Best Practices for On-line Testing in Blackboard Learn

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1 Instructors Before Creating On-line Tests Before using on-line tests for the first time, attend a CELT Workshop on Blackboard Assessments. While many aspects of Blackboard s on-line testing are intuitive, the importance of test grades in most classes and the variety of situations students may encounter make it important to understand the available options and their implications. Building Your On-line Test 1. Familiarize yourself with the various options that apply to each question type that you plan to use in your test. For example, some question types allow you to randomize answers, and some provide for possible partial credit for selected answers. Understanding the available options and their implications for grading the questions will help avoid confusion and issues for you and your students. 2. To help your students identify and solve technical issues before actual on-line tests begin, prepare a practice on-line test. Make the practice test as similar as possible in the settings and types of questions you will use in graded tests. You might even include questions about the online testing environment itself to reinforce student best practices. Make it a requirement for your students to take the practice test in the same location and circumstances they plan to take the graded tests. Have them report any problems or issues that they encounter while taking the practice test to you. 3. After you create an on-line test and have selected deployment options, take the test yourself as a student. If your students will be taking the exam in a computer/testing lab be sure to try your exam in the lab to be certain that the specific computer configurations do not interfere with the way the exam is displayed. This serves two important purposes: First, if you don t make a perfect score on your own test, you should check the questions you missed to ensure that the correct answers are indicated. Second, you will be sure that all your questions display properly in the browser. If possible, take your entire test using more than one of the supported browsers. This is especially important if you copy and paste text into your test questions and/or answers (see Step 4 below), embed images or special characters in the test editor, or use an equation editor in composing the test. 4. When creating questions, copying text from Word documents or other formatted sources can create problems when unseen formatting codes are carried over with the visible text. Such codes can interfere with the proper display of questions and answers when students take the test. If text needs to be copied into tests, use a text editor such as Notepad as an intermediate step. Or contact bbhelp@iastate.edu for information on the Respondus test authoring software, which can convert test documents into a form that is ready for use with Blackboard. bbhelp@iastate.edu 515/ (1 of 7)

2 5. If you have your students take your test in the classroom with you, it is possible that some students may have technical issues with their computer at that time. If it is not possible to provide alternate computers in the room, you will want to print a few copies of the test as a Plan B so they can still take the test at that time. Follow the instructions in the Printing a Blackboard Learn Test from Respondus document to print your Blackboard test. 6. Once students have begun taking a test you should not make changes in the test other than to correct typographical mistakes. Other changes will create inconsistencies in grading and can even corrupt the test to make it inaccessible by other students. 7. It is a good idea to insert a copy of the Best Practices for On-line Testing in Blackboard Learn for Students in your syllabus and/or test instructions to serve as a reminder to them how to avoid typical technical problems. Recommended Settings for Test Options 1. Note that regardless of any release dates or timer settings you select, you must also select the Yes radio button for Make the link available. This is what makes the link for the test available to students. 2. If you are concerned about students possibly using other programs on their computers while taking your test, such as another web browser or chat windows, or if you want to prevent students from copying and pasting into your test or printing/saving a copy of the test, contact bbhelp@iastate.edu about the Respondus Lockdown Browser which can lock down the students other options while taking an on-line test. 3. We strongly recommend unselecting the Force Completion checkbox for tests. If a student inadvertently exits or is timed out of a test s/he cannot return to complete the test. This feature does not serve as a good substitute for an enforced timer. 4. Unless this is a practice test in which the instructor will not view the grades, do not select the checkbox to Hide Results for this Test Completely from Instructor and the Grade Center. If you choose later to view the students test attempts, changing this option will automatically delete all previous practice attempts. 5. You have the option to have test questions presented to students All at Once or One at a Time. Our recommendation is to select the One at a Time option. This option requires the student to save each answer as they move from one question to the next. This can help a student avoid losing their work if their test session is interrupted. 6. Unless you need to have the students see their test in a new, separate browser window, select the No radio button for Open in New Window. If you select the Yes radio button for this option, inform your students that they should disable all pop-up blockers on their browser before starting the test. bbhelp@iastate.edu 515/ (2 of 7)

