new educational technologies series · 2020. 10. 5. · goals: the goals of this workshop are (1)...

Bb: Publish Online Exams with Respondus

Educational Technologies Series

Revised: February 1, 2021


Center for Learning and Teaching | Distance Learning | Old Dominion University Page 2 of 12

Workshop Summary

Respondus is a powerful tool for creating and managing exams and exam questions. It allows you to publish or upload exams directly to Blackboard. It can also download a Blackboard exam, to save it as a print exam, for your records, or for use by Educational Accessibility. The focus of this workshop is Respondus 4.0, which ODU provides access to.

Goals:

1. Introduce Respondus’ basic features, installation, and functionality 2. Provide resources for further application and support

Objectives:

At the end of this workshop, participants will be able:

• Download and install Respondus 4.0 (on Windows computers) • Format an exam, using a variety of question types, for importing into Respondus • Publish an exam to a Blackboard course site as a Test or Question Pool • Configure and review the exam for delivery to students • Download an existing exam from Blackboard

Topics & Activities:

Respondus Overview

• Uses: exam creation, import, upload, and download from Blackboard • ODU Site License • Download and Installation

Respondus Functionality

• Features Overview • Importing a Test into Respondus • Publishing a Test or Test Pool to Blackboard • Downloading a Test from Blackboard • Blackboard Test Tips

Blackboard Test Options and Settings

• Reducing Cheating in Blackboard tests • Respondus 4.0 versus Respondus LockDown Browser

Tech Support and Resources:

• ITS Help Desk: 757-683-3192; [email protected]; ODU Help Desk • ODU Respondus



• Respondus Knowledge Base • Respondus Training (including videos) • Blackboard Help

Respondus Overview

Respondus 4.0 is one of a series of products for developing tests, interactive activities, and online exam delivery. Learn more: https://www.respondus.com/.

Respondus Products

• Respondus 4.0 (ODU) • LockDown Browser (ODU) • Respondus Monitor

• StudyMate Campus • Test Bank Network

ODU Site License (Yearly Installation)

Faculty and staff can download, install, and use Respondus 4.0 with ODU’s yearly site license. This license requires that each year you uninstall Respondus before installing it again with the latest version.

Activity 1: Installing Respondus

Respondus System Requirements

• Windows 10, 8, or 7 • 32 MB of RAM

• 10 MB of free hard disk space • 1280x720 monitor (minimum)

Download and Install

Follow ODU’s Respondus Installation Guide and Respondus Quick Start Guide closely. The guides are included in the workshop package and are linked from the download page.

Download Respondus: https://www.odu.edu/ts/software-services/respondus

You must use your ODU MIDAS account to download and configure Respondus.

Note: You may also have to use Run as Administrator and enter your credentials, even if you are alreaded logged in. Be sure to follow the installation prompts closely.

If you do not have admin rights to your computer, contact [email protected] to request they install Respondus Campus wide on your system. Please verify installation and that you can publish an exam while the ITS staff is still present as additional downloads requiring admin right might be needed.



Respondus 4.0 Functionality

Authoring Tests

• Create test within Respondus manually (one question at a time) • Import test from a document (multiple questions at a time)

Previewing, Publishing and Printing Tests

• Preview test within Respondus to verify everything is correct • Publish test to Blackboard for delivery to students • Print paper copy for face-to-face testing or accessibility accommodation

Retrieving Tests

• Download tests from Blackboard • Retrieve reports from Blackboard

Importing Tests (Required Formatting)

Importing a test from a document is one of the most common uses for Respondus. In most cases, tests are imported, then formatted, and then uploaded to a Blackboard course site.

Import Filetypes: simple Text (.txt), Rich Text Format (.rtf), Microsoft Word (.docx)

Respondus makes importing and uploading large tests to Blackboard more convenient than creating it directly in Blackboard. It also allows for easy reprinting of paper exams.

However, for Respondus to work properly, the formatting of test questions is very important!

Multiple Choice Formatting

Correct answers for Multiple Choice can be indicated in two ways:

1. place an asterisk (*) directly in front of the answer choice. Note: do not put a space between the asterisk and the answer letter.

2. place an answer key list at the end. The list must begin with "Answers:" and must be positioned at the end of the file. (Any text after the answer list will be ignored.)

Asterisk Correct Answer List at End Correct Answer

Who determined the exact speed of light? a. Albert Einstein *b. Albert Michelson c. Thomas Edison d. Guglielmo Marconi

Answers: 1. A 2. C 3. B 4. B



Optional Formatting (not required)

Or

True/False Formatting

Similar to Multiple Choice but limited to two answer choices only. The same options for answer key, feedback, title, and points are available.

5. Albert Einstein determined the exact speed of light a. True *b. False

Important: the True (or "T") answer choice must be listed before the False (or "F") in order for Respondus to recognize it as a True/False question type. (If False appears first, the question will be imported as Multiple Choice.)

Question Title

Incorrect answer feedback

Individual answer feedback

Correct answer feedback



Correct answers for True/False questions can be indicated in three ways:

1. the complete word “True” or “False” 2. the letter “T” or “F” 3. the alphabetical letter “A” (for true) or “B” (for false)

Multiple Answer (MA) Formatting

Similar to Multiple Choice, but it needs the Type defined (MA) and all correct answers indicated.

