Use the interaction types
Interaction types
You can choose from several QTI-compatible interaction types to create items. An item can contain more than one interaction. When selecting interactions, consider:
Which attributes are defined for the item?
How will tests including the item be administered (scan sheet, Online Assessment, or both)?
Do rubrics need to be included? For example, are there manually-scored interactions?
The following table provides an overview of the available interaction types.
Interaction Type | Description | Example | Administration | Scoring |
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Drag and drop text objects to create matched associations between available answer choices. |  |
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Record an audio or video response in the player, which is submitted to OLA. |
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(Multiple Choice) (Multi-Select) | Select responses from the presented choices. |  |
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(Drawing) | Draw the answer response on a canvas (blank or pre-selected image) with a set of drawing tools. |  |
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(Open Response) (Brief Constructed Response) (Equation Response) | Enter the response into a text field that has a word and equation editor toolbar. |  |
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Drag and drop text objects to defined gap elements located within the context of the content area text. |  |
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Drag and drop image objects to defined gap elements located within the context of a larger image. |  |
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Graph points, lines, line segments, vectors, circles, and polygons in a Cartesian coordinate system. |  |
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Select regions of a static image as answer choices. | 
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Select responses from presented choices located within the context of the content text. |  |
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(Inline Response) | Select a choice from a drop-down list located within the context of the prompt text. |  |
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Add rubrics and other information for test administrators, students, or scorers. |  |
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(Matching Item Response) | Select checkboxes at the intersections of columns and rows to display answer choices. |  |
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Drag and drop points to plot on the number line. |  |
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Drag and drop text objects in the correct order. |  |
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(Editing Task) (Inline Text) | Enter a response in a text box located within the context of the prompt text. |  |
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Upload a file (for example, an image, audio, or video file) containing work to be scored. |  |
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Instructions
The instructions block is not an interaction type and cannot stand alone in an item. This feature should be used when adding information such as rubrics. You must add instructions and one of the appropriate item interactions before adding a rubric.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
From the Additional Content section of the Interactions menu, choose Instructions.
Optionally, enter Author Notes.
Enter the desired instructions in the Contents.
Optionally, click Add Rubric to add a rubric for Draw, Extended Text, or Upload interactions.
Use the Permissions to choose who can display the instructions.
Scorer makes the rubric available when scoring items with manually scoreable interaction types.
Student makes the contents of the instruction block available to students when taking tests online.
The Text-to-Speech pause, ignore, substitution, and multiple language support plugins are not supported for instruction blocks.
Associate
An Associate interaction requires students to drag and drop text objects to create matched associations between available answer choices. Associate interactions can be used only with OLA tests.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Associate.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
Optionally, select the Partial Credit toggle to allow partial credit.
Optionally, manage the Partial Credit Settings.
Enter a value in Default per choice to determine the points possible per answer choice.
Enter the Minimum and Maximum points possible.
You can enter point values for each pair of answer choices.
Enter the Answer Choices. Click within the text boxes in each row to enter the correct associated pairs.
Optionally, select Add Choice if you want to add additional answer choices.
Optionally, you can click X to delete an answer choice.
Optionally, you can reorder pairs. Hover over the drag icon until a four-way arrow displays, then drag and drop the rows as needed.
Select Shuffle choices.
You must shuffle the choices to prevent the correct answer choices from being paired first in the student's interaction.
Audio/Video
The Audio/Video interaction requires students to record a multimedia response in audio or video format. Audio/video interactions can only be used with OLA tests. This is a manually-scored interaction. To support the scoring of answers, you must add an instructions block containing a rubric to score the item.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Audio/Video.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
Choose the multimedia Answer format of audio or video.
Enter the Maximum length of the recording.
Recording length can be between one second and ten minutes.Save the item.
Choice
The Choice interaction requires students to select responses from presented choices. You can administer multiple choice interactions using either scan sheet or Online Testing.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Choice/Multi Response.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
Optionally, select the Partial Credit toggle to allow partial credit.
Optionally, manage the Partial Credit Settings.
Enter a value in Default per choice to determine the points possible per answer choice.
Enter the Minimum and Maximum points possible.
You can enter point values for each answer choice.
Enter the Answer Choices.
Optionally, select Add Choice if you want to add additional answer choices.
Optionally, you can click X to delete an answer choice.
Optionally, you can reorder answer choices. Hover over the drag icon until a four-way arrow displays, then drag and drop the choices as needed.
