GRADESCOPE FOR MIXED FORMAT EXAMS
Owen Wooding,
Instructional Technology Specialist
Katie McLean,
Instructional Technology Specialist
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
While we are coming together today in a virtual space, it is
important to recognize the physical space that connects us and
brings us together. The University of Guelph and its campuses are
situated on the treaty lands of the Mississaugas of the Credit. We
understand that these lands are connected by the Dish with One
Spoon Wampum and continue to be home to diverse communities
of First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples. By acknowledging the
land, we reaffirm our commitment to decolonization and
reconciliation with Indigenous peoples and our responsibility to the
land on which we live, learn, and play.
AGENDA
• What is a “Mixed Format” Exam?
• Gradescope for Paper-Based Assessment
• Gradescope and Multiple-Choice Assessment
• Two Gradescope Mixed-Format Options:
– Separate Assignments (Bubble Sheet + Exam/Quiz)
– Single Assignment (Exam/Quiz Only)
• Where to Find Gradescope Support
• Question and Answer Period
WHAT IS A “MIXED FORMAT” EXAM?
WHAT IS A “MIXED FORMAT” EXAM?
An exam with both:
• Written question components (short answer, long answer,
graphing, diagram labels, etc.)
• Multiple-choice/true false questions
GRADESCOPE FOR PAPER-BASED EXAM
ASSESSMENT (SHORT & LONG ANSWER QUESTIONS)
Process, benefits, features, and considerations
PAPER-BASED EXAM ASSESSMENT COMPARISON
Traditional Exam Grading
• Graded by hand (pen/highlighter)
• Papers typically graded by
student rather than by question
• Multiple assessors can lead to
inconsistent grading
• Rubrics can be used to grade, but
are not available to the student
• Changes to the rubric mid-
assessment requires regrading all
previously graded papers
• Grades need to be manually
entered or imported into
CourseLink
• No access to question-based data
and analytics
PAPER-BASED EXAM ASSESSMENT COMPARISON
Gradescope Exam Grading
• Graded digitally online, but
requires scanning of exams
• Grading performed by question
• Multiple assessors share
comments, rubrics, and can be
assigned specific questions
• Rubric scores and annotations
can be shared with students
• Rubric modifications while
grading are automatically applied
to previous assessments
• Grades are posted to CourseLink
with the click of a button
• Provides grade statistics,
including custom tagging
G
THE GRADESCOPE PROCESS
• Create an Exams & Quizzes assignment (CourseLink integration)
• Upload an outline of your exam (a blank test) to Gradescope and
define where answers should appear for each question
• Scan/upload completed exams to PDF & upload it
• Match the students to the scans (automatic*)
• Perform digital assessment (rubrics, annotations, comments)
• Make feedback available to students (optional)
• Post grades directly to CourseLink
• Use analytics to see where students excelled/struggled, then refine
your lessons or exam based on that data!
