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Investigate Educational Technologies :: Illinois Compass

Question Types

Illinois Compass provides nine different types of questions for assessments. These question types have different parameters for both grading and question delivery.

Calculated Questions

Calculated questions are used for mathematical problems based on a set of variables. For each student, Illinois Compass generates a different set of numbers for those variables creating a unique quiz.

To create a calculated question:

  1. Give the question a Title.
  2. Insert the Question text. Be sure that variables are inserted inside square brackets [ ]. Any letter can be used as a variable. If desired, use the HTML Creator to create the Question text.
  3. If needed, open the Equation Editor in order to create a mathematical notation.
  4. If desired, insert an Image into your question.

    5. Screenshot of Create a Calculated Question

  5. Insert the Formula that must be used to solve the problem. Be sure to insert the same variables used in the original question in square brackets. Click on View a list of supported formulas to help you create your formula.

    6. Screenshot of Create a Calculated Question

  6. Determine if Units are required (i.e. inches, centimeters, degrees), and determine if the answer should be case sensitive or sensitive to extra spaces.
  7. Determine the Percentage of the question value.
  8. Select Analyze Variables.

    9. Screenshot of Create a Calculated Question

  9. Determine the minimum and maximum values for each of the Variables used in the question, and determine if these values should be calculated to a certain decimal point.
  10. Determine the acceptable Parameters for answers in the answer set.
  11. Select Generate Answer Set and the newly generated Answer Set will appear.

    12. Screenshot of Create a Calculated Question

For more options, click on the gray arrow next to More Options.

  1. If desired, provide General feedback that will appear to every student, regardless of their answer, after they have submitted the assessment.
  2. Insert Designer notes, which will be viewable only to instructors who have designer access, and are never viewed by students.
  3. Determine the Category in which the question will be filed, or create a new category to file the question in.
  4. Click Preview to review the question.

    5. Screenshot of More Options

The preview question will appear in a pop-up window. Confirm that the question is correct, and click Close.

Screenshot of Create a Calculated Question

This will return you to the Create a Calculated Question screen. Once done, click on Save.

Combination Questions

Combination questions present students with a list of answers to a question. They are then asked to choose from a list containing various combinations of these answers.

To create a combination question:

  1. Give the question a Title.
  2. Insert the Question text. If desired, use the HTML Creator to create the question text.
  3. If needed, open the Equation Editor in order to create a mathematical notation.
  4. If desired, insert an Image into your question.

    5. Screenshot of Create a Combination Question

  5. Create Answers for the question.
  6. If necessary, create additional answers.

    7. Screenshot of Create a Combination Question

  7. Create the Answer Combinations for students to choose from. If desired, provide Feedback for any and/or all answer combinations.
  8. Select the answer combination that is correct.
    Note: Only one correct combination can be selected.
  9. If necessary, create additional combinations.

    10. Screenshot of Create a Combination Question

For more options, click on the gray arrow next to More Options.

  1. If desired, provide General feedback that will appear to every student, regardless of their answer, after they have submitted the assessment.
  2. Insert Designer notes, which will be viewable only to instructors who have designer access, and are never viewed by students.
  3. Determine the Category in which the question will be filed, or create a new category to file the question in.
  4. Click Preview to review the question.

    5. Screenshot of More Options

The preview question will appear in a pop-up window. Confirm that the question is correct, and click Close.

    Screenshot of Create a Combination Question

When you are finished creating your question, click Save.

Fill in the Blank Questions

Fill in the blank questions require students to complete questions that have blank spaces within them. This question type allows for a number of different options, including multiple answers, flexible grading criteria, and question specific feedback.

To create a fill in the blank question:

  1. Give the question a Title.
  2. Insert the Question text. Use brackets [ ] around the text that you want to appear as a blank text box within the question. If desired, use the HTML Creator to create the question text.
  3. If needed, open the Equation Editor in order to create a mathematical notation.
  4. If desired, insert an Image into your question.
  5. Select Generate Answers.

    6. Screenshot of Create a Fill in the Blank Question

  6. Provide a Value for each correct answer. If more than one answer is required for a single question, divide the percentage between those answers.
  7. Determine the Grading Scheme. "Contains" indicates that the student response must include the answer and any additional words will be ignored. "Equals" requires that the student response match the answer exactly, except for case sensitivity. "Regular expression" is a computer programming term that refers to a specific pattern of text in a file or program. If the regular expression choice is selected, an instructor can use the regular expression querying commands of the PERL language to highly refine the automatic grading of the answer text.
    8. Note: We do not recommend using this choice unless you are already familiar with PERL or wish to invest significant time in creating and testing your answer choices.
  8. Create alternatives if more than one answer is acceptable.
  9. Determine the appropriate settings.

    10. Screenshot of Create a Fill in the Blank Question

For more options, click on the gray arrow next to More Options.

  1. If desired, provide General feedback that will appear to every student, regardless of their answer, after they have submitted the assessment.
  2. Insert Designer notes, which will be viewable only to instructors who have designer access, and are never viewed by students.
  3. Determine the Category in which the question will be filed, or create a new category to file the question in.
  4. Click Preview to review the question.