3 Information for Your Students Taking an On-line Test: 1. The next section of this document contains the Testing Best Practices for Students. It is a good idea to insert a copy of these in your syllabus and/or test instructions to serve as a reminder to them how to avoid typical technical problems. 2. Remind your students that they must click the Submit button at the end of the test for it to be completed. Also let them know whether they should expect to see their grade displayed after submitting the test, or if this will be delayed until essay questions are graded or until all students have completed the test. 3. If you choose to present your questions all at once, instruct your students to periodically save their answers. They can click the Save button next to each question as they select answers or scroll to the end of the page and click the global Save button. This will save their work thus far but allow them to continue to other questions and even change earlier answers up until the time they click Submit. 4. While Blackboard does not have a Time Out Limit, some Internet Service Providers (ISPs) may disconnect a student s session if it appears to have been inactive for a period set by the ISP. ISPs do not recognize typing in a text box as being active. Clicking the Save button is recognized as an indication of an active session. Students who are taking a test and appear to be inactive more than the time provided by their ISP provider may be disconnected. 5. Blackboard will generate some generic instructions based on options you select, such as a time limit. But instead of depending on these automatic notes, your instructions to your students should clearly state all constraints and options. For example, let them know if only one or multiple attempts are allowed, if backtracking is permitted, if there is a time limit, and what they should do if they get knocked out of the test. 6. Specify to your students what your policy is regarding how and when they should notify you of apparent technical problems with their test. Also specify what alternate options are available if they encounter problems. 7. If any of your students report technical issues while taking an on-line test, please contact bbhelp@iastate.edu as soon as possible if you wish for CELT to investigate. While we cannot guarantee identifying or verifying technical issues during a student s test session, we have access to data logs for about three days after any test session. 8. Blackboard Outages: Please be mindful (and wary) of giving exams at times that are susceptible to Blackboard outages. Scheduled outages are posted on the Blackboard login page. Note that maintenance may be performed on Blackboard at the following times without prior notice: Monday through Friday, 3:00 am - 7:00 am; Friday evening 10:00 pm through Saturday morning 7:00 am. Also note that Blackboard servers restart daily at 6 am. While sometimes this outage may only last a few minutes, CELT recommends not giving online exams or quizzes around 4 am. (All times are Central Standard Time.) bbhelp@iastate.edu 515/ (3 of 7)

4 Testing Best Practices for Students Best Practices for On-line Testing in Blackboard Learn Before Taking an On-line Test: 1. Use only supported browser versions when taking on-line tests. Supported browsers are listed on Iowa State University s Blackboard login page. 2. Before starting an on-line test, close all other software programs on your computer, including the browser that you plan to use to take the test. Re-start your browser and log in first to Blackboard without logging into any other Iowa State University sites. This will help identify your test session in the system logs if you encounter technical issues. 3. Disable all pop-up blockers. The steps for this will vary among browsers. If you have questions, call the Support Center to get directions on how to check your computer and browser settings for pop-up blockers. 4. Use a hardwired connection rather than your wireless connection to the Internet to take an online test. Make sure that when you connect your network cable to your computer you also disable the wireless receiver so that it does not override or interfere with the wired connection. 5. If your computer is connected to the Internet through an ISP cable modem that is shared among a number of users (such as at an apartment complex), you will likely experience problems with on-line tests. Questions may be slow to display and your connection may be lost briefly, which will cut off your test session. You should try to find a computer for your on-line tests that is on a more stable connection. 6. Make sure you do not have more than one browser window opened to Blackboard; this can cause problems submitting your exam. 7. Make sure your computer is up-to-date on Windows patches and that it is virus and spyware free. If you are not sure of the reliability of your PC or are having problems, use a campus lab computer. 8. Blackboard Outages: Please be mindful (and wary) of taking the exams at times that are susceptible to Blackboard outages. Scheduled outages are posted on the Blackboard login page. Note that maintenance may be performed on Blackboard at the following times without prior notice: Monday through Friday, 3:00 am - 7:00 am; Friday evening 10:00 pm through Saturday morning 7:00 am. Also note that Blackboard servers restart daily at 4 am. While sometimes this outage may only last a few minutes, CELT recommends not taking online exams or quizzes around 4 am. (All times are Central) 9. CELT also recommends clearing the cache on your computer before starting a test to mitigate potential problems. bbhelp@iastate.edu 515/ (4 of 7)

