Practice Tests enable custom course creators to create comprehensive, longform simulated exams that users can use to assess their knowledge of a particular subject. Similar to Quizzes, Practice Tests are composed of multiple choice or multiple selection questions, but unlike Quizzes, Practice Tests can provide a longer, more robust assessment tool.
While Practice Tests can be added to any standard course, they are particularly useful for subjects when users are preparing for a final exam. Examples of these types of exams include the SAT, GMAT, ACT, or the various certification exams used in various professional industries like IT, Architecture, Finance, and Business.
This article outlines how course creators can create and add practice tests to their courses.
How to add a practice test to your curriculum
To add a practice test for your course curriculum, follow the steps below:
1. Navigate to the Curriculum page of your course.
2. On the side, hover your cursor over the grey space within a section, where you want the practice test to be placed. Click + Curriculum item and then Practice Test.
3. Enter the practice test’s title and then click Add Practice Test.
4. Next, click on the pencil icon beside the practice test title to begin planning the practice test.
5. Enter a description for the practice test, how much time users have to complete the exam, and the minimum score students must get in order to pass it. The option to randomize the order of questions and answers in the exam, can also be toggled on here.
- Learn how practice test activity and time is tracked.
Once this information has been entered, click Save to proceed. You can now begin adding questions to it.
How to add questions to a practice test
1. If you exited the planning or editing process previously, after adding a practice test to the curriculum, click the pencil icon beside its title.
2. Click the + icon to begin adding questions to the practice test.
3. Select the type of question you wish to create (Multiple choice, Multiple selection or Fill in the blanks), or Bulk upload if you wish to import multiple questions to your course at once.
Please note: Each practice test can include up to 250 questions.
Adding questions individually
1. After selecting either the Multiple choice, Multiple selection or Fill in the blanks options, follow the directions on the corresponding page to enter the question and answer(s).
For multiple choice and multiple selection questions, select the correct answer(s) by clicking on the circle or rectangle to the left.
- For multiple-choice and multiple-selection questions, click Add answer option if the question requires additional answers. Up to 6 answers can be added for each question.
- To enter a blank field for a fill-in-the-blank questions, add two (2) underscore symbols (__) before and after your selected word. For example: __Mercury__ is the smallest planet in our solar system.
- If you'd like to provide learners with additional information or context about the question, you can add resources and domains by clicking the applicable option.
- Pro tip: When learners interact with your practice test in “practice mode” (see below for more information) they can select a domain to focus on. Make sure all of your questions have a domain assigned to create a smooth learner experience.
2. Finally, click Save question and repeat the steps above to add more questions.
Editing or deleting questions individually
If you need to edit a question you previously created and saved, follow the steps outlined above to access the practice test and select the applicable question. After updating the question, click Save question. If you are editing a published practice test, click Publish changes if you want learners to access the updated content.
If you need to delete a question, click Delete at the top of the page.
Using the bulk question uploader
Course creators can use the Bulk upload option to import an existing set of questions into the practice test.
1. After selecting the Bulk upload option by following the steps outlined above, access the CSV template and format your questions according to the document.
- Note: As of May 2, 2024, course creators can still upload questions to previously created practice tests using the previous version of the CSV template if they wish. Please be advised that the previous CSV template will be phased out in the coming weeks and the new CSV template will be required for all bulk question uploads.
Please note: To avoid uploading errors, be sure to use the same format that's on the template.
- Your completed document must retain the same number of columns on the template (even if they're not used).
- The formatting for the column titles cannot differ from the formatting used in the template.
- The Question Type column must include the question type exactly as they're listed on the template. For example: multiple-choice must be written in the cell in this format with the hyphen and casing.
3. Click Upload CSV file and upload your file.
Previewing and publishing the practice test
To see how the practice test will appear to learners before publishing it, click Preview at the top of the page. If the practice is complete and ready to be taken, click Publish. If you are updating a published practice test, click Publish changes.
The different modes for practice tests: practice and exam
Learners can interact with practice tests in “practice mode” or “exam mode.”
Practice mode:
- Learners can check answers to questions immediately while working through the test
- Learners can focus on specific subject domains
- Learners can progress through the test with no time limit and at their own pace
Exam mode:
- Simulates the actual test environment
- Times the session like a real exam
- Learners cannot check their answers until after completing the test
Note: if you would like to disable practice mode for practice tests that have been added to your organization’s custom courses, please follow the steps outlined in this Help Center article.