Short Answer Options
When you choose Short Answer as your answer type, the system updates the screen to include a gray box labeled Answer Field.
If desired, you can use this screen to:
Place additional answer fields on the test. That is, by default, when you create a short-answer question, the system will display only one field on the test for the student to fill in. However, you might have a question that requires two or more answers. For example: “Name a.) the 41st U.S. president and b.) the year that he took office.” For such questions, you create an additional answer field. When you do this, your own view of the Test Builder is updated to include a second gray Answer Field box on the screen.
Set up automatic scoring for any of your answer fields. To do this, you enter one or more acceptable responses in any Answer Field box. When you do this, the system will automatically give the student full or partial credit for matching this response. If you do not enter any responses for automatic scoring, then all student responses will be flagged for manual grading.
If you want to ask a multi-part question, you should configure the question to provide the student with multiple answer fields. When you do this, the first answer field will be labeled "a”, the second will be labeled “b”, and so forth.)
In the Design the Answer(s) area of the screen, click the link labeled Add another answer field.
The system updates the screen to include an additional gray box labeled Answer Field.
If you want the system to automatically score the responses submitted using this answer field, enter the appropriate details under the label Automatic scoring (optional). Or, if you want to manually score all student responses entered in this field, you can ignore this section.
If you are done working with the question, scroll to the bottom of the screen and click either Save and add another or Save and return to Test Builder.
Note
If you have set up automatic scoring for more than one answer field, you may want to select the Partial Credit checkbox, which will allow the system to give the student some points for one answer field even if they miss the other.
For any Answer Field box, you can enter one or more correct (or partially correct) answers that the system can use to grade the student’s response.
For each answer you enter, you can specify the following:
The percentage of points that the student should be awarded for that response—your choices are 25%, 50%, 75%, or full credit.
The precision with which the student must match the response. Your choices for this are described in the Precision Option table below.
You can set up multiple acceptable responses for each answer field and give each response a different value. For example, you could give full credit for a complete answer (such as “Martin Luther King, Jr.”) and partial credit for an answer that is incomplete but conveys the right general idea (such as “Martin Luther King”).
Another approach is to create one correct answer, but have the system give full credit for “matching exactly” and a lesser amount of credit to students who just “match” the answer.
You can also combine different scoring techniques.
Navigate to the Design the Answer(s) area of the screen.
Use the left drop-down list to indicate how closely the student must match the answer you are planning to enter.
If you chose in between, the system updates the form slightly so that you can enter a number range.
Do one of the following:
In step 2, if you chose match, match exactly, or include, enter the appropriate response in the text field provided.
In step 2, if you chose in between, enter a number range in the fields provided.
In the drop-down list above the response, specify what percentage of the question’s points this response merits:
Full
75%
50%
25%
If you want to add another response that will automatically give the student some amount of credit for this answer field, click the link labeled Add an alternate correct answer.
The system adds additional response fields to the screen.
Repeat steps 1 through 4 for the new response.
If you want all other responses to get zero credit, adjust the last drop-down list in the response field, so that it reads All other response should receive 0 points. If you do not do this, then all other responses will be flagged for you to score manually.
If you are done working with the question, scroll to the bottom of the screen and click either Save and add another or Save and return to Test Builder.
Note
If you have set up automatic scoring for more than one answer field, you may want to select the Partial Credit checkbox, which will allow the system to give the student some points for one answer field even if they miss the other.
If you need to change a response that you already set up, simply open the question for editing and change the text, the style of matching, or the credit value, as appropriate, then save the question.
If you need to remove a response that you previously set up, do one of the following:
If the response you want to remove was not the first one you added, you can remove it by clicking the red x icon to the right of the response.
If the response you want to remove is the first one on the form, clear the answer text and save the question.
For each response you have created, you can add automatic feedback. The system will automatically display this feedback for a student who gets credit for the response. Students will see this feedback only if you have set up the test so that they can review their completed work.
You can also set up a more general type of feedback linked to this question.
On the Design the Answer(s) area of the screen, locate the response for which you want to add feedback.
In the Answer Field area, click the Add feedback link.
The system displays a pop-up text editor.
Enter the feedback you want to display if the student enters this response. The editor allows you to enter both text and images.
Click Save.
The system updates the balloon icon in the Answer Field area with an ellipsis, which indicates that you have created feedback for this response. However, your feedback will not be saved until you save the question.
If you are done working with the question, scroll to the bottom of the screen and click Save and return to Test Builder.
If you have set up automatic feedback to go with a particular response, you may want to change or remove it later.
On the Design the Answer(s) area of the screen, locate the response for which you want to modify feedback.
Click the corresponding Edit Feedback link.
The system displays a pop-up text editor showing the existing feedback.
Do one of the following:
If you want to modify the feedback, make the appropriate changes, then click Save. For more information on using the text editor to insert and edit text and images, refer to the Working with the Text Editor section.
If you want to delete the feedback, click Clear this feedback.
The system again displays your response(s). If you deleted feedback, note that the Edit feedback link has changed to an Add feedback link. However, your changes will not be saved until you save the question.
If you are done working with the question, scroll to the bottom of the screen and click either Save and add another or Save and return to Test Builder.
If you decide later that you want to remove an answer field that you previously added, open the question for editing and click the link labeled Remove this answer field.
The system will prompt you to confirm that you want to remove the answer field. To complete the removal, click OK.
If you have set up more than one answer field, and if you have configured automatic scoring for all answer fields, by default the system will not automatically give the student any credit unless the student matches responses that you set up as being worth some amount of credit for all answer fields.
If you want the student to get some credit even if they completely miss one answer field, select the Partial Credit checkbox.
Note
This checkbox is displayed only if your question has at least two answer fields.