Staff Guide: Online class test tool

About the Online class test tool

The Online Class Test tool has been created in MMS, to allow students to take class tests online.
The tool will:

  • Timed access and submission: Students can view their test papers at the scheduled time and submit their answers within their personal test allowance (which includes the standard test duration plus any additional time they are entitled to).
  • Turnitin integration: Test scripts can be submitted directly to Turnitin for plagiarism checking.
  • Alternative formats: Individual students can receive alternative versions of the test paper, where required.
  • Script download: Staff can download student scripts individually or in bulk for marking.

The Online class test tool can be paired with an Exam Marking tool (see Staff Guide: Exam marking tool for more information) to:

  • Let students indicate which optional questions they have answered
  • Enable staff to enter marks directly into the Online Exam interface

Once the configuration has been signed off for the Online Class Test tool, students will be able to access the Online Class test tool via the links listed on their My Saint homepage in the My Modules portlet. If a Class test has not opened, they will be directed to a dashboard with information about the test and the time the test is expected to open.

This guide has the following sections:

Who can mark class tests

  • Users with the following roles are able to mark exams:

    • Academic Misconduct Officer
    • Deputy Director of Teaching (PAFS)
    • Director of PGR Students (Soc Anth)
    • Director of Postgraduate (Taught)
    • Direct of Teaching, Director of Teaching (Department of Philosophy), Director of Teaching (Graduate School), Director of Teaching – Honours (Soc Anth), Director of Teaching – Subhonours (Soc Anth)
    • Exams Officer, Exams Officer (Graduate School), Exams Officer (PAFS)
    • Head of Department, Head of Department (Business School), Head of Department (Department of Philosophy), Head of Department (Mod Langs), Head of Department (School of History)
    • Head of School, Head of School (Art History), Head of School (E & ES), Head of School (Graduate School)
    • Lecturer, Lecturer (Department of Philosophy), Lecturer (English), Lecturer (Graduate School), Lecturer (Soc Anth)
    • MRes Co-ordinator (SocAnth)
    • Marker (Exam)
    • Moderator
    • Module Administrator, Module Administrator (Classics), Module Administrator (Maths)
    • Module Co-ordinator, Module Co-ordinator (Department of Philosophy), Module Co-ordinator (Graduate School)
    • PG Secretary, PG Secretary (Divinity), PG Secretary (School of English)
    • Second Marker, Second Marker (IELLI and CEED)
    • Secretary, Secretary (Graduate School)
    • Sub-Honours Coordinator (Department of Philosophy), Sub-Honours Coordinator (School of Philosophical & Anthro Studies)
    • Tutor and Exam marker
    • UG Curriculum Officer (School of Biology)
    • Unit Administrator

Configuration

  • To create a new Online Class Test tool:

    1. Access the Module by clicking the Module title on the Modules page in MMS , or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    2. Scroll down the Module Overview to the Tools section.
    3. Locate the Additional tools section.
    4. Tick the checkbox next to the Online Class Test tool (located in the Specialised list).
    5. Select the blue Create Tools button.

    The new tool will appear in the Tools table.

    The name of the tool can be changed by typing a new name in the Name column and clicking the green Update Tools button.

  • To configure the Online Class Test tool:

    1. Access the Online Class Test tool for a module by clicking the Online Class Test link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS (the ‘Home’ page), or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    2. From the Online Class Test tool select the Configure option from the navigation panel on the left.
    3. Set the Nominal start date (the earliest time students can start the class test) by using the calendar icon to select a date and enter the nominal start time in the format hh:mm
    4. Enter the Nominal duration (the default duration of the class test before per-student alterations are added) in minutes, for example, if students have 2 hours to complete the test the nominal duration will be 120.
    5. Enter the primary window length (the range of time during which students can start the class test) in minutes, for example, if the class test is open for 24 hrs the duration will be 1440.
    6. Enter the Download allowance (the time that students have to download the paper before the nominal duration begins) in minutes. The download allowance for Online Exams was 10 minutes.
    7. Enter the Upload allowance (the time that students have to upload the paper after the class test duration is over) in minutes. For the Online Exams it was customary to have an upload allowance of 15 minutes for typed documents and 45 minutes for handwritten and mixed handwritten and typed documents.
    8. Select the submission style, the options are:
      • Single upload – for standard upload to MMS. Select this option if the students are expected to submit scanned handwritten documents or documents larger than 40MB.
      • Turnitin – for typed documents to be run through plagiarism detection. Turnitin is not compatible with handwritten documents.
    9. If space is required to enter marks for individual questions, select the associated Exam tool from the Marking resource drop down list. For further details see section Marking resources and optional questions.
    10. If a marking resource has been selected, the Online Class Test tool can be configured to allow students to indicate which questions they have answered. Select the ‘STUDENT_AND_STAFF’ option from the Indicate Questions drop down list.
    11. To upload default test papers and additional documents such as datasheets, drag and drop files from your desktop into the grey upload area.
    12. Save the configuration by selecting the Save Configuration button.
    13. Once configuration is complete, the Exams Officer will be able to select the Sign off configuration button to confirm the school is happy.

