Test Templates

In the last lesson you saw several options in the Settings area, which needs to be accessed in order to release a test to students. Options are based on the template that is used when creating a test. Until the instructor creates more templates, the only template available is the Default Template. The default template is set up to give you total flexibility in defining your settings. However, if you wish, you can create custom templates.

Custom Templates

Creating custom templates can be very useful if you give quizzes, skills tests, and exams on a regular basis. Each template may have unique settings pre-defined to meet different testing needs and defaults. Here are some examples of how you might want to have different templates already set up with different settings:

PRACTICE QUIZ TEMPLATE
WEEKLY QUIZ TEMPLATE
EXAM TEMPLATE
not time limited no time limit timed (2 hours)
unlimited resubmissions 2 submissions allowed only 1 submission allowed
allow late submissions no late submissions no late submissions
immediate feedback

feedback at a specific date (1 day after due date)

no feedback
don't send to gradebook send to gradebook do not send to gradebook (you then release the grades to the GB when you want)

These are just some examples of custom templates. If you have templates with pre-defined settings and know that you will want EXACTLY the same settings every time, then it can save you lots of time. The only thing you would need to do is set your delivery dates.

When creating custom templates, you must select the defaults you want (radio buttons, mostly) and MUST check the "editable" boxes for the section or you won't be able to make modifications under settings.

If all of this is too much for you, forget about custom templates. Just go through all the options of "Settings" for your assessment carefully prior to publishing it, every time.


Also, remember that what you are doing with the template is setting whether these options can be edited for each test, not making the actual settings. So when you create a template where you've checked that the
delivery dates can be edited, you're not setting the actual delivery date . . . your just setting that the delivery date can be edited.

Setting Up a New Template

In the left navigation menu, click on Tests & Quizzes.

At the top of the page, click on the Templates link.

Type in a template title and click Create.

There are numerous options, as you can see. Quite a few more than what you saw under Settings when you went to publish your first quiz. Let's see what they all do:
Template Information

In this setting, change template title, assign authors and give a short description or intro to the template.

Assessment Introduction

Set if the authors or introduction can be edited. If so, click to make a check in the appropriate box.

Delivery Dates

Click if the due date and/or retract dates can be edited.

Assessment released to:

Check if it's OK to edit the release to users.

If you check Anonymous, then no one in the class can take the exam because they aren't anonymous.

High Security

The default is no high security. Check if you want to allow access to test from only specific IP addresses, such as if students can only take the test from a particular lab. Also, click if you want a secondary ID and password to access the test.

Timed Assessment

If you need to make the test available for a specific time period, click to add check to Timed Assessment. If, when the time is up you want whatever the student has completed to be submitted, click the Auto-Submit box.

Assessment Organization

Click in the check boxes if you want faculty to be able to edit your choices. Then, in each area, click the radio button for the desired option.

Navigation Options: A student sees the question once, and after leaving the question, can't go back. VS. Questions are on a table of contents and students can choose to return to questions they were unsure of the first time they saw it.

Question Layout: Questions one per page, one part per page, or all questions on a single web page.

Numbering: Each question gets a sequential number, or each section restarts numbering.

Submission Message

The submission message is what students see right after they submit the exam. If you want to be able to edit this message for each exam/quiz, check box.

Can the final page URL be edited - check box.

Submissions

Can an assessment be submitted more than once - set the limit here.

Also, if you accept late submissions on tests and quizzes, make that choice here. The test/quiz will be marked as late for the instructor to deal with as desired.

Feedback

Check the box if you want to be able to edit choices for each exam.

Feedback Delivery: Choose immediate, at a specific date, or no feedback.

Components: Select what kind of feedback is returned to students.

Grading

Students' Identities: Select if grader can see who submitted the exam while grading.

Gradebook Options: select if grades are automatically entered into the Gradebook.

Recorded Score: If you accept multiple submissions, select if the highest score is recorded, or if the average of all submissions is recorded.

Graphics

Choose if you want the background color or image to be edited.

MetaData

Choose if you want metadata recorded for assessment and/or questions.

TIP

As you can see from all the available choices, it may be a good idea to create more than one template. For example, a simple quiz template with immediate feedback, and perhaps multiple submissions, and a midterm/final template with no feedback, only one submission, etc. Then when you are creating the exam or quiz, choose the appropriate template before starting on the questions.

2/21/06