5 Clearing your Browser Cache Internet Explorer 1. Click the Tools menu. 2. Then select Internet Options. 3. On the General tab in the Browsing History area, click Delete. 4. Select all of the checkboxes. 5. Then click Delete. 6. Click the Content tab. 7. In the Certificates area, click Clear SSL State. 8. Then click OK. Mozilla Firefox 1. Click the Tools menu. 2. Select Clear Recent History. Note: On a MAC computer, the option will be Clear Private Data. 3. Then select all of the checkboxes in the Details area. 4. Then click Clear Now. Safari 1. Click the Safari menu. 2. Then select Reset Safari. 3. Select the Empty Cache checkbox. 4. Then click Reset. bbhelp@iastate.edu 515/ (5 of 7)

6 While You Are Taking an On-line Test: 1. Make sure you don t use your browser s back, forward and refresh buttons during a test. This can interrupt your test and knock you out of the test. To move from question to question, users should only use the arrows within the testing window or the Question Completion Status list of questions. 2. Do not double-click the start button on a test while waiting for it to load. This can cause multiple instances of the exam to open, leading to some confusion. 3. Make sure you are aware of your time while taking an on-line test. If your instructor sets a time limit, Blackboard will try to display a warning 1 minute before the time limit expires, but browser settings may prevent this warning from appearing. If your instructor sets a time limit in Blackboard, when you click open a test the clock will start and will not stop regardless of whether you save it and reopen later. It certainly may be prudent to have a back-up timer of your own. If you should get knocked out of an on-line test you should log back into Blackboard as quickly as possible to resume the test. 4. Instructors may set a limit as to when an on-line test is available, often referred to as the test window. The link to open or re-open your test is only visible during this window. If your test also has a timer, you will not be ejected from the test at the end of the test window, but if that window has closed you will not be able to re-enter the test if you are knocked out of the test after that time, even if your timer has not expired. Start early enough during the test window so that you can complete the test before the window expires. 5. If you are disconnected from your test session for any reason, you should close your browser, re-start the browser, and go back to the test in Blackboard. If your instructor permits, you will be returned to the test question you were just viewing. If your instructor selects the Force Completion option, however, you cannot re-enter a test. In such a case you must contact your instructor first regarding this. 6. If the exam has been selected to show all questions at once, you should periodically save your answers. You can click the Save button next to each question as you select answers or scroll to the end of the page and click the global Save button. This will save your work thus far but will allow you to continue to other questions and even change earlier answers up until the time you click Submit. 7. If test questions are presented one at a time, only click the "next question" arrow once, even if the response is slow moving to the next question. Each question is saved automatically by Blackboard as you move from one question to another so there isn t any reason to hit Save before moving to the next question. That would just add an extra delay between questions. 8. If you are typing an answer in a text box, be aware that neither Blackboard nor your browser saves text as you type it. One option is to click the Save button next to the question frequently so the text you have typed so far will not be lost. Another option that perhaps is more secure is to type answers to essay questions first in Notepad, save it there, and then copy and paste the answer into the test s text box. 9. If your instructor presents test questions one at a time, s/he can also choose whether to allow students to backtrack that is, to go back to previously answered questions. If backtracking is permitted, you can go forward and backward to adjacent questions at any time using the test bbhelp@iastate.edu 515/ (6 of 7)