    5. Screenshot of More Options

The preview question will appear in a pop-up window. Confirm that the question is correct, and click Close.

    Screenshot of Create a Fill in the Blank Question

When you are finished creating your question, click Save.

Jumbled Sentence Questions

Jumbled sentence questions allow instructors to scramble all or part of a block of text. Students then have a dropdown menu for each scrambled word, and must put them in order by choosing the appropriate word in each menu.

To create a jumbled sentence question:

  1. Give the question a Title.
  2. Insert the Question text. Use brackets [ ] around the text that you want to jumble. If desired, use the HTML Creator to create the question text.
  3. If needed, open the Equation Editor in order to create a mathematical notation.
  4. If desired, insert an Image into your question.
  5. Select Generate Answers.

    6. Screenshot of Create a Jumbled Sentence Question

  6. Assign a Value for the answer.
  7. Create alternatives if more than one answer is acceptable.

    8. Screenshot of Create a Jumbled Sentence Question

For more options, click on the gray arrow next to More Options.

  1. If desired, provide General feedback that will appear to every student, regardless of their answer, after they have submitted the assessment.
  2. Insert Designer notes, which will be viewable only to instructors who have designer access, and are never viewed by students.
  3. Determine the Category in which the question will be filed, or create a new category to file the question in.
  4. Click Preview to review the question.

    5. Screenshot of More Options

The preview question will appear in a pop-up window. Confirm that the question is correct, and click Close.

    Screenshot of Create a Jumbled Sentence Question

When you are finished creating your question, click Save.

Matching Questions

Matching questions allow instructors to set two different columns and have students match the appropriate pairs.

To create a matching question:

  1. Give the question a Title.
  2. Insert the Question text. If desired, use the HTML Creator to create the question text.
  3. If needed, open the Equation Editor in order to create a mathematical notation.
  4. If desired, insert an Image into your question.

    5. Screenshot of Create a Matching Question

  5. Insert the Matching pairs in columns 1 and 2. You can choose to create short answer pairs or long answer pairs. Short answer pairs display text in a dropdown menu. Long answer pairs display each column with numbers next to one column and letters next to the other, and students match the letter with the appropriate number. This is useful when the matching columns contain long blocks of text that would not fit into a dropdown menu.
  6. Create additional pairs if necessary.

    7. Screenshot of Create a Matching Question

  7. Determine the Grading scheme. "Equally Weighted" gives an equal number of points to each correctly matched pairs. "All or nothing" gives points only if all of the matches are made correctly. "Right Minus Wrong" provides points for correct matches and subtracts points for incorrect matches.
  8. Determine the Column preview. By previewing both columns, matching items appear above the dropdown lists that students use to match the pairs. Preview both columns must be selected for long answer formats.

    9. Screenshot of Create a Matching Question

    Screenshot of Create a Matching Question

For more options, click on the gray arrow next to More Options.

  1. If desired, provide General feedback that will appear to every student, regardless of their answer, after they have submitted the assessment.
  2. Insert Designer notes, which will be viewable only to instructors who have designer access, and are never viewed by students.
  3. Determine the Category in which the question will be filed, or create a new category to file the question in.
  4. Click Preview to review the question.

    5. Screenshot of More Options

The preview question will appear in a pop-up window. Confirm that the question is correct, and click Close.

    Screenshot of Create a Matching QuestionScreenshot of Create a Matching Question

When you are finished creating your question, click Save.

Multiple Choice Questions

Multiple choice questions allow instructors to provide a list of answers to questions that students can choose from.

To create a multiple choice question:

  1. Give the question a Title.
  2. Insert the Question text. If desired, use the HTML Creator to create the question text.
  3. If needed, open the Equation Editor in order to create a mathematical notation.
  4. If desired, Insert an image into your question.

    5. Screenshot of Create a Multiple Choice Question

  5. Select if One answer, or Multiple answers are correct.

    6. Screenshot of Create a Multiple Choice Question

  6. List the Possible answers. You can have up to 5 choices.
  7. Check the box or boxes for the answer(s) that are correct.
  8. Determine the Value for each answer. If negative scores are to be used, be sure to put a negative number in the value box. If there is more than one correct answer, divide the value percentage between the correct answers.
  9. Create additional answers if necessary.

    10. Screenshot of Create a Multiple Choice Question

  10. Determine if the Answer layout will be vertical or horizontal.
  11. Determine whether the Answer labels will be numbers or letters.
  12. Determine if answers should be Randomly ordered.
  13. Determine the Grading scheme. "Cumulative" allows the student to receive points for each correct answer selected. If not all correct choices are selected than partial credit will still be awarded. "All or nothing" only grants points to the student when every correct answer is selected. No partial credit is awarded.
  14. Determine if grading will entail Negative scores. A negative score can be given to certain answer choices. This means that students will be penalized for guessing wrong answers by subtracting the value of the wrong answer from the value of the correct answers. Leaving an answer blank will not generate a negative score.

