Quizzes | How to create Arithmetic quiz questions

Arithmetic questions can be created in Brightspace in two forms, with either a fixed number as an answer within a range or with a number generated based on variables.

This manual will explain how to:

Accessing the quiz question selection

To create and add an Arithmetic question

via Question Library

Follow steps 1 to 3 in the article Navigating to the Question Library to access the Question Library homepage,

  1. Click on the New blue button, a drop-down menu will appear
  2. Select Arithmetic Question (2+2)
1.Click on the New blue button2.From the drop-down menu click on Arithmetic Question (2+2)

via Quiz editing page

Follow steps 1 to 4 in the article Quizzes | How to add questions to a Quiz,

  1. Click on Arithmetic from the drop-down menu
1.arithmetic

The difference between creating the question via Quiz and via Question Library is:

  • the interface of the page looks slightly different
  • when creating the question directly from Quiz you have an instant review panel (to the left) to check your question creation progress
  • when creating the question from Question Library, it is available directly to be added to other course quizzes as well

For instructions, the Question Library interface will be used.

  1. (Optional)Ā Add a Title
  2. Set the number of points attributed to the question
  3. Select the difficulty level
Enter title, points and Difficulty
  1. Add the Question textĀ (For more information, please visit: About the HTML Editor)
  2. (Optional) Click onĀ Insert an image if needed
  3. (Optional)Ā Add an alternative Text for the image
  4. (Optional) Tick the Selectbox to allow attachments to support answers
Question text, Image, Alternative text and Allow attachments to support answers

Creating an arithmetic question with a pre-calculated answer

If the answer to a question is a pre-calculated answer (e.g.: What is the molar mass of water), no special actions are required for the Question Text (Step 4).

8. Enter the formula

Enter the Formula using the following supported operations, functions, and constants and click on Test to verify your formula

Formula formats accepted in Brightspace

All variables must be enclosed in curly braces.

i.e. 2 * {x} + {y} - {z}

Here are some of the supported functions:

Symbol Description

+,-,*,/

basic mathematical operators

{x}^{y}Ā 

x to the power y

abs({n})Ā 

absolute value of n
cos({n})
the cosine of n (in radians)
sin({n})
the sine of n (in radians)
sqr({n})Ā  the square root of n
tan({n})
the tangent of n (in radians)
log({n})
the log base 10 of n
ln({n})
the log base e of n

The following constants are supported:

pi - 3.14159265358979

e - 2.71828182845905

9. (Optional) Define Answer Precision

Define Answer Precision by selecting the number of decimals that Brightspace will use in its calculation.Ā 

Tick the selectbox enforce precision if an answer needs a specific number of decimals

The rounding of the Answer Precision is used in the calculation, not the original number.Ā 

E.g.: when left to 0, with a tolerance of 0.15 then all answers between 17.85 and 18.15 are correct (18 +/- 0.15), not between 17.86 and 18.16 (18.01528 +/- 0.15).

10. (Optional) Define Tolerance

Click onĀ  the selectbox to select the tolerance units or percentage to accept near-accurate, estimated, or rounded answers

include the formula, enter answer precision, select tolerance
11. (Optional) Enter a unit type

Enter a unit type in the fieldĀ Units if the answer should include a unit

  • unit examples: mm, cm, grams, inches, mm, kg, hPa
12. (Optional) Worth of unit measurement in an answer

Assign the worth of the points awarded based on the (correct) measurement unit.

Example: If an answer requires to not only be numeric (e.g. 18) but also with the unit (18 g/mol). The unit then counts for an assigned percentage of the point per quiz question.

13. (Optional) Select evaluation Options

You have the option to select whether the units are:

  • Case InsensitiveĀ - Auto-grading searches for a matching character pattern in the answer text with or without letter case correctness
  • Case Sensitive - Auto-grading searches for a matching character pattern in the answer text that must have letter case correctness
  • Regular Expression - Ā Auto-grading searches for a matching character pattern in the answer text that must have letter case correctness

For more information, please visit: Regular Expressions

Optional: select units for answers, worth of answer in percentage, and whether the answer is case sensitive, insesitive, or regular expression

14. Add Variable(s)

The variables box cannot be left empty, even if no variables are used; at least one variable must be present. Any string can be entered here as a name.

A recommended input will be the name X with a Min and Max corresponding to the answer in the formula.

add variable name, min, max, decimal places
15. (Optional) Enter a Question Hint

Use the text editor field to enter a Question Hint if needed

For further information on text editor please visit: How to use the Editor

Optional: add question hint
(Optional) Enter Question Feedback

Use the text editor to add Question Feedback if needed

Enter Question Feedback

When you are finished setting up the question, at the bottom of the page you can save and preview the question

Creating an arithmetic question with random generated numbers

If the answer to a question is based on random numbers input to test the student's ability to work with the formula, the formula can be entered with values being randomly selected for the student. Use curly braces to indicate a variable in Step 4. See the example text below.

Question Text: If a person eats {X} apples each weighing {Y} grams, what is his total consumption?

In this question, there are two variables: X and Y, and each student will get a random number from the variables in Step 4 to calculate the answer. Meaning for Student 1 the correct answer is 496.7 grams, while for Student 2 the correct answer is 620.9 grams. The students will see the selected value instead of the variables within the question text.

  1. Enter the formula the student has to use for the final answer
  2. Define Answer Precision by selecting the number of decimals that Brightspace will use in its calculation. Tick the selectbox enforce precision if an answer needs a specific number of decimal

The rounding of the Answer Precision is used in the calculation, not the original number. E.g.: when left to 0, with a tolerance of 3 then for student 1 all answers between 494 and 500 are correct (497 +/- 3), not between 493.7 and 499.7 (496.7 +/- 3)

  1. Click onĀ  the selectbox to select the tolerance units or percentage to accept near-accurate, estimated, or rounded answers
Formula, Answer Precision and Tolerance section
  1. Enter a unit type in Units if the answer should include a unit (mm, kg, hPa)
  2. If a unit should be included, assign how much of the points will be awarded based on the (correct) measurement unit (eg '18 g/mol' instead of '18')
  3. Select whether the units are Case Sensitive or not, or based on Regular Expression
Units sections
  1. Enter all variables mentioned in the question text, but without the curly braces
  2. Select the Min and Max values for the variable. A random number will be generated from this range
  3. Select the number of decimal places for the variable
  4. Select a Step-size. For example, a step-size of 2 will generate a number within the Min/Max range in steps of 2. With a Min-value of 2 and a Max-value of 20, only even numbers between 2 and 20 will be generated
Variables homepage
  1. Enter Question Hint if needed
  2. Enter Question Feedback if needed
Question hint|question feedback

When you are finished setting up the question, at the bottom of the page you can save and preview the question.

You now know how to create Arithmetic quiz questions in Brightspace!