CamScan 

This tool can be suggested to scan tests or exams. It includes some options to correct errors when the image is being captured.

This app is available for both Android and iOS.

Moodle

Moodle is a Learning Management System (LMS) widely known and used among different contexts by millions of users. It allows the full management of a Curricular Unit (CU), content upload, etc. It’s the platform used, for example, on Técnico+.

Characteristics (related to evaluation)

• Quizzes (“micro-tests”): maybe the most relevant feature in this context. These quizzes are very versatile. They allow various types of questions to be made, from multiple choice to more complex types of questions such as fill-in-the-blanks, numerical calculations, correspondence questions, etc. culminating in open questions. The student’s responses are auto-corrected when it makes sense and with some flexibility. For example, on the numerical questions, it is possible to indicate a margin of error (to make sure rounding is taken in consideration, for example), questions in multiple units are also taken in consideration, etc. On the extreme end of the spectrum, the responses can be corrected by hand and even autocorrected questions can be subject to a correction override by the professor. The quizzes may or may not be page sequenced, questions (such as multiple-choice ones) can have its options randomized and the questions on a quiz can be randomized from a poll of previously entered questions, resulting in different wording for each student, therefore minimizing the copy risk by simply sharing the solution key.
• Assignments: these are tasks with a delivery date. Basically, the equivalent to a project submission on Fénix. It has some added flexibility though: the assignment can be completed upon text input directly on Moodle or by .zip or .pdf file uploads.
• Discussion forums: these have the expected format – posts and replies. Having said this, each post can be rated by professors (or only by one, or by multiple professors; it can globally be rated by the highest rate, the average of rates, etc.). It is useful to deploy topics of discussion and then evaluate the participation/contribution of students on the matter.
• It allows for results to be exported and automatic management of the results. Possesses various other functionalities that may or may not be useful, depending on the context.
• Everything can only be done through authentication (you can use Fenix’s) and only by students with access to the CU.
• You can establish deadlines for about anything, such as the date and hour in which documents become available. It allows deliveries to be done with some delay, marking them as such (if the professor so allows it).

User Experience

It is used in multiple instances on campus. To teach, by at least two: Técnico+ and to Multimedia Content Production CU. The online community is big so as the support provided online.

How To

The site is Moodle. However, it will be necessary to make at least a local installation of the platform (ex: one for IST, similarly to what it has been done to Técnico+).

To create a quiz, first of all, you need to create questions. When you are creating the questions, you need to group them by category of similar questions, typically by topic. If the idea is to select random questions but with some equity between students, the grouping referred earlier must group equivalent questions, in both topics and complexity.

On the configuration menu of the CU (cogwheel on the superior right corner), select “more…” and then select “Categories”. That will allow you to add categories at your own will. They are hierarchically organized, so we can create subcategories easily.

Once the categories are created, on the tab “Questions”, on the top, we can proceed to the questions management and edit section. The first thing to do is select on the top combo box the category in which you pretend to create questions. That way, all created questions will be created inside that specific category. If we accidentally create a question outside its right category, we can move it to the right one effortlessly by selecting the question we want to move (using the checkbox on the left) and then “Move to” bellow the list of questions.

To create a question, select “Create Question”. Afterwards, Moodle asks us to select the type of question we want to create. There are bout 15 types of questions we can create, from multiple choice to free answer. Each type of question will a different edit form, automatically adapted from type to type. On these edit forms, you can insert images and other content (rich text editor).

It is not necessary to create every question in the same session. You can add/edit questions later as Moodle saves the questions and categories you created in previous sessions.

To create a quiz, on the main page of the course, you must activate the “Edit Mode” and the “Add Activity”, only then choosing “Quiz”. Once the basic configurations are inputted, then we can start adding questions. For that, we can choose “Edit Test” and we will be prompted to the edit page of the assessment. Then we can add questions from the poll of questions we created earlier to the quiz (by selecting “Add” on the right). To add just one question, choose “from the question database”. To choose a random question from a specific category or pool, select “a random question”. By doing that, Moodle asks you what category you pretend to select and how many questions of that category you wish to add. Moodle also assures that no student will receive two equal questions on any type of assessment.

 

Microsoft Teams

Microsoft Teams aggregates in one only interface (App) various services already existent on the Microsoft Cloud:

• Calendar
• Skype
• Whiteboard
• Forms
• OneDrive

Regarding online assessments, Microsoft Teams integrates Forms with a flux of timescale, evaluation and post of results.

Characteristics

• Allows only authenticated Fenix students to access the app
• It is possible to create a specific team for each CU:
  • The number of students that can be inserted automatically is limited to 100
  • A sign in process is mandatory to access Teams, so as an authorization process that may not be instantaneous

Limitations:

• Each team has a link that can be used by the students to request and/or enter a set team. This process obliges the professor to confirm each request.

Teams allow for two types of evaluation methods:

• Assignments
• Quizzes

 

How to

Access from IST.

 

Students instructions:

• Activate the Técnico institutional e-mail
• Activate access to Microsoft 365

 

 

Examples

• Quizzes
• Assignments
• Rubric Grading Criteria in Microsoft Teams Assignments

 

SpeedExam

SpeedExam is an online evaluation platform that allows the creation of tests and exams. The free version allows for up to 50 monthly exams and they offer two paid versions: professional – allows up to 500 monthly exams – and ultimate – allows for an unlimited number of exams to be made. However, both paid versions only allow for a limited number of professor accounts.

Characteristics

• Question order can be randomized so as possible answers.
• A library of questions can be created
• Allows various types of questions to be created: multiple choice, multiple answer (checkboxes), numerical input, free extensive answer and mathematical expression input.
• Questions can be imported from an Excel document (increases variability in questions with data).
• Mathematical expressions can be inputted, both in the questions and on student’s answers.
• Allows for a question categorization (pool of questions by theme).
• Allows for images to be inserted on both as questions and as response options (multiple choice).
• The exam duration can be arbitrarily defined.
• The institution logo can be added to all exams and on the paid versions, the SpeedExam watermark is removed.
• Supports auto-correction.
• An invitation to the exam can be sent via e-mail or link.
• The assignments results can be sent via e-mail to the professors.
• Adaptive user interface for tablets and smartphones.
• Proctoring: records the exam in video through the student’s computer camera; reports copy-paste or Print Screen feature usage; records students sign in numbers.

User Experience

• The free version does not allow for the proctoring to be tested
• The user interface is graphically pleasing and intuitive, with an interesting diversity of tools.

This tool disadvantage is that it cannot run on the IST servers, the authentication via Fenix is not possible and it is paid (although the costs are quite low).