GRADESCOPE ASSESSMENT BENEFITS
(EXAMS & QUIZZES ASSIGNMENTS)
• Potentially provides more efficient and effective
assessment of traditional exams
• Especially effective in large classes with grading teams
• Accommodates exam versioning (if required)
• Student roster is populated from the CourseLink Classlist
for paper-to-student matching and grade export
• Provides question-based data on how students performed
Let’s explore some specific Gradescope Exams & Quizzes
Assignment features…
GRADESCOPE ASSESSMENT FEATURES
Shared dynamic rubrics
• Simple assessment rubrics
• Option to use negative or positive scoring
• Can be created and modified on the fly by graders
GRADESCOPE ASSESSMENT FEATURES
Text Comments
• Can be re-used and shared with other graders
o No need to re-write the same comments over and over
• Can be linked to rubric scores
o Automatically apply rubric score with a comment
GRADESCOPE ASSESSMENT FEATURES
Answer Grouping
• Locate, group, and grade questions where students
provided the same answer in just a few “clicks”
• Potential to grade dozens, even hundreds of answers at
the same time
GRADESCOPE ASSESSMENT FEATURES
AI Answer Grouping
• Let Gradescope group answers for you automatically for
Multiple Choice, Math Fill-in-the-blank, or Text Fill-in-the-
blank question types
• Gradescope uses AI and text recognition to locate and
group the same answers together for you
GRADESCOPE ASSESSMENT FEATURES
Digital Annotation
• Mark up student answers digitally with clear text, using a
freeform option with a mouse or stylus, or by drawing
boxes around areas to highlight them
GRADESCOPE ASSESSMENT FEATURES
Grade by Question
• Gradescope always grades at the question-level, not at
the student or paper level
• Can improve consistency, especially in grading teams (TA
Grades Q1 and Q2, instructor grades Q3)
GRADESCOPE ASSESSMENT FEATURES
Publish Feedback to Students (Optional)
• Provide students with access to annotations, comments,
rubrics
• When published, feedback can be accessed via the
CourseLink integration or directly on gradescope.ca
GRADESCOPE ASSESSMENT FEATURES
Regrade Request Option
• Students can request regrades on specific questions
during a period you set & must provide a reason
• Regrades are managed & completed entirely through
Gradescope (can save on office hours)
GRADESCOPE ASSESSMENT FEATURES
Statistical Data
• View question and rubric-level statistics to gain insight
into student understanding of the material covered
• Tag questions to group them by learning outcomes,
topics, lectures, etc.
GRADESCOPE CONSIDERATIONS
• Scanning and uploading exams is the responsibility of the
instructor (cut staples, scan on department scanner)
• Missing pages/poorly scanned pages will require re-
scans/re-uploads of that student’s entire submission
• Student-to-paper matching is done using text recognition on
their name/id number & may require some manual matching
• If your exam is mostly long answer questions, the grouping
features will likely not be very useful
• Some features are in beta & must be requested through
Gradescope support (versioning/labelled printouts)
MORE INFORMATION ON GRADESCOPE’S EXAMS
& QUIZZES ASSIGNMENT TYPE
We won’t have time for a full demo of Exams and Quizzes today,
but we have offered a dedicated sessions previously.
The most recent session recording & slides are available here:
https://opened.uoguelph.ca/instructor-resources/fall-2022-
programming#Exams
Keep an eye out for more Gradescope programing in W23 and
S23!
GRADESCOPE AND MULTIPLE-CHOICE
ASSESSMENT
GRADESCOPE AND MULTIPLE-CHOICE
ASSESSMENT
How does Gradescope Handle Multiple-Choice Questions?
• Gradescope offers two ways to process multiple choice
questions:
1. Via a separate Bubble Sheet assignment (can be
paired with an Exams and Quizzes assignment)
[This has replaced Scantron as of F22]
2. Via the same Exams & Quizzes assignment
(students indicate MC answers in the exam booklet)
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN
GRADESCOPE’S MULTIPLE-CHOICE OPTIONS?
Gradescope Assignment Type
Features & Options
Bubble Sheet Exams & Quizzes
Number of Questions
Up to 200 Unlimited
Scanning
Instructor or CCS Instructor Only
Answer Key Required?
Yes No
Student Matching
Automatic Automatic
Assignment Versioning?
Yes Yes (Beta)
Grading
Automatic Manual (AI Grouping)
Separate Sheet Required?