Optionally, select Shuffle unlocked choices to display answer choices in a different order each time the interaction is presented.
Optionally, if the interaction has more than one correct answer, you can select Limit student selections, then enter a value for the Number of selections. This prevents students from proceeding to the next question until they select the maximum number of answer choices.
Draw
A Draw interaction requires students to draw the response on a canvas (blank or preselected image) with a set of drawing tools. Draw interactions can be used with OLA tests and scan sheets except for blank scan sheets. This is a manually-scored interaction. To support answer scoring, you must add an instructions block containing a rubric to score the item.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Draw.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
If necessary, add an initial image using one of these methods:
Click Upload Image to browse for and select a new image from your local drive.
Click Insert Image to add an image resource from your resource library.
Enter a URL or File Path.
Drag and drop the image from your local drive to the image field.
Optionally, adjust the Image Properties as needed.
Extended text
The Extended Text interaction requires students to provide a textual response to a prompt. Extended Text interactions can be used with OLA tests and scan sheets, but blank scan sheets are not recommended . This is a manually-scored interaction. To support scoring answers, you must add an instructions block containing a rubric to the item.
From the main navigation menu, choose Item, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Extend Text.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
Choose the Answer Format to determine whether the student will use plain text or the text editor.
Enter a value for Initial Height of Answer Area to determine the number of lines to display in the student response area.
You must enable the word processing toolbar if students need access to the math editor.
The number of lines specified for the response area determines the size of the response box on a scan sheet. For Online Assessment, a scroll bar will display for longer student responses.
Gap match
The Gap Match interaction requires students to drag and drop answer choices to fill gaps within a body of text.
Gap match interactions must be text-only and can only be used with OLA tests.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Gap Match.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
Optionally, select the Partial Credit toggle to allow partial credit.
Optionally, manage the Partial Credit Settings.
Enter a value in Default per choice to determine the points possible per answer choice.
Enter the Minimum and Maximum points possible.
Enter the Answer Choices.
Optionally, select Add Choice if you want to add additional answer choices.
Optionally, you can click X to delete an answer choice.
Optionally, you can reorder answer choices. Hover over the drag icon until a four-way arrow displays, then drag and drop the choices as needed.
Select Shuffle choices display choices in a different order each time the interaction is presented.
Enter the text that contains the gaps in the Content Area with Gap Match Placement field.
Position the pointer where you want to insert a gap, then click Insert Gap.
Select the correct answer.
Optionally, if you selected Partial Credit, enter Points for each answer choice to assign a gap element a point value other than its default.
Click OK.
Continue entering content and gaps until the interaction is complete. Double-click a gap element to make changes.
Graphic gap match
The Graphic Gap Match interaction requires students to drag and drop image answer choices to fill gaps within a larger image. Graphic Gap Match interactions are Technology Enhanced Items and can only be used with OLA tests.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Graphic Gap Match.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
Use one of the following methods to add the answer Background Image:
Click Upload Image to browse for and select a new image from your local drive.
Click Insert Image to add an image resource from your resource library.
Enter a URL or File Path.
Drag and drop the image from your local drive to the image field.
Use images in PNG format for optimum results. PNG images have a .png suffix and their type is image/ png.
Use lowercase in image filenames for the best results.
Enter image Alternative Text in the Insert Image dialog box.
Click Add Choice to add Answer Choices. Corresponding gaps will display in the background image. The identifying codes pair the gaps from the Background Image to the Answer Choices.
Optionally, click X to delete an answer choice.
Move and size the correct answer gaps. To move a rectangle, click in its center and drag it to the desired location.
If the shape you are placing on the background image does not move, minimize your screen by ten percent, then click a corner point of the shape to move.
To resize a rectangle, click on a corner point and drag the rectangle to the desired size. Gap dimensions are indicated below the code.
When you move and re-size the answer images, be sure that the shape orientation is not affected. The answer image should be numbered 1, 2, 3, 4 going counter-clockwise.
Correct - Will display in the item
Incorrect - Does not display in the item
Add the correct and incorrect answer choice images one at a time, in the order you want them to be presented to the student. There are two ways to add images:
Click Upload Image to browse for and select a new image from your local drive.
Click Insert Image to add an image resource from your resource library.
Assign Points for each correct answer choice.
Optionally, manage the Partial Credit Settings.
Enter a value in Default per choice to determine the points possible per answer choice.
