Required and Optional OMR Job Sheets
This Kb article presents information about the required and optional job sheets that should be included for OMR processing at the Help Desk.
The Info Sheet
- The INFO sheet should be the top sheet in the stack of sheets submitted for each scan run.
The NAME grid: (begin in the first grid square on the left in the top-left corner of Side 1)
- Write the word INFO -- fill in the corresponding bubbles below each letter
- Skip the next column in the NAME grid
- Enter a unique Name for this exam within the 15 remaining spaces in the NAME grid -- fill in the bubbles corresponding to each letter
- The first word of the exam name becomes the first part of the text output file names
Write your name and phone number in the space above the NAME grid
The IDENTIFICATION NUMBER grid:
- Columns A, B, and C - Enter the course number
- Columns D and E - Enter the section number
- Column F - Enter the version number if there are several versions of the same test
- Column G - leave EMPTY
- Columns H, I, and J - Enter the number of the last question used on the test (usually equal to the total number of questions unless you decide to omit some questions)
The ANSWERS area (the numbered questions):
- Question 1 - Enter the type of grading to be used:
- "A" = conventional grading
- "B" = weighted grading
- Question 2 - The number of printed copies of the report results needed (be sure to tell the Help Desk consultant you would like to receive printed copies as well - printed results cannot be sent via Campus Mail):
- "A" = 1 copy
- "B" = 2 copies
- "C" = 3 copies
- "D" = 4 copies
- "E" = 5 copies
- Question 3 - Mark "A" to have student names printed on the right edge of the Report 7 printout (the Student Summary). The name can be cut off the summary for public posting
- Question 4 - controls the sorting of results prior to printing (Report 7 - the posting report - is always printed in numerical order to provide confidentiality)
- "A" = sorted alphabetically
- "B" = sorted by Student ID
- Question 5 - allows combinations of answer choices to be scored as correct:
- "A" = all questions have a single correct answer
- "B" = score the exam using the "AND" option
- "C" = score the exam using the "OR" option
- Question 6 - the test type category: (needed to generate the tab-delimited output files suitable for import into Blackboard Learn Original or any spreadsheet or word processor)
- "A" = category 1: Test
- "B" = category 2: Final
- "C" = category 3: Quiz
- "D" = category 4: Other
- Questions 7 - 9 allow you to write additional optional information to the scores output file as described below:
- Use "A" for Question 7 for "test" #1
- Use "B" for Question 7 for "test" #2
- Use "C" for Question 7 for "test" #3
- Use "D" for Question 7 for "test" #4
- Use "E" for Question 7 for "test" #5
- Use "A" for Question 8 for "test" #6
- Use "B" for Question 8 for "test" #7
- Use "C" for Question 8 for "test" #8
- Use "D" for Question 8 for "test" #9
- Use "E" for Question 8 for "test" #10
- Use "A" for Question 9 for "test" #11
- Use "B" for Question 9 for "test" #12
- Use "C" for Question 9 for "test" #13
- Use "D" for Question 9 for "test" #14
- Use "E" for Question 9 for "test" #15
The Key Sheet
- Place the KEY sheet under the WEIGHT sheet (or INFO sheet) in the stack of sheets submitted for each scan run.
The NAME grid: (begin in the first grid square on the left in the top-left corner of Side 1)
- Write the word KEY -- fill in the corresponding bubbles below each letter
The ANSWERS area (the numbered questions):
- Fill in the bubbles corresponding to the correct answer for each question
- Leave the question blank if there is no correct answer, or if you wish to omit that question from scoring -- it will not be counted in the total points for the exam and it won't appear on printed results, or it will be labeled "NOT GRADED", depending on the report
The SPECIAL CODES grid:
- If you used any subjective questions mark the total number of subjective points possible. Align this number so the last digit ends in column "P"
The Weight Sheet
If any answer is to be worth more than one point, you must include a WEIGHT sheet. This is often used when you want correct multiple-choice questions to have more weight than true-false questions.
- Place the WEIGHT sheet under the INFO sheet in the stack of sheets submitted for each scan run.
The NAME grid: (begin in the first grid square on the left in the top-left corner of Side 1)
- Write the word WEIGHT -- fill in the corresponding bubbles below each letter (do not fill in any bubbles after the word weight or it will not be processed correctly)
The ANSWERS area (the numbered questions):
- For each question on the exam, enter the desired weight using these point indicators:
- "A" = correct answer is worth 1 point
- "B" = correct answer is worth 2 points
- "C" = correct answer is worth 3 points
- "D" = correct answer is worth 4 points
- "E" = correct answer is worth 5 points
The Scoring Sheet
Two different methods or types of grading are available. Student answer sheets are checked against a KEY sheet filled out by the instructor.
Conventional Weighting
- The student's score is the number of questions answered correctly
- Fill in the "A" bubble for Question 1 on the INFO sheet
Weighted Grading
- Instructors can assign weights of 1 through 5 to each of the questions
- The student's score is computed by summing the weighted values of questions answered correctly
- Fill in the "B" bubble for Question 1 on the INFO sheet
- In addition to the KEY sheet, instructors must include a WEIGHT sheet with the correct weight marked for each question
- "A" = 1 point
- "B" = 2 points
- "C" = 3 points
- "D" = 4 points
- "E" = 5 points
- 1 point is automatically scored if a question doesn't have a weighting factor designated
- Only integer weights from 1 to 5 are allowed
Subjective/Essay Questions
Instructors may want to use both objective (multiple choice, true-false) and subjective (essay, short answer) questions. The scoring program allows instructors to add the total points earned on any of the subjective questions to the results of the machine-scored objective questions:
- Mark the MAXIMUM subjective points possible in the SPECIAL CODES grid (right-justified) on the KEY sheet
- Manually determine the total number of subjective points earned by each student
- Mark the earned subjective points in the SPECIAL CODES grid (right-justified) on each student answer sheet
The Student Sheets
Students must use only #2 lead pencils (a pen will NOT work) and fill in their answer sheets as follows. Instructors should provide guidelines to students before the exam.
- The STUDENT sheets must be placed at the bottom of the stack of sheets submitted for each scan run.
The NAME grid: (begin in the first grid square on the left in the top-left corner of Side 1)
- Print their name -- fill in the corresponding bubbles below each letter
The IDENTIFICATION NUMBER grid:
- Enter their Student ID (the EmplID) - align the number so it ends in column "J" -- fill in the corresponding bubbles below each letter
- The Student ID number MUST be their Student ID (not a number assigned by the instructor) if the scores will be imported into the Blackboard Learn Original Grade Center from the generated output text file
- This number is as important as their name since student scores on the printouts are located with this number
BIRTH DATE, SPECIAL CODES, SEX, OR GRADE grids: leave BLANK
The ANSWERS area (the numbered questions):
- For each question - fill in the corresponding circle below the letter of their answer choice
- Mark only 1 answer per question, unless the question uses one of the combination options (the "AND" or "OR" options)
- Erase all changed answer marks completely to avoid incorrect question scoring
- Do not FOLD, STAPLE, PUNCH HOLES IN, or TEAR TEST SHEETS as they may not feed through or be read properly by the scanner
- Do not RANDOMLY MARK THE SHEETS with lead or ink that has any carbon content as this may also cause the scanner to read the sheets improperly
Sheets not read properly by the scanner will be placed across the other sheets when returned but they will not be scored.