The Four Online Testing Tools We've Evaluated

The only way to truly test a new tool is to make concrete use of it. We went beyond the feature lists and reviews of the testing tools and created a realistic - albeit not real - test. While the test purports to investigate the students' knowledge of the history and basic facts of the lowly and common peanut butter and jelly sandwich (feel free to check your knowledge!), it is of course the testing tools themselves that are put to the test. We consider each against a specific list of basic features, thereby setting what we hope will be a useful baseline of comparison.

Our Guidelines for Evaluation:

Free: Is the tool free to use (Trial Periods do not count)?
Types: Does the tool offer the ability to create multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank, true or false, short answer/essay and matching questions?
Images: Does the tool offer image upload capabilities (i.e. to add a visual aspect to a question)?
Ease: Is the tool well supported and easy to learn?
Analysis: Does the tool offer robust statistics on student or group performance?
Security: Are there security protocols to catch cheating, hacking, back-ups or other similar problems?
Download: Can the test data be retrieved from the service in a usable form for analysis, backup or other integrity concerns?

Our Testing Test (answers not included)

Which of the following ingredients is not found in a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? (Multiple Choice)
The most common jelly flavor used in peanut butter and jelly sandwiches is? (Multiple Choice)
You must use wheat bread when making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. (True and False)
A peanut butter and jelly sandwich must have two slices of bread. (True and False)
The first company to make a combined peanut butter and jelly product was ______. (Fill in the blank)
The B in PB&J stands for ______. (Fill in the blank)
Describe some advantages to peanut butter and jelly sandwich (one paragraph). (Short Answer Question)
Describe in detail the necessary steps to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. (Essay Question)
Match the inventors to their inventions. (Matching Question)
Match the products to their sources. (Matching Question)

Please Note: Information concerning the following products was accurate as of November 10, 2009

Tool Evaluation Quick Links: ProProfs Quiz School • Lime Survey • Exambuilder • Google Form

ProProfs Quiz School (evaluated by Chris Daniels)

Overview

Quiz school is a online testing software form ProProfs. Free test's can quickly be developed and shared by embedding or using multiple web networking tools. Actual responses are not available but score reports for the last 100 test takers are stored online. In addition, it can be used as practice quizzes where answers are available right beside the question, pictures and video can be used to enhance content and test takers can provide feedback where clarity is needed.

Strengths

Free - supported by ads
Tests Links Sharing - can be emailed, embedded or shared through over 10 networking tools.
Immediate Feedback - Explanations for both right and wrong answers
Student Feedback - Discussion/ comments feature
Cheating Prevention - Password protection, time limits, amount of time taken, Test taker IP address
Certificates of Achievement - Printable encouragement and proof of achievement
End of Test Message - customizable message upon completion
Pictures and Videos - enhance test content
Question Delivery - random order, question pooling (give x# of each type of question)
Access to library of quizzes

Weaknesses

Inability to download responses
Ads sometimes block question text on far right of screen
No matching format
Score reports stored on ProProfs servers

Visit this online testing tool: http://www.proprofs.com/quiz-school

Proprofs Quiz School - Video tour and more information • Key features for classrooms

Take the Peanut Butter and Jelly Sanwhich test with ProProfs Quiz School

Lime Survey (evaluated by Erik Hill)

Overview

LimeSurvey is an incredibly powerful online testing tool, and can help create, manage, assess, and deliver online tests. It is open source software, so it can be downloaded and installed on the school’s own computers, and even be modified to suit the school’s specific needs, all without paying any license fees. It is also very flexible, supporting over 20 question types, and, like Survey Monkey, it supports branching, so the answer to one question can lead to further questions automatically. It has several advanced features, such as displaying images in questions or options, and the availability of the source code allows an expert user to add new features.

Strengths

Flexible, supporting a large number of question types
Free and freely modifiable
No cost to teachers, students, or schools
The answer data can be downloaded in many formats
Intricate control over formatting, with lots of templates available
Branching, so answers to one question can add new questions to a test
Automatic option randomization, makes cheating more difficult

Weaknesses

Interface is complex
Only experts can add new features to the system
No video support
More focused on surveys than tests
No time limits

Visit this online tool: http://www.limesurvey.org/

Exambuilder (evaluated by Bill Morrison)

Overview

ExamBuilder allows you to easily create and administer exams over the Internet. It features a user-friendly interface, great support, and a 30-day trial period. ExamBuilder has a rich, test analysis feature set and is ad free, but not free for use.

Strengths

Set up either a Click and Learn test style for non-critical assessments or a Certification test style used for licensing, certifications,and other high stakes assessments
Great automation features including emailing scheduled exam invitations to students, scheduled retakes for students who fail an exam, and auto emailing exam results to the teacher
Robust Pre and Post test creation features including the ability to add test Instructions, passing score, time limits, and an exam review where you can show students the questions they answered incorrectly
Great analysis tools including, scoring in each question pool, comparison to the aggregate mean, median and high/low score, and results for each question answered
Gap Analysis Report that grades the student in each category of the exam and provides a learning plan for improvement in low scoring areas

Weaknesses

Pricing is aimed at big business, not teachers - see for yourself
No short answer/essay question types

Visit this Online Tool's Website: www.exambuilder.com/

ExamBuilder Tour: www.exambuilder.com/tour.htm

ExamBuilder FAQ: www.exambuilder.com/faq.htm

ExamBuilder User Guide: .pdf (450kb)

30-day trial period will expire - no test link available

Google Form (evaluated by Huy Q Pham)

Overview

Google Form is a feature of Google Docs. It allows teachers to create a test that can be emailed or embedded in a webpage for students to complete. Responses of students are stored in a Google Spreadsheet for analyzing. In addition, in school it can be used for different uses of a data collection, such as, a tests, surveys, and registrations.

Strengths

Easy to create and track test statistics
Email the test or a link to the test
Take the test in an email or a web page
Complete the test without having to sign in (or sign-up) for Google Account
Create a test, then download a spreadsheet or vice versa

Weaknesses

No insert image feature
Data stored on Google's servers
Requires a teacher to have a Google account:
Must have reliable, internet access

Visit this online testing tool: http://docs.google.com/

Take the Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich test with Google Form