Enter the Minimum and Maximum points possible.
The background image is not re-sizable. Size the image correctly before adding it to the interaction.
A gap can be assigned no correct answer choice image. This can be used to include distractor gaps.
The answer choices are presented to the student in the exact order that they are added to the interaction. For example, if you want the answer choices to display in alphabetical order for the interaction in these instructions:
First, add the AL image to Additional Images.
Then, assign the AZ image to the correct answer choice.
Next, add the GA image to Additional Images.
Continue until all images have been added.
Graphing
The Graphing item interaction requires students to enter a response by graphing points, lines, line segments, vectors, circles, and polygons in a Cartesian coordinate system. Graphing item interactions are Technology Enhanced Items and can only be used with OLA tests.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Graphing.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
Create the graph structure:
Enable - Set by default to include both axes. You can clear one axis to create a question with a single axis.
Label - Enter text to label the axes. Defaults to lowercase x and y.
Minimum - Enter the minimum range for the axes. Defaults to a range of -5 to 5. Use integer values.
Maximum - Enter the maximum range for the axes. Defaults to a range of -5 to 5. Use integer values.
Scale - Enter to change the value between each displayed point. Defaults to 1. Use integer values.
Ticks per Step- Enter a value to display divisions between grid lines. Defaults to 0, so no divisions will display. For example, the choice of 1 tick per step adds one division point between each labeled value, 2 ticks per step adds two division points and 3 ticks per step adds three division points, and so forth.
The default of 0 Ticks per Step supports snap to grid. If you add more divisions, it becomes more likely a student's response will snap to a different grid point than the student intended.
You can add background elements to the graph. These elements are visible to the student when they display the graph while taking a test.
Select which elements to add. A shaded version of the element will be displayed on the Correct Answer graph.
Click on the background image to create the element.
Select whether to Show Grid.
You can Move or Delete an element.
Select Clear All to remove all background elements.
Background elements options
Option | Description |
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Move (arrows icon) | Select to move shapes or individual points. |
Delete (x icon) | Select to delete existing elements. |
Clear All (trash can icon) | Click to clear all elements. |
Circle | Select to draw a circle. |
Line | Select to draw a line. |
Line Segment | Select to draw a line segment. |
Point | Select to add a point. Labels for points are statically generated in the order of creation, such as A, B, C, and so forth. If previous points are deleted, the original labels are not changed for the remaining points. |
Polygon | Select to draw a polygon. Polygons can be drawn using any number of coordinates as vertices to form an enclosed area. The Polygon element is not supported when using Safari or Chrome browsers on an iOS device. The last point cannot be connected to the first point. |
Vector | Select to draw a vector. |
Create correct student answer
Follow the steps to create background elements, but place the correct answer on the Correct Answer graph.
Set the student response options
For students to enter their response, select the necessary Response Options. By default, all response options are enabled, but you may want to disable some options to simplify the item display for the student.
Select the Response Options for the graphing tools presented with this interaction in Online Assessment. The options allow students to draw the respective element when answering the question.
Click Preview to preview how your item will display during testing.
Scoring
Graphing interactions are machine scored. The student response is compared to the Correct Response graph created by the item author. The following criteria determine to score for each interaction.
Interaction | Description |
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Circle | The student's response must correctly plot the center point of the circle as indicated on the Correct Answer graph. The second point can be plotted anywhere on the circle, matching the correct radius displayed on the Correct Answer graph. |
Line | The student's answer must plot any two points on the given line indicated on the Correct Answer graph. The two points are not required to match either point displayed on the Correct Answer graph. They can be plotted in either order. |
Line Segment | The student's answer must correctly plot both endpoints as indicated on the Correct Answer graph. The two points can be plotted in either order. |
Polygon | The student's response must correctly plot all vertices as shown on the Correct Answer graph. The points can be plotted in any order. |
Vector | The student's answer must plot the exact initial point as indicated on the Correct Answer graph. The second point can be plotted anywhere on the directed line segment. They can be plotted in either order. |
Hotspot
The hotspot interaction requires students to select the regions of a static image as the answer choices. Hotspot interactions can only be used with OLA tests. Allowed hotspot image formats are .jpg, .jpeg, and .png.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Hot Spot.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
Optionally, select the Partial Credit toggle to allow partial credit.
Add the background image that contains the hotspot choices:
Select Upload Image to browse for and select a new image from your local drive.
Enter the Alt Text for the image and select Upload Image.