7 navigation arrows or to any question at any time using the Question Completion Status window. However, if backtracking is prohibited you can only move forward one question at a time, and you can only get to the end of the test to the Submit button by advancing through all questions one at a time. If your test has a time limit, you will need to keep this in mind in case you need to skip several questions to reach the end and click Submit before time expires. After Taking an On-line Test: 1. After you submit your test, the information you will see next depends on the settings your instructor has selected. You may only see a confirmation that the test was submitted with no additional information. You may see a grade for the test if the instructor turns that on, if no test questions have to be graded individually, and if no time limit has been exceeded. If any questions require the instructor to assign a grade individually, you will see an exclamation mark (needs grading) instead of a grade. If you exceed a specified time limit, and you have not submitted the test, you will see a pencil and paper icon indicating that your attempt is Still in Progress. If you have exceeded the time limit, but submitted your test, you will see a green exclamation mark for the grade. If you have questions about this, you should contact your instructor. 2. If you are not certain that your test submission was acknowledged at the end, contact your professor immediately. Technical issues can be studied from system logs for only about three days following taking a test, and only if students log into Blackboard immediately after opening their browser. Blackboard 9.1 Testing Best Practices Blackboard's Test features provide a basic method to build online tests using different question types, the ability to import question pools, and the ability to manage certain testing and feedback options. Blackboard separates the processes of creating and deploying a test into two different stages. The following tips and recommendations are made for test creation and test deployment (items such as test availability and test presentation) to assist in minimizing common problems experienced by faculty and students; student experience tips to help with test taking and submission; and academic honesty tips to prevent plagiarism and dishonesty. Test Creation It is a good idea to title each quiz or exam with a unique identifying name. For example, instead of Test 1, try a topic or chapter based name. When you are creating the test, remember the description and test instructions will be viewed by students taking the exam. Test Length Tips It is recommended your tests not last more than minutes because of connectivity issues. If a large amount of material must be covered, give several shorter exams. Many students' Internet service will time-out before they finish an exam and their answers could be lost. If giving a short quiz, it is generally recommended to display questions all-at-once; this will reduce the number of times a student must hit the submit button. They can still save each individual answer and then submit when complete. bbhelp@iastate.edu 515/ (7 of 7)

8 Note: The Set time limit option does not automatically stop or submit the test when the time is up. It only lets the instructor know how many minutes over the time limit it took the student to complete the test. However if you also enable the auto-submit option, the test will be automatically submitted when time is up. Test Availability Options Make the Link Available: When deploying a test in a content area it is necessary to make the link available. Blackboard will not make the test available unless this is selected. It is recommended to make the link available and then limit the time it is available by selecting Display After and Display Until date/time restrictions. Multiple Attempts: A practical recommendation to assist students in the situation they should lose their Internet connection is to allow two attempts for the exam. This step will avoid them being locked out of the exam if their Internet connection is lost. If a student completes the exam more than once, their score will not be overwritten but rather you can choose which score to accept from the Grade Center; the first attempt, last attempt, highest grade, lowest grade, or an average of all attempts. Force Completion: If checked this option will clear the students saved answers should they exit the test or lose their Internet connection. Leaving this option unchecked will allow a student to reenter the exam; reducing the chance their answers are lost if disconnected during the test. Set Timer: You can set a timer to limit the time students might spend looking up answers. Blackboard does not force a submission by default at the end of a timed test but gives a warning as to how much time is left. The timer starts the first time the test is launched and if the student leaves the test for any reason the clock keeps ticking. If the student goes over the allotted time they will not get an automatic score. Instead an exclamation point will appear in the Grade Center so the instructor can deduct points for going over the allotted time. If you select to enable the auto submit option, the test will be automatically submitted, but it also leave the exclamation point. Display After and Display Until: This setting allows you to establish a window of time when the test is available for students. It is recommended that you make the test available for at least 24 hours but some faculty have found that distance-learning students may need a larger window of time due to work or other responsibilities. Password: You can set a password for a test if you want a student to take the test at a different time such as a make-up exam. Self-Assessment Options Include this Test in Grade Center Score Calculations: Blackboard allows you to create practice tests or self-assessments that are not included in the student's final grade. If you are using a test as a selfassessment, uncheck this box in the Test Options. Hide Results for this Test Completely from Instructor and the Grade Center: Blackboard provides options for self-assessments and this option is offered as a way to completely hide results of practice tests. This option is probably unnecessary in the case of a practice tests, which are not included in the Grade Center unless you feel the possibility of you viewing results will prevent students from taking a practice test. bbhelp@iastate.edu 515/ (8 of 7)

