Sometimes faculty ask me how to evaluate their tests in Blackboard. I don’t mean “how to grade students”, since that’s pretty automatic (saving essay questions). I mean they’re looking for help with “how well is my test being answered” issues, typically with a segway into “what needs improving in my test”.

There actually is a component in Blackboard that makes this relatively simple. Once students have taken a test, and you’ve dealt with all the grades, and you’re ready to start evaluating the effectiveness of your test questions… go into the Grade Center.

Then go get a sandwich, since it takes so long for the Grade Center grid to load. Sheesh…

Okay, next click the “double chevron” button next to the column header for that test column. (Up in the teal header bar, that is.) Pick “Attempts Statistics”, and… voila. You should see all the questions from your test, with breakdowns of how students answered them. Now all you have to do is figure out what to do about the 78% of students put “C” for that question, when the correct answer was “A”.