Organize content in an assignment

For a pooled assignment, students don't work all the same items. Each student is given a random subset of the total pool of items that you have selected.

If this assignment will have an Adaptive Follow-Up, you should use pooling only if at least one qualifying item (publisher item from the latest published edition) will definitely be given to each student who completes this (the Parent) assignment. For more information, see Tips for using Adaptive Follow-Ups.

To set up pooling, select the Pool Assignment check box, and then in the Give each student __ of n items worth __ [credit] each row, select the following:

• Fewer than the total number of items in the assignment. Each student is given the number of items you select, randomly drawn from the pool.
• The point value that applies to all items in the assignment.
• The impact on grading (practice, credit, extra credit) that applies to all items in the assignment.

Note: Pooling an assignment is incompatible with the following options:

• Differing Point Values. You can change the single point value for all items in a pooled assignment, but you can't set differing values. All items must have the same value and must affect grading in the same way (for credit, extra credit, or practice).
• Require previous. Each student is given a random subset from the pool of items, so for a specific student, the previous item might not be part of the assignment.

Randomizing the sequence of items in an assignment, particularly when item titles are hidden, makes it more difficult for students to share answers. When you select the Randomize Item Sequence check box, the program presents items to students in random order. You can set a default value for this option for all assignments that belong to the same category by editing the category.

Note: Selecting this option is incompatible with the following option:

• Require previous. If you want students to work items in a specified sequence (see below), Randomize Item Sequence must not be selected.

Randomizable variables are usually associated with End-of-Chapter (EOC), End-of-Section (EOS), or Tutorial item types, and are indicated by a check box in the Randomizable Variables column.

The values for these variables can be numerical, chemical, words, or images. Choose whether you want randomization on or off:

• Check mark = Randomization is ON (the default).
  The value of variables in the item will be different, resulting in varied correct answers for students in the course. The particular question any student sees will vary. Randomized values in questions can help reduce any incidence of student answer-sharing.
• No check mark = Randomization is OFF. All variables have fixed values, so that all students will see the same values.

If you see a drop-down menu, the item is also symbolicable. This means that numeric values can be replaced with fixed symbolic variables.

• For items that are both randomizable and symbolicable:
  Choose from Fixed Numbers, Random Numbers (the default), and Symbols. See descriptions below.
• For items that are fixed and symbolicable:
  Choose from Fixed Numbers (the default) and Symbols.

Random Numbers—One or more numeric values in the item are different, resulting in varied correct answers for students in the course. For example: If you set Random Numbers for an item that contains the question "What is the area for a square with sides of length 2.5 m?", the numeric value 2.5 is replaced with a random value.

Fixed Numbers—The item is the same for all students, with fixed numeric values. For example: If you set Fixed Numbers for an item that contains the question "What is the area for a square with sides of length 2.5 m?", the numeric value 2.5 is the same for all students.

Symbols—The item is the same for all students, with fixed symbolic variables in place of some or all of the numeric values. For example: If you set Symbols for an item that contains the question "What is the area for a square with sides of length 2.5 m?", the numeric value 2.5 is replaced with the symbol x.

Click a check box in the Select column, and then click either Move Up or Move Down to change the item's position.

If needed, begin by reordering items (see above) to the sequence you want. Then click the check box in the Require Previous column for any item that you want students to open only after they have completed the previous item.

When students view an assignment with this setting applied: [On a computer, but not on all mobile devices] Require Previous items initially appear on a light gray background. If students try to work a Require Previous item before they finish the previous item, they are prompted to work on the previous item first.

Notes:

• Require Previous doesn't affect instructor access to items from the Preview and Assign page. From that page, unlike Student View, an instructor can open items in any order.
• Any selections you make in the Require Previous column are removed if you select Pool Assignment or Randomize Item Sequence (see above).

Click a check box in the Select column, and then click Add Message Above. Enter a message or special instructions to students.

Notes:

• Messages appear when students first open an assignment. However, after students begin working items, they must click the Return to assignment link in the upper left to see the messages again. You may want to tell students how to see messages again while they work, especially if the messages include instructions for completing items.
• If any message exceeds the 3800-character limit, you can continue the text by adding another message. Keep these messages together so students will see them in order.
• Unless the assignment is pooled or the sequence of items is randomized (described above), messages appear in the positions you see them on this page. Use the Move Up and Move Down buttons to move a message, including moving a final message to the end of an assignment, below the last item.

• For a pooled or randomized assignment, messages bind to the top, bottom, or with an item in the assignment. By default, a message at the top of the list is an  Assignment message (which always appears at the beginning of the assignment). You can use the Change link to change an Assignment message to an  Item message (which is always positioned with the item that follows the message in this list). Any message below all the items will always appear at the end of the assignment.

  

Notice the summarized metrics for the assignment at the bottom of the page:

You can change the number of items and points by removing items from the assignment and by changing the point value for selected items. The program calculates the average estimated difficulty (on a 1–5 scale) and total median time for the assignment. More on estimated time and difficulty

If the assignment contains My Items or publisher items that have no difficulty or time data, you see a message saying that the estimates don't include those items. Be sure to add them to the estimated time.

For a pooled assignment:

If you see ranges in estimated difficulty and estimated time, you might want to remove some items that have dramatically different estimates.

Click a check box in the Select column, then click Remove. Removing an item from an assignment does not remove it from the Item Library.

Important: If the assignment is currently available to students, any student work on the item is lost.

To add an item, you must return to the Select Content page.

Enter a new Point Value from 0–100 for any item. You can assign a fractional point value, such as 1.5. You can set a default value for items in all assignments that belong to the same category by editing the category.

Extra credit—Assignments that are for extra credit are optional for students. They will not lower a student's grade, but may raise it. To make an entire assignment optional, designate all items in it as extra credit.

Practice—Choose practice if you don't want any point value (=0). Or set the value to 0, which automatically sets the item for practice.

Note: For a pooled assignment (see above), the point value and the affect on grading (for practice, credit, or extra credit) must be the same for all items.

More on changing the point value of an item

About requirements for completing extra credit and practice items

The Require Units check box appears for items that have numbers and units as answers. You can set a default value for this option for all assignments that belong to the same category by editing the category. You can choose whether students must enter both numbers and units, or numbers only:

• Check mark = Students must supply both numbers and units in their answers (the default). About requiring units in answers
• No check mark = Units are displayed; students must supply numbers only.