moodle itself to help simplify the editor's interface. I'm guessing that many end-users are likely to find a word processing metaphor for editing a question to be the most intuitive.
The question editing would be done entirely in a single ("smart") text editor widget that only allows a set format of paragraph styles, that conform to the type of question. For example, a multiple-choice question would have the following format:
STEM
ANSWER
Feedback
ANSWER
Feedback
+
The "+" at the end means to add another ANSWER/Feedback pair.
When all the text is in the same widget, it has has several advantages of hiding complexity. To change a question element's details (e.g., to set the answer's percentage), a right-click on the paragraph would open a properties dialog.