How to take a digital test

Navigation in the digital test

The digital test page has a sidebar on the left listing all questions in the test, grouped by section. The sidebar helps you navigate through the test and keeps track of the questions you have answered and bookmarked.

• Each box shows the question number. A filled box indicates that you have answered the question.
• Bookmarked questions show a bookmark icon.
• Click a question in the sidebar to open it.
• The sidebar updates as you answer and bookmark questions and keeps the question you are working on in view.
• Questions that you can no longer open show a lock and cannot be clicked. Questions further ahead that you cannot reach yet are shown but cannot be clicked. Which questions are available depends on the navigation mode of the digital test, set by your teacher.

At the bottom of the exercise, you can use arrow_upward Previous exercise and Next exercise arrow_downward buttons to move through the test. The position of the current exercise in the test is shown between these buttons. Buttons that are not available are hidden.

If you are not allowed to go back to a section or exercises, the Next exercise arrow_downward button is replaced by Submit and continue. A confirmation panel will appear, which you need to confirm before being allowed to navigate further. After submitting, it is no longer possible to view or adjust your answers. 

At the top of the question panel, a breadcrumb shows the course name, followed by a chevron and the test name. This keeps the context of the digital test visible while you are reading the questions.

Tools in the digital test

There are different tools that you could use during your test. These tools are only visible when your teacher enabled them before the start of the test.

• Live chat
  Allows you to ask questions during a digital test. Click the chat -icon in the digital test header to open the chat in a side panel next to the questions. The panel stays open while you navigate through the test, so you can continue chatting while answering questions.
  
  When your teacher allows questions, the panel is titled Chat. When questions are not allowed, it is titled Announcements. When you have an unread message or announcement, a preview appears below the chat icon. The preview shows the sender's name and the first three lines of the message.

• Run code
  Code can be executed during a digital test. The following programming languages are supported: Haskell, Python, R, Ruby and Swift.

• Notepad
  Allows you to make notes during a digital test. The Notepad opens in a side panel next to the test. It provides one writing area and saves your content automatically. Saved notes are indicated with a green checkmark on the right of the text editor.
  Important: Notes in the notepad are permanently deleted once you submit your test. Make sure you do not write any final answers or important information you want to keep.

• Spellchecker
  Allows you to use spell checking during a digital test.

• Calculator
  Allows you to use the built-in calculator during a digital test. There is the option for a basic or a scientific calculator.

• Feedback
  Allows you to receive feedback during a digital test.

Highlighting text in the digital test

You can highlight text within questions during a digital test. This can help you mark important parts of a question while working on your answers.

1. Open the menu in the bottom-right corner of the digital test.
2. Select Highlight mode.
3. Select the text within a question that you want to highlight.
4. Click highlighted text to remove the highlight.

Select Cursor mode when you no longer want to highlight text.

Only you can see the highlights you create. They are not visible while grading and are not shared with other participants when you work on a group assignment.

You can only highlight text within a question. Text in attachments cannot be highlighted.

Answering multiple choice questions

You can answer a multiple choice question by selecting the radio button of the correct answer. When answering a multiple choice question, you can also strike through the answer alternatives that you believe are incorrect. You can do this by clicking on the alternative. 

Important: using strikethrough is only for your own reference. Your teacher will not see the crossed out alternatives and the multiple choice question cannot be reviewed until an answer is selected. A warning is displayed when an answer has not yet been selected.

Answering open questions

When you see an open question in your test, you will notice an open text field where you can type your answer. This is where you will write your response. 

You can use the built-in text editor to format your answer. Feel free to add paragraphs, bullet points, or other formatting to make your answer clear and organised. 

Good to know: your answer is automatically saved every 30 seconds, so you do not need to worry about losing your work. It also saves when you:

• Go to the next question
• Click outside the text field
• Try to submit your test

To double-check that your work has been saved, look for the message Updated just now below the text field on the right-hand side. This means that your latest changes are saved.

If your teacher has set a word limit for the question, you will see it displayed at the bottom of the text field while typing. This helps you keep track and stay within the required length.

If you accidentally delete or change a part of your answer, you can still revert these changes. In the text editor, click on the undo-icon to undo your changes. You can also use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Z (Windows) or Cmmd + Z (Mac). The undo function stores the last 100 keyboard actions. Students can use the undo button to revert recent changes made while entering their answer.

Attachments

If your teacher has included attachments in the digital test, you can view the attachments along with your exercises. The attachment can be displayed in full screen or split screen mode. The file tabs are only displayed when the digital test contains attachments. You can read more about displaying attachments here.

Test settings

Click the settings-icon at the top-right to open up the settings. Select the settings you want to make use of and click Close. You can select the following preferences:

• Use large font; this option increases the font size from 10.5 to 13.5.
• Use dyslexia mode; this option changes the font to Arial and changes italic text to normal text style.
• Use high contrast mode; this option changes the colours of Ans to a high contrast (black and yellow) during the digital test. 
• Show remaining time; this option shows the remaining time that you have to submit the digital test.
• Notify when 15 minutes are left; this option gives you a notification when you have 15 minutes left to submit your digital test.

To submit your test, follow the steps below.

1. Click the Complete button at the top right corner of the screen to go to the submit page.
2. Check the "Confirm to submit the digital test" box and click Submit when you are ready to submit the test. Click Back if you want to return to the test.

Leave a comment after submitting your test

If your teacher has enabled this before the test, you can leave a comment for your instructor after submitting your digital test.

1. Open the digital test result page.
2. Select Leave a comment next to the submission time.
3. Enter your comment in the dialog.
4. Submit your comment.

Comments are not anonymous. Your instructor can see your comment, who left it, and the comment together with your test result.