    Students will not be able to view the Online Class Test tool until the configuration has been signed off. After sign-off, students will be able to access the landing page for the Online Class tool, which will give details of the class test. It will not allow students to start the test until the nominal start date.

  • Without being linked with a marking resource, the Online Class Test tool can still be used, and comments can be entered by markers for student submissions. Pairing the Online Class Test tool with an Exam tool allows staff to enter marks for individual questions and allows students to select which optional questions they answered. Before pairing an Online Class Test tool with an Exam tool, it is necessary to create and configure an Exam tool. The Exam tool can be configured so that it matches the question/mark breakdown of the test paper, thus giving MMS an understanding of the test paper structure. View guidance on creating and configuring the Exam tool: Staff Guide: Exam marking tool

    To pair an Online Class Test tool with an Exam:

    1. Access the Online Class Test tool for a module by clicking the Online Class Tool link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS , or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    2. From the Online Class Test tool select the Configure option from the navigation panel on the left
    3. From the Marking Resource drop down list, select None to unpair the Online Class Test tool and the Exam tool, or select the required Exam tool to pair the tools together.
    4. Select the Save Configuration button to save.

    Previously students could indicate on the paper class test script which questions they answered by writing the question numbers on the front page. The Indicate Questions functionality allows students to indicate which questions they have answered in the same way as they would have done with the paper class tests.

    Note: This requires the Online Class Test tool to be paired with an Exam tool that has been configured with the class test structure.

    To allow students to indicate which questions they have answered:

    1. Access the Online Class test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    2. From the Online Class Test tool select the Configure option from the navigation panel on the left.
    3. From the Indicate Questions drop down list – select No to prevent students from indicating which questions they have answered or Student and Staff to allow students (and staff) to indicate which questions the student has answered. 
    4. Select the Save Configuration button to save.

  • Some students may need extra time, MMS will automatically calculate the additional time students need from the Teaching Arrangements defined in the the Disability data.

    Staff can view the per student arrangements made for a class test by accessing the Online Class test tool for a module:

    1. Select the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    2. From the Online Class Test tool select the Per Student Arrangements option from the navigation panel on the left.

    Any extra time will be displayed in the table.

    Students can view their Exam and Teaching Arrangements via the link in the My details portlet on the Home page of MySaint.

Downloading test scripts

Staff with marking permissions will be able to access the test scripts 24 hours after the test has closed. This delay allows students the opportunity to submit late if they have experienced technical issues.

  • To download individual class test scripts:

    1. Access the Online Class test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint. The Online Class Test tool overview has a table listing all students on the module and their submissions.
    2. Locate the student in the table.
    3. Select the link in the Submission column to download the submission. (If there is no link the student has not submitted.)

  • The Online Class Test tool overview has a table listing all students on the module and their submissions.

    1. Access the Online Class Test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    2. Scroll down to underneath the table.
    3. Select the Download all submissions as a single Zip file link.

    The Zip file will begin downloading – for large modules this may take a few moments.

Viewing Turnitin Scores

Turnitin is used in plagiarism detection. It is an external web-based system. For student submissions process by Turnitin it returns a score between 0 and 100 indicating how much of the submission has a similar text string compared to the library of sources Turnitin has in access to.

  • If the Online Class Test tool has been configured to allow students to submit to Turnitin, the Turnitin scores can be viewed by:

    1. Access the Online Class Test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    2. Select the See Turnitin scores link above the table containing student submissions.

Marker responses

Staff who mark class test scripts may wish to add comments that will be visible to other markers and external examiners. MMS refers to these comments as marker responses, and these can take the form for typed responses and uploaded files. Staff are also able to bulk upload marker response files.

  • Entering a merker response:

    1. Access the Online Class Test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.The Online Class Test tool overview has a table listing all students on the module and their submissions.
    2. Select the student ID from the table to access the individual view for the selected student.
    3. Locate the Staff Notes section in the top right.
    4. Select the Click to enter note button and a text field will appear.
    5. If required, resize the text field by dragging the bottom right corner of the text field into a new position.
    6. Click into the text box and type the marker response.
    7. Select the Submit note button to save, or the Close without submitted button to close without submitting the comment.
    8. Once the typed note has been saved the username of the marker will appear in the Staff Notes section. Click on the username to view the note.

