14.3: WebCT Types of Quiz Questions
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In contrast to some of the other WebCT tools, such as the calendar or email, the WebCT Quiz Tool is more an environment than a single application. The WebCT Quiz Tool environment has four important parts, one is the question database, another is the quiz index, a third is the quiz editor and the fourth is the actual WebCT quiz (see Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\)).
The question database contains the questions used in a quiz, the quiz editor organizes the questions from the database into a WebCT quiz, and the quiz index (technically referred to as the Quizzes/Surveys page) provides a quick index/link to all the quizzes and their results/statistics contained in the course module. This logical structuring allows the same question database to be used in a variety of different quizzes. You can even export questions from the question database to self-tests.
You access the Quiz Tool through the Control Panel. From the Control Panel you click on Quizzes/Surveys and that takes you to the Quizzes/Surveys page. Here you can create a new quiz or survey, edit an old quiz or survey, and modify the look of the Quizzes/Surveys homepage. From the Quizzes/Surveys page you can link to the question database. The Quizzes/Surveys page is the central hub of the Quiz Tool.
As part of the content of a quiz, you can link to external sources, such as images or other file types (HTML, audio, video, PowerPoint, XLS, etc.). Though the student would not be aware, the code causing this linking can be contained either in the individual questions (in the question database) or in the quiz module (entered through quiz editor). I will discuss linking from individual questions to other files first, and then I will discuss linking from the quiz module to other files. JavaScript can be used in this linking process to significantly enhance quiz presentation.
There are five different types of quizzes in WebCT, and one type, the short answer quiz, allows the student to enter either a single word or a more complex longer phrase as answer. The answers for these quizzes can be parsed using RegularExpression coding. This means that immaterial or trivial typing mistakes on the part of a student, such as an extra space between words, can be identified and will not be penalized. This reduces some of the anxiety often experienced with online testing. After discussing linking to files, I examine RegularExpression coding in some detail.
There are five different types of WebCT questions:
In each type of question shown above, you can link either to content contained within a WebCT directory or to content external to the WebCT course module.
Though it does vary slightly from question type to question type, the entry screen to create or edit a quiz question usually has seven sections: category, title, question, settings, answers, and general feedback.
It is a simple matter to create the link to the image, click on the browse button to search the directory structure of WebCT for your graphic; you simply need to know where the image is located in your WebCT file structure.
The value of using this variable is that it enables you to easily transfer a database of questions from you WebCT module to another, as long as the directory structure is logically the same. It also allows you to zip your course into a different WebCT root name.
Even though I am using the multiple choice question as an example, these methods of linking to files to provide content for a quiz apply to all the question types. The WebCT quiz environment is quite versatile and rich. Beyond the scope of this article, there are many other options that can be set at the individual question level, such as randomization of the index, multiple choice questions can be configured to accept only one answer or a number of possible answers each with a different value, etc. In addition, the quiz module itself, as distinct from the questions in the quiz, has a variety of different settings, which allows the quiz to be managed in a variety of different ways. In the section on supervising quizzes, I will discuss in some detail the quiz module settings.
In summary then, from within WebCT questions, there are two easy ways to link to images for display during a quiz, you is using the IMAGE FIELD in the question section and another is using the <IMG SRC=“”> tag within the question field, the answer # field, the feedback # field, and the general feedback field.
A simple JavaScript to generate a pop-up window is shown here. [The code in red is not part of the JavaScript required to create the pop-up window link.]
The quiz module is created/edited through the Quizzes/Surveys link. Go to the Quizzes/Surveys page and select the quiz. When you click on the quiz name you are automatically put into the quiz editor. The quiz editor assembles and connects the various parts of a quiz (which I am referring to as the quiz module). Most importantly, through the quiz editor you link the questions from the question database to a quiz. Here you can add questions, delete questions, modify the settings for a quiz, and preview the quiz, to name but a few of its functions. This is where you can program WebCT to randomly generate a set of questions from a database of questions.
For example, in the calculated question example, I create the table for the quiz using the following HTML code.
In the example shown above, the ^ tells the parser that the entry has to begin at the beginning of the line; the + tells the parser that it can match one or more occurrences of the character immediately to the left (in this case a space); the \ tells the parser that the character following is a period (not a meta character); the ? tells the parser that the character to the left (the period) may or may not be there, but if it is there it should only occur once; and the $ tells the parser this should be the end of the entry. As I do not want my quizzes to be a course about typing, regular expressions can reduce significantly the number of answers marked incorrect due to trivial typing errors. This mean all the following would be treated as correct by the regular expression parser:
Some O are F.
some o are f.
some o ARE F
SOME O ARE F
The following are links to pages about Regular Expression:
One of the links is to an applet, which tests your RegularExpression, another is to the Regex Coach, a program which can be downloaded. I have found both these tools invaluable when creating regular expressions. The other links are to online reference material about RegularExpression. Some of these links were created and are maintained by Henk Schotel. For those who have visited the WebCT Home Page and specifically the Dr. C support facility, you will recognize Henk as one of the experts who contributes to Dr. C.