When creating tests/exams/quizzes in Blackboard Learn there are some tips faculty can follow to help ensure that the students have a dependable and uninterrupted experience.
Do:
- Provide detailed instructions (how many questions, what type of questions, how long, etc.) so that students can be fully prepared before they start the exam.
- Create a ‘syllabus’ (or other practice) quiz in the first week of the course so students can gain some experience with the procedure of taking a test. This is especially helpful if you choose to require the Respondus LockDown Browser to take exams in your course.
- Pick the option to display one question at a time. The student can manually click save, or each time the student accesses the ‘next’ question, their test session will be saved. This will decrease the probability that the system will lose student data.
- If you intend to use audio/video files in the questions of your exam, you may want to require the students to take a practice exam with a similar audio/video file so students can test their speakers/plug-ins. Remind the students that they should take the practice exam using the computer they will use for the exam.
- If you set a timer, think about setting the “Save and submit” option. If that option is set, then when the timer ends, Blackboard will save all of the answers up until that point, then it will automatically close the test. This will ensure that students cannot go over the time allotted.
Don’t:
- Don’t select the “force completion” option. In case of any issues with the session timing out, the user will be able to re-enter the exam from the last point he/she saved, allowing them to submit the exam with minimal data loss. In addition, the save button will also function the same as the solution above, allowing the java session to persist for a longer period of time.
- Don’t create large exams (100+ questions) and have the questions presented all at once on the same page.