Modern Languages Quiz - a multi tasking multiple choice package V.1.42
By Dave Walsh
September 1993
Introduction:
I like quizzes- especially those that I can use in class with children as a great way of reinforcing a module or range of work that we have been dealing with.Even better when the children themselves can make and use the quizzes by themselves. That was the purpose of this program written for a group of schools in the East Kent area but probably deserving a wider distribution to other schools.
Basically the program that you are looking at will allow you to make a multiple choice quiz on any topic of your choice where both the answers and questions are presented well and there is an option of scoring. You can have up to five responses to a question but do remember that only one of them can be right in a multiple choice! If you have less options than five then the quiz will take this into account but pupils can choose an answer not present. This is not a "bug" but rather a feature!
It may seem silly to say that there can only be one right answer in a multiple choice but its ever so tempting to use questions like:
What would you find in water?
a. Hydrogen
b. Nitrogen
c. Calcium
d. Oxygen
e. Sulphur
Which one do you think?
In fact ALL the answers could be said to be true in certain circumstances! Beware!
It doesn't have to be high brow, consider the example I used with my class:
How many boys are there in Class 3
a. 17
b. 15
c. 12
d. 16
How many people wear glasses?
a. 5
b. 2
c. 6
d. none
It can be as simple or complex as you (or your pupils) wish to make it. I have one class who delight in trying to make a multiple choice quiz on "space" as difficult as they can for their parallel class to try and complete (and incidentally vice versa , the other class also make a quiz on the same topic for them)
Starting off:
Load up the program by double clicking on !quiz . At this point you will need to wait as the program loads up and places its symbol on the icon bar. From here click on the quiz icon to use the program.
You are greeted with a title screen and if you click the middle button on this you have the option of starting the quiz of your choice ( as an automatic start the popquiz is loaded). To load another quiz you can either
type in the name of the quiz on this menu
or (a rather easier option!)
select the Quiz choices option from the icon menu (click the middle button over the quiz icon on the icon bar) and then drag the quiz of your choice onto the Quiz icon.
[A note about "dragging" here- To drag a file you click with the left hand button and hold the button down. If you now move the mouse the file selected will be represented by an orange outline box. As long as you hold down the button you will be able to move the file onto the quiz icon. Once its there ,let go and the file will be "accepted" by the program. This is common across all RISC OS applications and is known as "dragging"]
Click on start with the left button and off you go. To enter your answer click the middle menu button on the quiz window and you will have a choice of answers between a- e. Scoring of the quiz is automatic- see how well you do!
The things it will do: ( A guide to the menus)
Main Menu
Info- gives details about me
Start again
Start at question
1 - type in the question you want to start at- if the quiz is shorter than your desired starting point you will simply go straight to the score card!
Quiz choices- opens up the directory for the quizzes
Quit- finish completely
Make quiz - see the section below
Start Menu (from the title screen)
Popquiz (or the name of your selected quiz)
Start
Scores:
There is a top 40 chart for large classes! This can be saved (but not reloaded in this version) in a CSV format.To get to this file choose Score directory on the scores menu , drag the file of your quiz to your database, spreadsheet or quiz package.
Making a quiz:
The quiz is actually an !Edit file so there are two ways of making up your quiz. Outside of this program you can use ANY word processor that saves text as ASCII, writing your quiz in the following format:
Question
Answer 1
Answer 2
Answer 3
Answer 4
Answer 5
Number of correct answer
Please note that there are NO spaces between the questions or at the top of the file and the last question line MUST end with a carriage return (Return or Enter). If you have less than 5 possible answers you MUST leave a blank line for each of the redundant answers.
The following is an example of a quiz with two questions:
What is the capital of France?
London
Paris
Munich
Hamburg
Strasbourg
2
Do you find wild elephants in Alaska?
Yes
No
2
The advantages of this approach are that
- You can use any other computer (laptop, IBM etc , even the rather archaic and slow effort from Research Machines if you happen to be unfortunate enough to be in a school using these) as long as they can write to a 3.5inch floppy at 720kB (the limit of the public domain MS DOS reader on the Arc). If you are using an A5000 or A3020 this is not a limitation!
- You can run the quiz through a spelling checker
- You can work in the garden on sunny days (This file was written on a laptop in just such circumstances)
- Many children can be creating quizzes without actually having access to the Archimedes.
Once you have finished simply save the file in ASCII (pure text) format into the Quiz choice directory on this disc and it will then be ready for use). A small word of warning here! Quiz names must be at least 4 letters long.
If this does not appeal to you all is not lost as the !Quiz program has a built in Quiz maker. To use it follow this sequence:
Click the middle(Menu) button on the main icon (on the icon bar
Choose the Make Quiz option and follow this to the right
Change the name from the current quiz to that of your quiz and press Return
Click the middle(Menu) button on the main icon (on the icon bar
Choose the Make Quiz option and follow this to the right
Click with the left button on start
[A check on the filename will occur here if one of the same name exists you will be warned so that other people's work is not accidentally erased]
You are now given a window to fill in the question (click in the question area and type in the question) and the answers (Click in each of the answer spaces in turn to put in your answers)
Finally add the number of the correct answer
Click the middle (menu) button over the window and choose the Accept Question option
Continue this sequence until all the questions are entered
Click the middle (menu) button over the window and choose the Finish Making option
You can now try your quiz.
Adding questions to an existing Quiz:
This is an option to let additional pupils add to an existing set of questions. Just select the make quiz option as above but then select the "Add Questions" option.(As a matter of interest, if you are making a new file and you find that it already exists there is an option on the menu to add questions here instead of overwriting the file)
Wait for the old file to be read in, add your questions as outlined in "Making a Quiz" and then choose the finish Making. If you don't finish making the quiz your new questions won't be added and you will have wasted your time!).You also run the risk of leaving the original file open (this is only for persistent offenders!)
What happens if someone has already made a quiz on my topic?
There is a checking routine built into the program for this occurrence. If the Quiz that you are making already exists you will get a window with a warning triangle to alert you to the fact. Here (when you choose the menu in the alert window) you are given 5 options:
Check Again use this once you have entered a new filename
Give up making as it says!
Write over file destroy the work already on disc
Add Questions add your questions to the work on disc
Change name type in a new name rather than that currently in use
PLEASE NOTE THAT FILENAMES MUST BE AT LEAST 4 LETTERS LONG
And finally:
I'm not sure whether Helix basic suffers every now and then with its interface to RISC OS and gets an abort on data transfer message. Certainly if you try and zoom through the options an error can sometimes occur.Its either a limitation of my programming ( a probable cause) or the interface. Either way its a rare occurrence but it has been seen.
If you make a terrific quiz suitable for distribution as an example on the disc, let me have a copy and I'll send you an update of the program!
Dave Walsh
iTa
37 Gainsborough Drive
Beltinge
Herne Bay
CT6 6QJ
It was written to support schools in the East Kent Archimedes User group and then given to Hampshire for distribution to their schools.but the copyright to the program/code and views outlined in the documentation are mine. The documentation and program should not be separated off the disc before distribution. The program is "as is" and, although I would be interested to hear of ideas for future update and current bugs there can be no commitment of support of the product.