  • To upload a response file for a single student:

    1. Access the Online Class Test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint. The Online Class Test tool overview has a table listing all students on the module and their submissions.
    2. Select the student ID from the table to access the individual view for the selected student.
    3. Locate the Staff Files section in the top right
    4. Either:
      • Click the browse button and select the required file OR
      • Drag a file from your desktop into the grey box
    5. Once the file has been uploaded it will appear in the Staff Files section. Click the link to download the file.

  • To bulk upload response files:

    1. Prepare the response files and ensure they are named so that the student ID appears at the end of the filename, before the extension. For example: Example_file_000000001.docx
    2. Access the Online Class Test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    3. Scroll down to the Bulk upload of staff files section.
    4. Either:
      • Click the Browse button to open a dialogue window and select the files for upload, OR
      • Drag the files into the grey box.
    5. Once the files have been uploaded they will appear in the Bulk upload of staff files section for you to review.
    6. Select the Overview link from the navigation panel on the left to refresh the page. The response files will now appear in the main table.

  • To view marker responses on the Online Class Test overview page:

    1. Access the Online Class Test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    2. Scroll down the table to locate the student.
    3. View the marker responses in the Staff Notes and Files column.
    4. Click on a file name to download a file or click on the username of the note author to open the note.

  • To view marker responses on the individual student test overview:

    1. Access the Online Class Test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    2. Scroll down the table to locate the student.
    3. Select the student id from the table to open the overview for the selected student.
    4. To download the uploaded files, select the links in the Staff files section.
    5. To view the notes, select the username of the note author in the Staff Notes section.

  • Staff can only delete responses that they have entered. This can be done from the student exam overview page.

    To delete a response:

    1. Access the Online Class Test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    2. Scroll down the table to locate the student.
    3. Select the student id from the table to open the individual student view for the selected student.
      1. To delete an uploaded file, locate the file in the Staff files section and click the to the right of the file name.
      2. To delete a typed note, locate the note in the Staff Notes section and click the  to the right of the note.

Entering marks

Marks can be entered into the Online class test tool, in addition to the marker responses, only if the tool has been paired with an Exam marking tool (see Staff Guide: Exam marking tool)

Marks can be entered individually or by csv upload. Any marks entered into the Class test tool will also be visible in the linked Exam tool, which can be used with the Final grade tool.

If the Online class test tool has not been paired with an Exam tool, or your school has given alternative direction please follow school instructions as to where to enter marks.

  • To enter marks manually on the Online Exam overview:

    1. Access the Online Class Test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    2. Columns representing the questions will appear after the Staff Notes and Files column.
    3. Scroll down the table to locate the student.
    4. Click into the provided text box that corresponds to the student/question that you wish to enter. (Cells highlighted in dark grey represent the questions the student has indicated they have answered.)
    5. Enter the mark.
    6. Repeat steps 3 and 4 as often as required.
    7. Scroll to the bottom of the table.
    8. Select the Save Marks button to save.

  • To enter marks manually on the student exam  overview:

    1. Access the Online Class Test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS, or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    2. Scroll down the table to locate the student
    3. Select the student id in the tableto open the overview for the selected student
    4. On the student class test overview, a table will appear under the staff response sections with a column for each configured question. The second row will contain a text field for mark entry.
    5. Click into the text field.
    6. Enter the mark.
    7. Repeat steps 4 and 5 as often as required.
    8. Select the Save Marks button to save.

  • As with manual mark entry, if the Class test tool has been paired with an Exam tool, staff can upload a spreadsheet containing the student exam marks into the tool.

    To upload a spreadsheet of student test marks into the Class test tool:

    1. Prepare a csv file containing the student grades. This is easiest done by:
      1. Access the Class test tool for a module by selecting the Online Class test link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS , or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
      2. Select the Download as XLS link above the table to download a prepared spreadsheet
      3. Add the marks to the spreadsheet and save, taking note of the location.
      4. If a cell is blank it will not override or deleted any existing marks.
    2. Access the Online Class test tool for a module by selecting the link under the module title on the Modules page in MMS , or in the My Modules portlet on the Academic Activities workspace in MySaint.
    3. Scroll down under the table to the Spreadsheet upload of grades section.
    4. Select the Browse button and select the spreadsheet.
    5. Select the Upload spreadsheet button to save.

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