Step-By-Step
Creating a Question Pool
Multiple Choice Questions
(Text version)

1. To add a Multiple Choice Question to your pool:

• Choose "Multiple Choice" from the "add Question" dropdown box located on the Pool Canvas form. Click on the "Go" button. This will display the Add/Modify Multiple Choice Question" form with the creation functionality based on the selections you made in the "Creation Settings".
  
• The first thing you must do is decide on the number of possible multiple choices you will provide. The default is 4. If there are more than 4 multiple choices, use the dropdown box marked "Number of Answers" Under section #2, to add more choices. If there are less than the default 4, click on the remove button to the right of the first answer box. This will reduce the number to 3. Make sure you decide of the number of answers before you do anything else as changing it later will delete the question information.
  
• Type in the question in the box marked "Question Text" under Section #1.
• If you selected to include the functionality to add file attachments, images or URLs to questions in "Creation Settings", a "Browse" button is displayed allowing you to attached a file to this question. To add an attached file or image to this question, click on the "Browse" button. This will display your computer's file locater dialogue box. Using the dropdown box on the top of the file locator, locate the directory and folder that contains the file you want to attach. Click on the name of the file then click on the "Open" button on the file locator. The locator dialogue box will disappear and the path to the file will be located in the box next to the "Browse" button. If the file you attached is an image file (JPG, GIF or PNG), you can select from the "Action" dropdown box to either create a link to the image file or display the image file on the page. Creating a link means that the student must click on a link to see the image. Displaying the image means the image will be visible without having to click on a link. If the file is not an image file, the "Action" must be set to: "Create a link to this media file". If you are attaching a URL to the question, type in the URL in the box marked "URL". Type in a title for this URL to act as a link for students to click on to view the URL web page.
  
• Next, Type in the answer choices in each of the boxes marked "Answer 1", "Answer 2" and so on.
• Next, select the radio button to the left of the answer box that you want for the "Correct" choice.
  
• If you want to provide a response to the student based on the student answering this question correctly, type in your response in the box marked "Correct Response".
• If you want to provide a response to the student based on the student answering this question incorrectly, type in your response in the box marked "Incorrect Response".
  
• If you selected "Add categories and keywords to questions" under Creation Settings, a "Categorize" button will be displayed under section #4. To add this question to a category, click on the "Categorize" button. This will display the Categorize Question Page. You will be able to select pre-existing categories here. You can create a new category by clicking on the "Category Manager" button. This displays the Category Manager page. Type in a new category name into the box marked "Add New Category" and click on the "Add" button. This will add the Category to the list. Click on "OK". This will return you to the Categorize Question page. You can now choose the new category (or any existing categories) from the dropdown box. When you have selected the category, click on the "Add" button. Next, click on the "OK" button. this will return you to the Add/Modify Multiple Choice Question" form for the question you are working on. Note that your category is now listed next to note "Current Categories".
• If you selected "Add categories and keywords to questions" under Creation Settings, a keyword box will be available under section #4. Type in any keywords you want to help locate this question in a Blackboard Pool of questions for use in a later Pool.
  
• Finally, Click on the "Submit" button at the bottom of the page. This will display the Pool Canvas page with your Multiple Choice question added.

You can now add more questions. Each question will have a Question Number associated with it. you can use the dropdown box to re-order your questions. At any point in the creation process, you can click on the "OK" button on the bottom of the page. This saves the pool in its present form. You can return to the pool and continue editing it by going to Control Panel / Pool Manager and clicking on the "Modify" button to the right of the pool name. This will display the Pool Canvas page and you can continue to edit the pool. You can remove any Pool question by clicking on the "Remove" button to the right of the question.

If you have any questions or comments regarding this Step-By-Step procedure contact the Tufts Blackboard Administrator at: nhirsig@tufts.edu