Select Insert Image to add an image resource from your resource library.
The selected image will be displayed in the image section.
Under Answer Choices, choose a shape for each answer choice hotspot you want to present.
If you choose Polygon, select the number of sides. Polygons can have up to eight sides.
Select which hotspots are the correct answers.
Optionally, select colors for each hotspot.
For each answer choice, size and move the hotspot to its desired location on the image.
Hover over a shape until coordinates display, then click and drag to resize the shape.
Optionally, set a limit for the number of hotspots a student can choose.
Click Save.
TTS is not supported for text in hotspot interactions.
Hot text
The Hot Text interaction requires the student to select responses from presented choices located within the content text. Hottext interactions can only be used with tests administered via OLA.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Hot Text.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
Optionally, select the Partial Credit toggle to allow partial credit.
Optionally, manage the Partial Credit Settings.
Enter a value in Default per choice to determine the points possible per answer choice.
Enter the Minimum and Maximum points possible.
Enter the interaction Content Area with Hot Text Placement.
Position the pointer where you want to insert Hot Text, then select Insert Hot Text.
Enter the answer choice.
Choose one Hot Text element and select the Correct checkbox to indicate the correct answer.
Optionally, if you selected Partial Credit, enter Points for each answer choice to assign a point value other than its default.
Click OK.
Continue entering content and Hot Text until the interaction is complete. Double-click a Hot Text element to make changes.
Inline choice
The inline choice interaction requires students to select an answer choice from a drop-down list within the prompt text. Inline choice interactions can only be used with Online Assessment tests.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
Enter the Question/Prompt directly into the content editor.
With the pointer in the desired location of the inline choice field, choose Inline Choice.
Double-click the Inline Choice element to enter the answer choices. You can use formatted text, special characters, and math formatting.
Optionally, select Add Choice if you want to add additional answer choices.
Optionally, click X to delete an answer choice.
Optionally, you can reorder answer choices. Hover over the drag icon until a four-way arrow displays, then drag and drop the choices as needed.
Optionally, select Shuffle unlocked choices to display answer choices in a different order each time the interaction is presented.
Click OK or the collapse icon to save the changes. Double-click the interaction to make changes, if necessary.
Click OK to save any changes before closing the Inline Choice element or navigating to the Properties tab.
Match
The match interaction requires students to select checkboxes at the intersections of columns and rows as answer choices. Match interactions can only be used in OLA tests.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Match.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
Optionally, select the Partial Credit toggle to allow partial credit.
Optionally, manage the Partial Credit Settings.
Enter a value in Default per choice to determine the points possible per answer choice.
Enter the Minimum and Maximum points possible.
Click within the text boxes to enter or edit the Answer Choices column and row labels.
Select the checkboxes to indicate the correct answer matches.
Optionally, you can click X to delete an answer choice.
Optionally, you can reorder answer choices. Hover over the drag icon until a four-way arrow displays, then drag and drop the choices as needed.
Optionally, select Shuffle columns and rows to display answer choices in a different order each time the interaction is presented.
Optionally, select Limit student selections per row and column. You must then enter a value for Limit total number of student selections. If you enter a value, it supersedes the total number of selections allowed via the row and column settings.
By default, all rows and columns are set to 0, which means there are no restrictions on the number of answer selections a student can choose for that row or column. If you set limits for rows or columns then choose to remove the limits you must reset the count to 0 for each row and column before clearing the option. Otherwise, the number of selections continue to be restricted.
Number line
A Number Line interaction requires students to drag and drop the answer choices on the number line. Number Line interactions are Technology Enhanced Items and can only be used with OLA tests.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Number Line
Select the Response Type.
Identify Labels on Number Line: add one or more points as answer choices. Use to plot number line points.
Number Line Plot: add multiple graphical representations with one correct answer. Use to plot number line inequalities.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
Configure the number line settings:
Minimum value: Enter the minimum range for the number line on the x-axis. Defaults to -5. Use integers, fractions, or decimals.
Maximum value: Enter the maximum range for the number line on the x-axis. Defaults to a range of 5. Use integers, fractions, or decimals.
Tick Distance: Enter a value to display divisions between grid lines. Use integers, fractions, or decimals.
Changing the tick distance may hide your set minimum and maximum values on the number line. If needed, adjust the values or the tick distance to ensure the values are visible.Label Frequency: Enter a positive integer value to set the frequency of labels on the number line.