Yes No
Post Grades to CourseLink
Yes Yes
GRADESCOPE’S 2 MIXED-FORMAT EXAM
OPTIONS
• Option 1: Two Separate Gradescope Assignments
– Short/long answer questions are assessed via an
Exams & Quizzes assignment in Gradescope
– Multiple-choice questions are assessed via a Bubble
Sheet assignment in Gradescope
– Grades are posted to 2 grade items in CourseLink (use
of a grade category is recommended)
• Option 2: A Single Gradescope Assignment
– All questions, including multiple-choice questions are
assessed via the same Exams and Quizzes assignment
in Gradescope (no bubble sheet)
– Grades are posted to a single grade item in CourseLink
OPTION 1:
SEPARATE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENTS
Bubble Sheet assignment for multiple-choice questions
+ Exams & Quizzes assignment for the remaining questions
SEPARATE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENTS
Step 3: Adjust the CourseLink Grade Item
Grades -> Manage Grades -> New -> Category
SEPARATE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENTS
• Give the category a name (e.g.,
Midterm Exam)
• Adjust the weight
• Choose how items (i.e., multiple
choice section and short/long
answers) will be distributed
SEPARATE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENTS
• Select all items (parts) of the midterm exam
• Choose Bulk Edit
SEPARATE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENTS
• Adjust the Max Points and Weight for each item in the
category
• Select the Category (i.e., Midterm Exam) for each item
SEPARATE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENTS
• In this example, the grade item for Midterm Exam now
contains two items (MC + Short/Long Answer)
• MC is scored out of 20 and is worth 40% of the exam
• Short/Long Answer is scored out of 30 and is worth
60% of the exam
• The midterm exam is scored out of 50 and is worth
25% of the final grade
• Important Note: Hide the grade item for final exams
SEPARATE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENTS
Step 4: Collect exams/bubble sheets, scan/upload, and
complete the assessment process for both assignments in
Gradescope
SEPARATE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENTS
Considerations
• A separate bubble sheet assignment works best if you
have many multiple-choice questions
– Anything more than 15-20 multiple-choice
questions generally works best as a separate
bubble sheet assignment
• Bubble Sheets will need to be collected and scanned
separately from the exam booklet
– Have two separate piles at turn-in and ensure
students add their name/id number to both
– You can save some scanning time by dropping off
the bubble sheets at CCS to have them scanned on
your behalf
DEMO: SEPARATE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENTS
• Create a bubble sheet assignment
• Create an exam/quiz
• Adjust the CourseLink grade item
– Create category
– Adjust points, weight, distribution method
– Hide
OPTION 2:
SINGLE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENT
Using only a single Exams & Quizzes Gradescope Assignment
IMPORTANT NOTES ON THE EXAM TEMPLATE
(PDF)
Multiple choice questions should be formatted as follows:
Students should fill in the appropriate circle/square.
Gradescope AI does NOT support circling of answers.
SINGLE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENT
Step 2: Adjust the CourseLink grade item
• Change the maximum points and weight
• Hide the grade item for final exams
SINGLE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENT
Step 3: Collect exams, scan/upload, and complete the
assessment process in Gradescope
SINGLE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENT
Considerations
• A single Exams and Quizzes assignment works
best if you have a smaller number of multiple-
choice questions
– Anything less than 15-20 multiple-choice
questions generally works best as a single
assignment
• There is only one paper to collect, but all scanning
must be done by the instructor/TA
– CCS can only scan single-page bubble sheets
DEMO: SINGLE GRADESCOPE ASSIGNMENT
• Create an Exam/Quiz
– Note formatting of multiple-choice questions on
the exam template (PDF)
• Adjust the CourseLink grade item
– Adjust points and weight
– Hide
• Sample Assessment
– AI-assisted grading for multiple choice questions
• Post grades to CourseLink
WHERE TO FIND GRADESCOPE SUPPORT
GRADESCOPE SUPPORT
• Technical Support for Gradescope is available via
CourseLink Support
– X.56939 or [email protected]
• Gradescope Drop-in Support (via Zoom)
– Tuesdays at 10 am and Wednesdays at 2 pm
• Online Support Resources
– OpenEd Gradescope Support for Instructors
– Gradescope’s Help Centre
GRADESCOPE PROGRAMMING
• Bubble Sheet Sessions
– Upcoming (Nov. 22): Transitioning from Scantron to
Gradescope Bubble Sheets - Multiple Version Answer
Keys
– Recorded (Nov. 10): Transitioning from Scantron to
Gradescope Bubble Sheets - Single Version Answer Key
• Exams & Quizzes Sessions
– Recorded (Oct. 19)
https://opened.uoguelph.ca/instructor-resources/fall-
2022-programming#Exams
• More Gradescope sessions coming in W23/S23!
QUESTION AND ANSWER PERIOD