    Screenshot of Create a Multiple Choice Question

For more options, click on the gray arrow next to More Options.

  1. If desired, provide General feedback that will appear to every student, regardless of their answer, after they have submitted the assessment.
  2. Insert Designer notes, which will be viewable only to instructors who have designer access, and are never viewed by students.
  3. Determine the Category in which the question will be filed, or create a new category to file the question in.
  4. Click Preview to review the question.

    5. Screenshot of More Options

The preview question will appear in a pop-up window. Confirm that the question is correct, and click Close.

    Screenshot of Create a Multiple Choice Question

When you are finished creating your question, click Save.

Paragraph Questions

Paragraph questions allow instructors to provide essay questions to students. Paragraph questions must be graded manually by the instructor or TA.

To create a paragraph question:

  1. Give the question a Title.
  2. Insert the Question text. If desired, use the HTML Creator to create the question text.
  3. If needed, open the Equation Editor in order to create a mathematical notation.
  4. If desired, insert an Image into your question.

    5. Screenshot of Create a Paragraph Question

  5. Pre-fill the answer box with a note to students if other information if desired. This text will appear in the answer text box when students answer the question.
  6. Provide a Sample correct response. The correct response is only for reference for grading. It is neither seen by students or used for automatic grading.

    7. Screenshot of Create a Paragraph Question

  7. Set the Answer box height.
  8. Set the Answer box width.

    9. Screenshot of Create a Paragraph Question

For more options, click on the gray arrow next to More Options.

  1. If desired, provide General feedback that will appear to every student, regardless of their answer, after they have submitted the assessment.
  2. Insert Designer notes, which will be viewable only to instructors who have designer access, and are never viewed by students.
  3. Determine the Category in which the question will be filed, or create a new category to file the question in.
  4. Click Preview to review the question.

    5. Screenshot of More Options

The preview question will appear in a pop-up window. Confirm that the question is correct, and click Close.

    Screenshot of Create a Paragraph Question

When you are finished creating your question, click Save.

Short Answer Questions

Short answer questions require students to provide one, or multiple short answers to a question. Instructors can create short answer questions to have one correct answer, multiple correct answers in specific order, or multiple correct answers in any order.

To create a short answer question:

  1. Give the question a Title.
  2. Insert the Question text. If desired, use the HTML Creator to create the question text.
  3. If needed, open the Equation Editor in order to create a mathematical notation.
  4. If desired, insert an Image into your question.

    5. Screenshot of Create a Short Answer Question

  5. Insert the Answer text.
  6. Provide a Value for each correct answer. If the question requires more than one answer, the total percent value for all of the answers must equal 100%.
  7. Determine the grading scheme. "Contains" indicates that the student response must include the answer and any additional words will be ignored. "Equals" requires that the student response match the answer exactly, except for case sensitivity. "Regular expression" is a computer programming term that refers to a specific pattern of text in a file or program. If the regular expression choice is selected, an instructor can use the regular expression querying commands of the PERL language to highly refine the automatic grading of the answer text.
    8. Note: We do not recommend using this choice unless you are already familiar with PERL or wish to invest significant time in creating and testing your answer choices.
  8. Determine the Answer that is allowed in each answer box.
  9. Create additional answers if desired.

    10. Screenshot of Create a Short Answer Question

  10. Determine the Number of answer boxes shown to the student.
  11. Set the Answer box width.
  12. Determine if Answers are case sensitive.

    Screenshot of Create a Short Answer Question

For more options, click on the gray arrow next to More Options.

  1. If desired, provide General feedback that will appear to every student, regardless of their answer, after they have submitted the assessment.
  2. Insert Designer notes, which will be viewable only to instructors who have designer access, and are never viewed by students.
  3. Determine the Category in which the question will be filed, or create a new category to file the question in.
  4. Click Preview to review the question.

    5. Screenshot of More Options

The preview question will appear in a pop-up window. Confirm that the question is correct, and click Close.

    Screenshot of Create a Short Answer Question

When you are finished creating your question, click Save.

True False Questions

True False questions require students to answer either true or false in response to a question or statement.

To create a true false question:

  1. Give the question a Title.
  2. Insert the Question text. If desired, use the HTML Creator to create the question text.
  3. If needed, open the Equation Editor in order to create a mathematical notation.
  4. If desired, insert an Image into your question.

    5. Screenshot of Create a True False Question

  5. Select if the Correct response is true or false.

    6. Screenshot of Create a True False Question

For more options, click on the gray arrow next to More Options.

  1. If desired, provide General feedback that will appear to every student, regardless of their answer, after they have submitted the assessment.
  2. Insert Designer notes, which will be viewable only to instructors who have designer access, and are never viewed by students.
  3. Determine the Category in which the question will be filed, or create a new category to file the question in.
  4. Click Preview to review the question.

    5. Screenshot of More Options

The preview question will appear in a pop-up window. Confirm that the question is correct, and click Close.

    Screenshot of Create a True False Question

When you are finished creating your question, click Save.