9 Test Feedback Multiple-choice, true false, matching, and other question types which can be automatically graded can be set to provide immediate feedback to students. Feedback options include Score, Submitted Answers, Correct Answers, and Feedback that you added when you created the test. If you are concerned about revealing correct answers before the entire class has completed the test, select Score only and then return to the Test Option area once all students have taken the test to select other more detailed feedback options. Test Presentation Presentation Mode: All at Once or One at a Time. A good recommendation is to present questions one at a time. Presenting questions one at a time will assist with timeout issues because students will be required to submit each question and then asked to confirm their submission continually sending data to the server each time. Randomize Questions: If you randomize the questions students will be shown the same set of questions but in random order. Do not use this option if you have sequential questions or questions that build on one another. If you want questions within the exam to be randomly selected from a set of questions making it unlikely that any two exams will be identical, develop a larger pool of questions and use the Random Block question type when you create the test. Avoid this option if you are using question-byquestion display. Note: When using randomized questions from pools, keep the overall test relatively short. Student Experience Tips Time Frame: Provide a reasonable time frame for students to take the test. It is recommended that you provide at least a 24 hour time frame and not require students to take the test all at the same time. Students could experience errors or other problems if all your students are hitting the server at the same time for the same test. This recommendation also applies to requiring students to take the online test all at the same time in a lab setting. System Requirements: In terms of system requirements, Firefox has been a more reliable browser when using Blackboard. It is recommended that you convey this to students and suggest they use Firefox for test taking. In addition, you can recommend students with internet trouble to take the test on campus, or even set up a proctored test. Time Outs and Server Limits: The Blackboard server reserves a certain amount of memory for assessment features. Because this memory is "limited," the servers will time out after 20 minutes. If it detects no activity while taking a test, the student may experience being "kicked out of the test." To avoid this problem, it is recommended you keep exam time under 1 hour. When giving a final or other long test, break the test into multiple shorter sections. For example, create two assessments of 50 questions or less and a separate exam for essay questions. For essay exams it is recommended to not require over 20 minutes for each response to avoid timeout issues. Alternative options may be to use the File Response question type and ask students to compose their essay in a word processing program and then attach the file. Using the Assignment Manager with time and date restrictions is also another bbhelp@iastate.edu 515/ (9 of 7)