Show left or right arrow: Configure the number line to display or hide arrows.
Fraction Type: Select the type of fraction you want to use if you entered a fraction for the minimum, maximum, or tick distance values.
Enter the response options.
For Identify Labels on Number Line:
Click within the text boxes in each row to enter the Possible Response label. MathML expressions can be used for responses.
Optionally, select Add Choice to add additional response options. Each response option must be unique.
To create the correct student answer, place the correct answer on the Correct Answers graph.
For Number Line Plot:
Select the graphical representations to include as choices and select one as the correct answer.
Select Preview to preview how your item will display during testing.
Scoring
Number Line interactions are machine-scored. The student response is compared to the Correct Answers graph created by the item author. The student’s answer must correctly plot the point, points, or line as indicated on the Correct Answers graph. More than one point can be plotted in any order. For number line plots, only one line can be plotted as the correct answer.
While in early access, number line has limited functionality, and full support is actively being developed.
Number lines are currently not rendered in print student responses or SIA report downloads.
Text-to-speech will not read the answer choices on the number line.
Order
The order interaction requires students to drag and drop text objects in the correct order. Order interactions can only be used with OLA tests.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Order.
Enter the Question/Prompt.
Click within the text entry boxes and enter the answer choices in the Displayed Choices.
Drag the correct choices from the Displayed Choices column to the Correct Order column. To move a choice, hover over the drag icon until the four-way arrow displays, then drag and drop the choice to the desired location.
Optionally, you can click X to delete an answer choice.
Optionally, you can reorder answer choices. Hover over the drag icon until a four-way arrow displays, then drag and drop the choices as needed.
Optionally, select Shuffle unlocked choices to display answer choices in a different order each time the interaction is presented. If you select this option, you can click the lock icon to lock specific answer choices in place.
Select the Display orientation.
When all of the answer choices are used in the correct answer in the Correct Order column, only one column of answers will display for the student to reorder. When only some of the answer choices are used in the correct answer in the Correct Order column, a second column displays for the student to drag choices to build the answer.
Text entry
The text entry interaction is unique. The student response is an open text field, but the student's response must match one of the defined correct answers exactly to receive credit. This creates a risk for incorrect test scores, especially for math assessments.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
Enter the interaction question or prompt direction into the content editor. With the pointer positioned in the desired location, choose Text Entry.
Optionally, select the Partial Credit toggle to allow partial credit.
If the interaction has more than one recognized correct response, complete the grid for each correct answer.
Enter a Points value for each answer.
Indicate whether an answer is Case Sensitive. When there is only one correct answer, it is Case Sensitive by default.
Click OK. Double-click the interaction to make changes, if necessary.
Guidelines
The following guidelines can help ensure students receive proper credit for their responses:
Provide the units of measure, including $, outside the answer box unless units are critical. If so, add the units as a separate drop-down list using the inline choice interaction.
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Units Outside | Units as Drop-Down List |
For equation responses, provide “n” (or another suitable letter) outside the answer box.
As a rule, use ( ). Only use { } and [ ] when required.
Do not use spaces when entering an equation.
Do not use a comma when entering large numbers.
Use a decimal point only when required.
Use x as the multiplication symbol; do not use an asterisk (*).
Include these instructions with the items, as appropriate, to guide students when formatting their responses.
For questions requiring complex answers, consider using the extended text interaction with manual scoring.
Examples
The following examples outline considerations when using the Text Entry interaction:
Example 1
At least 32 student responses contain elements of a correct answer.
Example 2
At least 20 student responses contain elements of a correct answer.
Example 3
At least 37 student responses contain elements of a correct answer. Some student answers are in the proper format, but use a different letter from the answer key.
Example 4
At least 18 student responses contain elements of a correct answer.
Upload
The upload interaction requires students to upload a file (for example, an image, audio, or video file) containing a piece of work to be scored. Upload interactions can only be used with OLA tests. This is a manually-scored interaction. To support the scoring of answers, you must add an instructions block containing a rubric to score the item.
Answers uploaded by students are limited to a maximum file size of 1GB using one of these file types: bmp, doc, docx, gif, htm, html, pdf, jpeg, jpg, mov, mp3, mp4, png, pdf, ppt, pptx, svg, txt, uri, xls, zip.
From the main navigation menu, choose Items, then choose New Item.
Enter the item Properties.
Select Build.
From the Interactions menu, choose Upload.
Enter the Question/Prompt.