Now that you have created a Course, you can create a test.
Your new test is saved under the new Course you created. If you haven’t created a new Course, you can create and save your test under the Sample Course. Note: a Course is a repository for tests – you can call it whatever you wish (Course, Class, Dept. Unit, Squadron, etc.). These designations can be set under TG’s main window:select System > Settings > Designations.
As you may already know, test creation can range from a few minutes to several hours,days, or weeks. However long it takes, you can open and edit your test as many times as you wish prior to activating it. Test activation is covered under Step 7, below.
In this introductory lesson, you create and save your test in a new Course or under the Sample Course. Either way, we treat this as a practice session to familiarize you with the test-creation process. For a more in-depth review of various test-creation strategies, review Test Authoring Options and Test Editing Options.
Click the New
Test icon (
) at the top of the window, or
select File > New > Test
to open a new test template in Test Edit mode.
You create your test in the Summary
window. It contains a standard text menu followed by five rows
of icons. Below that, a yellow field reads To start adding questions,
click the Question button
in the toolbar. Below is a grid with column headings (Type,
Question Text, Points and Subject).
This new, blank template changes once you start adding questions to
your test.
To create/add a question, click the blue +Q, Question button in the toolbar, or select Test Settings > New Question. A list of the ten question types appears. Select one of these types.
Next, click the red +A,
Answer button or select Question
Settings > Add Answer to create answers for your question.
Some question types, such as Multiple Choice, generate four answer
fields by default. You can add/remove answer fields by right-clicking
the mouse in the answer fields or by selecting the quick-key options
to add an answer (Ctrl + D),
or remove an answer (Ctrl + R).
We recommend trying out the various question types before you begin
any serious test creation.
In this example, we demonstrate the manual method for creating questions
and answers. Once you get comfortable with this process, review Test Authoring Options.
Save
Your Test. It’s a good idea to save your test before you start creating
questions and answers. Click the Save
button (floppy disk icon) or select File
> Save from the menu.
When you do this the first time, the Save Test dialog
box appears. Enter a name for your test in the Test Name field
at the bottom of the dialog box. Then, highlight the Course under
which you want to save your test, and click OK.
This saves your new test under that class.
To verify your test has been saved under the appropriate Course, click
the Return to Main Menu button.
From the tree view, click the +
sign next to the Course – you should see a green T
icon and the name of your test displayed under the Course.
After creating the Test, saving
it under a Course, and adding all your questions and answers, you
need to activate/publish your test as well as review/select from amongst
the other properties found under the Test
Settings > Test Properties menu.
The Test Properties dialog
box contains tabs or folders.
These folders contain many test options for you to explore. In this
topic, we only cover the basic settings needed to prepare your test
for your test takers.
Under the Test
Properties General
folder, the Total Point Score field displays the total points assigned
to your test items. Total test point values < 100 or > 100 are
perfectly acceptable. TG automatically calculates the correct percentage
for you.
Note: if you change the number in this field, it re-calculates
(averages) the point values for every question in your test. For more
details, see Test Scoring.
Unless you have weighted individual questions, the Test
Total Score is distributed evenly among all test questions.
To change the score of individual questions, highlight the question
(in the Test Summary List view) and change the point value in the
Question Points field located under the Question tab/toolbar.
The Total Point Score field changes accordingly.
Best Practice
Experiment on a practice test first to get a feel for how scoring
works.
To activate (or publish) your test,
you have to set the test activation dates/times in the Activation
folder of the Test Properties
dialog box. Click the down arrows to the right of the To
and From date boxes and select
the appropriate dates from the calendars. Use the arrows to the right
of the To and From
time boxes to set the appropriate times. Lastly, be sure to click
the Permit Testing box, or
click the Permit Testing button
(green dot) in the icon toolbar. Click OK
at the bottom of the Test Properties dialog box.
Note: If the test is incomplete, you won’t see a Permit
Testing check box; instead, you see a grayed-out check box
and a message: This Test is incomplete
and cannot be activated. If you see this message, close the
Test Properties dialog box and click the Go
to Summary List icon in the toolbar. Examine the Summary window
and look for items whose question Type label (or number) is displayed
in red. This visual clue indicates the item is incomplete.
Incomplete test items usually contain empty question and/or answer
fields, or you may have forgotten to select a correct answer for one
or more of your questions.
Best Practice
It’s always a good idea to do a quick visual check of the summary window
to make sure there aren't any test items labeled in red. You can also
scan your test for missing information by selecting the Tools
> Missing Info… menu. Selecting this tool returns a prompt
indicating whether or not the test is complete. If it is incomplete,
locate the incomplete item(s) and make the necessary corrections.
Once your test is complete, we recommend taking it so you can evaluate
it from a test-taker’s perspective.
Enrolling Test Takers in tests
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