10 method for essay exams. To help with timing out and student issue, avoid creating extremely large exams with complex questions and answers. Train students to save their exam every 15 minutes or so; this will help present test loss if an issue does occur. Academic Dishonesty There is no guaranteed method of preventing cheating when giving online exams. Requiring students to take a proctored mid-term and final exam is one method to discourage academic dishonesty but there are alternate methods, which might be more helpful for online education. In addition to including Iowa State University's Statement on Academic Dishonesty on your course syllabus, the following considerations are intended to provide you some practical ideas on discouraging dishonesty. Consider the following to help deter academic dishonesty: Consider drafting a Code of Honor contract for students to sign. Clearly define academically inappropriate behavior, your expectations for students, and identify reasons to be honest. Vary the type of assessments used throughout the class making it difficult for students to get constant help. Design discussion and test questions that cannot be answered easily unless the individual has done previous work in the course. Use several short quizzes rather than one or two tests to discourage getting help with testing. Design open book test questions that require students to demonstrate their understanding rather than simple hunt for the correct answer. Require that term papers and other assignments be submitted in stages (outline, introduction, rough draft, etc.). Ask students to submit an actual source, or the first page of each source for their paper. Make it a common practice to ask students questions about their paper. Students will be more cautious if they know their instructor will be asking question about their sources. Use monitoring tools in Blackboard to track student activity or lack thereof. Monitor the amount of time a student is working within the class and let them know if you notice a change in behavior. Additional Recommendations Here are a few helpful suggestions for faculty to use while creating tests and quizzes and a set of suggestions to give to students for successful completion of quizzes, tests and surveys given using Blackboard. Blackboard requires an interaction every 60 minutes during an assessment, meaning a Save or Submit action to help avoid having students kicked out of an exam. Test Setup: Give the exam using One Question at a time. This will ensure the student s continuous connection by interacting with the exam (clicking the arrow to move to the next question is considered an interaction by Blackboard). If the exam is given all at once, encourage saving every minutes. bbhelp@iastate.edu 515/ (10 of 7)

11 Turn off Force Completion option. Doing this allows the student to re-enter an exam from the last point he or she saved, allowing for successful submission with minimal data loss. Make tests, quizzes, and surveys short. A good number is between 20 and 30 questions per instance. If you must have more questions, break them up into smaller assessments. Having 50 to 100 questions is long for an assessment. This is especially true for assessments using a random selection from pools or test banks. Avoid using randomized tests (*ONLY FOR USE IF THE FIRST TWO WORKAROUNDS ARE UNUSABLE). While this is most likely an unusable workaround, the reason randomization is a problem is that each version of the exam in a randomized test is created in java memory only. So, a randomized test, should the java session for the user die, will not persist anywhere, and will be unrecoverable. Removing randomization will use a version of the test from the database, so at least the user would get the same test with the same order the next time he/she took the test. In the Announcements, if Instructors will add a course link, students will have no difficulty finding the quiz. Otherwise, finding the Quiz can be a problem. Remember to add a Course Link to the Test in your announcement. Demonstrate in your class how to take a test. Students might have practice taking an online test. Let students know the timeline students need to follow - when test will be available, and deadlines for submission. 10 Best Practices for your students: Save the exam every 10 to 15 minutes, like any other important paper or work you would do. If an exam is presented question by question, moving to the next question saves the answers. Use only Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari (Blackboard Supported Browsers). Do not use any buttons on the browser window, only use buttons within the exam window. A wired connection is better for taking exams. Wireless connections, especially in public areas might have weaker connections and be prone to dropout. Turn off all pop-up blockers (such as those included with Yahoo, Google and MSN Toolbars for Browsers as wells the one included in Microsoft Windows) while taking exams. If the instructor allows you to do so prepare your answers in a plain text document (such as notepad) and save them, then copy and paste into the test window. Never double-click on anything in the test window. Especially the Submit button. A single click will always work in Blackboard. Do not use the Enter key. That will cause the exam to submit in most instances. In some questions, the scroll wheel can change answers, e.g. multiple-choice. Do not use the scroll wheel because it may cause a browser to go back or refresh, and/or leave the test. Recommendations for Instructors doing Online testing: bbhelp@iastate.edu 515/ (11 of 7)

12 In the Announcements, if Instructors will add a course link, students will have no difficulty finding the quiz. Otherwise, finding the Quiz can be a problem. Remember to add a Course Link to the Test in your announcement. Demonstrate in your class how to take a test. Students might have practice taking an online test. Let students know the timeline students need to follow - when test will be available, and deadlines for submission. bbhelp@iastate.edu 515/ (12 of 7)