Text Input
In a Text Input question, students enter text in a field. An answer designated as "correct" in Smart Author can include single words, phrases, or punctuation.
An example of a Text Input question
Authoring Tips for Writing Text Input Questions
1. Text Input answers should be kept short to minimize the likelihood of students introducing mistakes, such as:
- typos / misspellings
- too many or too few spaces
- the lack of punctuation (Mrs instead of Mrs.)
- extraneous punctuation (such as a period placed at the end of a phrase that isn't a sentence, or an apostrophe mistakenly used to pluralize a word ending in the letter "s")
Note: The one exception is case sensitivity. Case is not taken into account when scoring Text Input questions.
2. To be marked correct, students must input an answer that matches your answer down to the character. All these items must match precisely:
- spelling
- spaces between words
- punctuation such as periods and apostrophes
3. Text Input questions allow you to designate multiple correct/acceptable answers in order to accommodate natural variations or common mistakes, in the event those mistakes don't convey a lack of understanding. If the correct spelling and format are part of the instruction and evaluation, flawed-but-correct answer options should not be included. An example of multiple correct answers that accommodate for errors and variations might be:
- deoxy ribonucleic acid
- DNA
- deoxyribonucleic acid
- deoxy ribonucleicacid
Build a Text Input Question
Click + New Assessment, choose the assignment type, name the assessment, click Add, click + Add Content or Question, click + Add Question, and then click Text Input.
1. Add Title.
2. Add Question.
3. Insert Text Input by clicking on the text input icon as shown below.
4. Add Responses.
5. Tag question.
A Note About Inputs
If you add multiple fields to the question, each one requires its own input to be defined. Each input is identified as a part inside the question. If a question has two inputs, then there will be two parts from which to choose when building the exercise.
Add input is found at the bottom of all input-related fields.
Size Options
The Size field (at right) refers to the visible length of the input field on the page. The larger the field, the more characters a student can see at a time. If the answer requires students to input a long string of text, choose a medium or large size for the input field. This field size will allow students to better identify typos or other errors as they type. If students input more text than fits in the visible space, the text simply shifts left and accommodates their continued typing.
Students can see more of what they type with the Medium and Large size options.
Each input is identified in the question builder as a Part.
Sample Text Input Question
Video: How to Build a Text Input Question
This video illustrates how to build a Text Input question. Following the video you'll find some details about how to create Number Input questions.
Please note: This video was created using our previous user interface.