Uploading Test Questions via a TXT File

If your course is in Original Course View, see the Original Course View tutorial collection.

Uploading Test Questions Overview

Test questions can be written offline in a text file and uploaded into a test.

After you upload the file, you can edit and use the questions exactly like the questions that you create inside your course.

Watch A Deeper Dive into Question Banks, Question Pools, and Adding Questions to a Course to learn more.  Reusing test questions, creating a new test bank, importing a question bank, and uploading test questions via a Text File will be covered in this video.

• The questions and the file you upload must meet the guidelines detailed in this topic.
• Questions that contain an error will fail to upload. Questions without errors will upload successfully.
• The system doesn't check for duplicate questions.
• Uploaded questions automatically default to the point value they're assigned when uploaded. If you didn't set a default value, questions will automatically have a point value of zero. You'll have to add a point value for each question.
   

Create a Question File for Uploading

File Format Guidelines

Each file that contains questions to be uploaded must conform to these guidelines:

• Each file must be a tab-delimited TXT file. You can edit this file in Microsoft^® Excel^® or in a text editor.
• It is recommended that each batch file not exceed 250 records. 
• Do NOT include a header row in the file.
• Do NOT include blank lines between records. The blank line will be processed and return an error.
• Include only one question per row.
• The first field in each row defines the type of question.
• Separate each field in a row with a TAB.
• correct, incorrect, true, false, and other words that identify answers must be in English.

Question Format Guidelines

To upload successfully, the questions in the text file must conform to the guidelines in this table.

Questions that contain an error will fail to upload. Questions without errors will upload successfully.

Supported question types include:

• Multiple choice / multiple answer
• True / False
• Essay
• Fill in the Blank
• Fill in Multiple Blanks
• Numeric response
• Matching

Question Type and Structure

Again, the file must be a tab-delimited Excel file.  The structure needed for each question type is described below. The sample file shown below will help visualize the file set up needed for each question type.

Multiple Choice

MC TAB question text TAB answer text TAB correct|incorrect TAB answer two text TAB correct|incorrect

note: Text within ( ) may be repeated for each of the answers that are part of the Multiple Choice question. The maximum number of answers is 100.

Multiple Answer
MA TAB question text TAB answer text TAB correct|incorrect TAB answer two text TAB correct|incorrect

note:Text within ( ) may be repeated for each of the answers that are part of the Multiple Answer question. The maximum number of answers is 100.

True/False
TF TAB question text TAB true|false

Essay
ESS TAB question text TAB [example]

note:Text within [ ] is optional. You may choose to add a sample or leave this blank.

Matching
MAT TAB question text TAB answer text TAB matching text TAB answer two text TAB matching two text

Text within ( ) may be repeated for each of the answers that are part of the Matching question. The maximum number of answers is 100. The system will randomly order the answers and their question. When uploading a matching question, you must have a one-to-one relationship between questions and answers. If not, correct answers may be marked incorrect if more than one answer has the same value.

Fill in the Blank
FIB TAB question text TAB answer text TAB answer two text

note:Text within ( ) may be repeated for each of the answers that are part of the Fill in the Blank question. The maximum number of answers is 100.
Fill in Multiple Blanks    FIB_PLUS TAB question text TAB variable1 TAB answer1 TAB answer2 TAB TAB variable2 TAB answer3

The format consists of a list of variable-answers where each variable-answer is composed of the variable name and a list of correct answers for that variable. Variable-answers are delimited by an empty field.

The maximum number of variables is 10.

Numeric Response
NUM TAB question text TAB answer TAB [optional]tolerance

Sample Question File

 

 

Uploading a Question File

1. From the test, select the purple plus sign to open the menu 
2. Select the Upload questions from file option. 
3. Select Browse to locate the file.
4. Select Submit and OK. The questions appear in the test.
5. You can edit and reorder the questions.

Image: Instructor view – ‘Upload questions from file’ option in tests; this same option exists for assignments