Type: MA 8) Which of the following individuals are credited with determining the exact speed of light? a. Albert Einstein *b. Albert Michelson c. Thomas Edison *d. Edward Williams Morley

The formatting of each of the following MA answer key examples is acceptable:

Answers: 1. B D 2. B, D 3. B,D

Essay (E) Formatting

Add the Type (E), and if you want to supply an example answer, use the same manner as Multiple Choice: either add “a." followed by the answer, or add the text to the answer key.

Type: E Title: Michelson-Morely experiment 4) How is the Michelson-Morely experiment related to Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity? a. In 1887, Albert Michelsong and Edward Morely carried out experiments…

Assign Points

Points: 5 12) Which of the following individuals are credited with determining the exact speed of light? a. Albert Einstein *b. Albert Michelson c. Thomas Edison *d. Edward Williams Morley Full Respondus formatting instructions: Respondus 4.0 User Guide for the Blackboard Learning ...



Activity 2: Creating New Respondus Test and Importing Questions

1. Open Respondus 2. Select Start tab

3. Select Import Questions 4. Choose Type of file

5. Browse to file location and select file

6. Enter new document name

7. Select Preview

8. If no errors, select Finish to save Respondus file

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Activity 3: Adjusting Test Settings

Respondus supports configuring Blackboard test options for feedback and numbering prior to uploading/publishing the exam. Below are some of these options.

1. Select Settings tab 2. Select Other Settings option 3. Change settings as needed

Note: The workshop’s sample files require careful review of settings.

• Some answer choices include reference to other answer choices (e.g. c. both a & b) • Some questions may refer to a previous question

Activity 4: Previewing and Verifying Test

Previewing the test in Respondus before publishing it to Blackboard will catch many common errors and save a lot of time!

1. Select Preview & Publish tab 2. Select Preview option 3. Select Preview the File 4. Step through the test looking for errors

Test feedback options for students

Test delivery options and answer numbering



Note: Simple errors in the question text and answer choices can be corrected with the Modify Item button.

Activity 5: Publishing Test to Blackboard

Follow the Publish steps in the Respondus Quick Start Guide to configure Respondus for ODU Blackboard and to upload your test. These are the steps to publish your Respondus file to a single Blackboard course, via direct upload to the Blackboard server. The guide is included in the workshop package and is linked from the Respondus page.

Respondus Quick Start Guide: https://www.odu.edu/content/dam/odu/offices/occs/docs/respondus-quick-start.pdf.

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If you are unable to publish following these steps, an alternative method is to save the Respondus file locally, which can then be manually uploaded into a Blackboard test pool. Select the option “Save pool to local file for manual uploading” from the Publish Wizard. This will download the Respondus file as a zipped (compressed) folder. You’ll be prompted to name and save the compressed folder. You can now follow the steps for importing a test pool, as provided in Blackboard Help.

Activity 6: Downloading Test from Blackboard

If a test needs to be saved for accessibility accommodation, portfolios, paper distribution, accreditation paperwork, or any other reason, Respondus can download either the exam with answer key or reports based on student submissions.

1. Open Respondus

2. Select Retrieval & Reports tab 3. Select Retrieve Questions option 4. Select ODU Blackboard server and then Next 5. Log in with your MIDAS credentials

6. Select Blackboard course site that has the test

7. Select which Exam to download from menu

8. Enter a Respondus filename for the test and then Next

The test can now be printed from Respondus, with or without the answer key.

Avoiding Question Import Errors

Even small typos in imported files can cause problems in Respondus. Common errors to watch out for when importing your files include:

1. Missing or extra blank spaces in question text or answer choices

2. Missing blank line(s) between questions/answers

3. Complex Word formatting (remove and reformat it)

4. Missing or incorrect question type notation before questions (E, MA, etc.)

5. Missing correct answer choice indicator (*, ~, @)

6. Missing or out of sequence question numbers

7. Missing or out of sequence answer choices



Activity 7: More Practice with Question Importing

1. Import the workshop’s Example3.docx into Respondus

2. Enter filename

3. Run Preview

4. Review Warning and Errors

5. Make corrections to the Doc file, then import again

6. Run Preview again to find other errors

Blackboard Test Tips

Respondus LockDown Browser

The Respondus LockDown Browser (LDB) is a software that secures test-taking within Blackboard. When students use Respondus LockDown Browser, they are unable to print, copy, do a Google search, or leave the test. If an assessment is started, students are locked into it until they submit it for grading.

Faculty can configure Blackboard tests to require LBD. Student must download and install the LockDown Browser from ODU in order to take these types of tests: https://www.odu.edu/ts/software-services/respondusldb.

Blackboard Test Options

Blackboard test options can be adjusted to vary delivery, feedback, and other settings. Full instructions are available from Blackboard Help: https://help.blackboard.com/Learn/Instructor/Tests_Pools_Surveys/Test_and_Survey_Options .

Test Options:

• Availability dates • Timer • Question delivery options

o Random question sequence o All at once or One at a time o No back track on questions

• Force completion • Password protection • Question feedback • Question Pools and Question Sets • Test Exceptions for accessibility accommodations



Activity 8: Reviewing Test in Blackboard

Once your test has been uploaded from Respondus to Blackboard, verify the test is correct.

1. Log into https://www.blackboard.odu.edu

2. Open the Blackboard course site

3. Navigate to the new test link (depends on the folder you selected for upload during Publish)

4. Use the Test Options menu, , to select Edit the test 5. Review test questions, answers, and points

6. Edit questions as needed

7. Use Test Options menus to Edit the Test Options or Modify Options 8. Verify and change settings as needed

new educational technologies series · 2020. 10. 5. · goals: the goals of this workshop are (1)...

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