Creating Equation Response Items

Equation Response items require students to use an on-screen keypad to enter a mathematical expression in the response area.

To create an Equation Response item from the template:

1.In the Compose Item Prompt section, replace the sample text with the content for the item's question. You can use the toolbar to format text and insert media. You may need to use the button to insert a formula. For more information, see Appendix D.

2.In the Select Equation Keypad section, select an option from the Equation Preset drop-down list to determine which buttons will be available on the student’s keypad.

• The keypad in this section displays the buttons associated with the selected Equation Preset type. By default, all keypads include Back, Next, Undo, Redo, and Delete buttons at the top.

3.In the Construct Answer Keys section, enter a value in the Maximum Score field to specify the maximum score for the item.

4.Optional: To set the item to automatically simplify the student’s entered response, set the Simplify Response toggle to Yes.

5.To create the answer key for the item, do the following:

a.In the Point field, enter the score for a correct (or partially correct) response.

b.In the provided response area, use the keypad to enter the mathematical expression that students would input in order to earn the score entered in the Point field.

c.Optional: In the Explanation field, explain why the entered response is worth the score you specified.

6.Optional: If the item has more than one correct or partially-correct answers, create additional answer keys:

a.Click beside the Point field. A new response area tab appears.

b.Repeat step 5.

c.Optional: To remove an answer key, click in the tab for that answer key.

7.Optional: If you want to provide a description of the scoring criteria to view in reports for the item, mark the Include Scoring Description checkbox. Then fill out the Description and Exemplar fields that appear.

8.To save the item, click Save above the template.