Canvas Quizzes (and Standardized Exams)

Canvas Quizzes (don't be fooled by their name, Quizzes are used for exams, finals, mid-terms, etc.) are the Canvas feature for creating all manner of traditional quizzes or exams. Canvas Quizzes can be graded or ungraded, feature a variety of question types, can be assigned to all students or selected groups, and feature many options for number of submissions, auto-grading, revealing of correct answers (or not), timing, etc.

Quizzes can be graded or practice (ungraded); the former shows up in the Gradebook, the latter will show the student a score if they choose to view it, but does not display in the Gradebook or count in grade calculation.

Overview

The following video provides an overview of the basics of creating and managing Canvas Quizzes:

304 - Quizzes Overview Links to an external site. from Instructure Canvas Community Links to an external site.. View transcript Links to an external site..

Question Types

Canvas questions include eleven question types, though the final two (essay and file upload) are often created as Assignments rather than Quizzes because, as assignments, they are available for markup and grading in SpeedGrader.

NOTE: if you teach a course that involves numbers in any way from simple addition up through advanced algebra and trigonometry, pay special attention to the Numerical Answer and Formula types in the list below.

The following Canvas Guides provide detail about the different question types you can use in a quiz:

• Multiple Choice Links to an external site.
• True/False Links to an external site.
• Fill-in-the-Blank Links to an external site.
• Fill-in-Multiple-Blanks Links to an external site.
• Multiple Answers Links to an external site.
• Multiple Drop-down Links to an external site. (can be used for Likert scale Links to an external site.)
• Matching Links to an external site.
• Numerical Answer Links to an external site.
• Formula (simple formula Links to an external site. and single variable Links to an external site.) [See also: a video tutorial on creating questions in which formula variables are randomized for each student Links to an external site.]
• Essay Links to an external site.
• File Upload Links to an external site.

The Numerical Answer and Formula question types include the ability to provide randomized variables for each student and even allow for a particular margin of error. If you use either of these types, you might find the following videos on these topics helpful:

• How to Add a Formula Question in Canvas - Randomize Question Values and Answer Links to an external site.
• Canvas: Creating a Numerical Answer Quiz Question Links to an external site.

Quiz Details (Options)

Along with creating the quiz questions, you have a number of options for deploying the quiz, including:

• The Assignment Group (used for grade weighting)
• When the quiz is available and to whom
• Whether to shuffle (randomize) the order of multiple choice answers
• Whether to shuffle the questions
• The time limit
• The number of attempts allowed
• Visibility of correct/incorrect answers (and when)

The "What options can I set in a quiz?" Links to an external site. Canvas Guide goes into detail on the above options and more.