Best Practices Tips for Instructors

You can use tests and surveys to measure student knowledge, gauge progress, and gather information from students.These tips are available to assist in minimizing testing problems for your students. 

Giving a Long Test? Break it up! Consider breaking a two-hour exam into smaller tests taken in sequence. This makes the test seem more approachable because it is in bite-sized chunks, and it helps students avoid running into network and computer issues. 

Essay Questions? If your test has one or more essay questions, use the Assignment tool in Blackboard Learn Original. Essay questions force students away from the test for an extended time while they compose their answer, increasing the risk of a time-out problem. With an Assignment, students can submit their essay file(s) when they are ready. You can also use Bb Annotate for in-line grading to markup and comment on submissions. 

Assessment Strategies to Avoid Cheating 

• Respondus Lockdown Browser. Locking down a students browser prior to and while taking a test prevents the student from opening other applications/browsers. Once the test is submitted the student is able to use other applications/browsers again. A Respondus Practice Test is highly RECOMMENDED to ensure students have properly installed the software. More information about requiring Respondus Lockdown Browser for your test is available at Respondus LockDown Browser. 
   
• Random Question and Answer Order. When deploying the test, you can display the questions and/or answers to each student in random order. When it comes time for the class to review the test, be sure to focus on the question title and correct answer rather than the exact letter/number choice because it will be different for each student. 
   
• Large Question Pool. A more helpful option is to have a large Question Pool available to choose questions from. Questions in pools can be categorized by topic, difficulty, or chapter and you can deploy a randomly chosen subset of questions from those pools for each student. 
   

To learn more about more test options, please visit the page - Test and Survey Options (blackboard.com) 

Use Test Availability Exceptions: You may have one or more students approved for extended test-taking time. Test Availability Exceptions allow you to set differing Test Options for specific students. 

Check Your Test for Mistakes Before Making it Available to Students! Preview the test as a student before making it available to the students. If you find an error in your test after making it available to students, Blackboard allows instructors the option to modify tests that already have student attempts. Please visit this page to know more about Edit Tests and Questions (blackboard.com) 

Clear Expectations: Prepare Students. Ensure that students have ample notice and clear instructions for the test. Inform them of the test settings and policies such as whether the test is timed, possible penalties for working after time expires, how many attempts they have, or whether questions will be automatically or manually graded. 

How to Handle Technical Issues: Communicate how you will address technical interruptions in student's test-taking to ensure that if an issue comes up, you can handle it swiftly and fairly. Include your contact information, including specifics of how and when to contact you. Also include the IT Help Desk contact. 

Test and Survey Results. You can view statistical information about your tests and surveys. To know more about this please visit this page - Test and Survey Results (blackboard.com). 

Additional Resources
Blackboard Learn Original Help: Create Tests and Surveys 
Respondus LockDown Browser