Add a test or survey to a Course

Showpad enables you to create custom tests to assess learners' knowledge. You can also build surveys to gather feedback and insights. You can choose to upload pre-made tests or create assessments directly within the Course Builder.

Tests are ideal for checking learners' knowledge after completing the lessons of a Course to assess their understanding of specific products and processes. Certificates can be awarded to learners who pass a test or complete a survey. While surveys collect valuable feedback, they differ from tests in that no scores are assigned. Their purpose is to gather insights and data. Admins and Managers can grade or reset tests in the My Team hub.

To increase the longevity of a Course, it’s possible to edit tests over time.

See how it looks

Key features

• Test users’ knowledge of relevant topics
• Edit tests over time
• Allow learners to skip a Course if they pass a test
• Gather data with a survey

You need this to succeed

The quick way

1. Drag and drop a Test or Survey block to the Course Builder
2. Select one of the four question types
3. Input questions and answers
4. Configure test or survey settings

Do this step by step

1. Create a test manually
2. Create a survey manually
3. Create a survey or test with a CSV file
4. Add test questions using AI assistance
5. Manage test reminders
6. Update a test

Create a Test manually

1. Drag and drop the Test block from the left menu to the Course Builder.
2. Use the menu in the top right to select a question type. Choose from these options:
   • Single Selection: Enter several answer choices, with only one correct option. Select the circle next to the correct answer.
   • Multiple Selection: Enter multiple answers with more than one correct option. Select the boxes next to all correct answers. The user must select all the correct answers to score.
   • Text Match: List all the correct answers in the fields. Any answers that match one of the options will be marked as correct.
   • Short Answer: This open-ended question allows users to enter their answers in the text box. The answers are subjective and require an admin or manager to grade them and provide feedback.
     For short answers, you must assign a point value by sliding the scale to select 1-5 points. The other types of questions are worth one point each.

     Note: When Managers are designated to review short answers, it will be the Manager assigned to the group rather than the direct Manager.

   Tip: Save early, save often! Using the Save button allows you to continue building the test as you work on it.

3. For each question type, click Add Answer Choice to create additional answers.
4. To remove answers, hover over an answer and click the trash icon to the right.
5. To rearrange an answer, hover over the letter and click the rearrange icon to the left. Then, drag and drop the answer to the desired position.
6. You can attach an explanatory graphic to each of your questions. To do so, click the Add Image box and choose between uploading an image from your computer or selecting content from the Files library.
7. For each question type, you can click the Answer explanation box at the bottom to provide the user with context. This will open a text field where you can add more details to explain the question’s answer. The explanation will appear when the user reviews their test score.
8. Proceed to add more questions to the test by clicking Add Question at the bottom.
9. Click the three dot menu next to one of the questions. If you want to copy a question and edit it later, click Duplicate. If you want to remove a question, click Delete.
10. While working on the questions and answers, the Test Settings panel will open on the right. You can also open this panel by clicking the three dot menu next to the Test block, then selecting Settings.

Create a survey manually

A survey collects data from your users without assigning them a score.

1. Drag and drop the Survey block from the left menu to the Course Builder.
2. Use the menu in the top right to select a question type. Choose from these options:
   • Single Selection: Enter several answer choices, with only one correct option. Select the circle next to the correct answer.
   • Multiple Selection: Enter multiple answers with more than one correct option. Select the boxes next to all correct answers. The user must select all the correct answers to score.

   Tip: Save early, save often! Using the Save button allows you to continue building the survey as you work on it.

3. For each question type, click Add Answer Choice to create additional answers.
4. To remove answers, hover over an answer and click the trash icon to the right.
5. To rearrange an answer, hover over the letter and click the rearrange icon to the left. Then, drag and drop the answer to the desired position.
6. You can attach an explanatory graphic to each of your questions. To do so, click the Add Image box and choose between uploading an image from your computer or selecting content from the Files library.
7. Proceed to add more questions to the survey by clicking Add Question at the bottom.
8. Click the three dot menu next to one of the questions. If you want to copy a question and edit it later, click Duplicate. If you want to remove a question, click Delete.
9. While working on the questions and answers, a Survey Settings panel will open on the right. You can also open this panel by clicking the three dot menu next to the Survey block, then selecting Settings.

Create a Survey or a Test with a CSV file

Instead of adding questions individually to a test or survey, you can upload a CSV containing all the questions and answers.

Tip: Find a sample CSV template for your tests and surveys at the bottom of this article.

1. Prepare your CSV based on the following guidelines:

   Question content	Explanation	Question Type	Answer / Weight	Answer	Answer
   Write your question.	Write a short explanation if necessary. This field is optional and can be left blank.	Choose a question type: Single Selection Multiple Selection Text Match Short Answer	Depending on the question type, this column serves different purposes: For Single Selection, Multiple Selection, and Text Match, use this column to write the answer. For Short Answer question type, enter the weight of the answer on a scale from 1 to 5.	For Single Selection, Multiple Selection, and Text Match, you can add as many answers as you want in the following columns.	*Add an asterisk before the right answer(s) (e.g., *Correct Answer) to inform which answer is correct for Single Selection and Multiple Selection.

2. Drag and drop a Test or Survey block to the Course Builder.
3. Click the three dot menu in the upper right, and select Upload CSV.

   Note: If you have already written questions in your survey or test, a prompt will let you know that any currently filled questions will be deleted and replaced with the data from your file. Click Continue.

4. Click Browse or drag and drop your CSV file. From this window, you can also download a sample CSV template to use as a reference. Click the link at the bottom of the pop-up window to do so.
5. The questions and answers will be imported.

Generate test questions with AI assistance

This AI feature provides you with the ability to automatically generate test questions by selecting text in an asset while building a Course. Test questions can be created in any language enabled in your localization settings.

1. Open a document asset from within the lessons of your Course in the Course Builder.
2. Select the text in the document you want to create a test question for. You’ll see a Generate questions from selection option appear. Click this to open the test question generator.

   Tip: For the best results, choose text that is specific and precise, such as text that includes statistics. Try selecting 1-2 sentences rather than big paragraphs of text.

3. One question will be generated at a time, with one correct answer and one or more incorrect answers. Review the generated question. You can choose to discard the question or click Add question to Course. Close the lesson content when done.
4. Within the test module in the Course Builder, you will see all the AI-generated test questions. You can edit them as needed. If a test module has not been added to the Course Builder, one will be added.

Manage Test Reminders

You can define automatic reminders for tests that need to be completed.

1. Click the gear icon on the top right of the Admin App to open Admin Settings.
2. Select Messaging from the left menu and scroll down to the Coach Messaging section.
3. Under Test Management Reminders, choose the default reminder frequency between Never, Semi-Monthly, Weekly, or Daily, then click Save.

Update a test

When a test is published, you can edit it later when a Course must be updated.

1. To update a test, click the module and update the question type and values.
2. Add a question by clicking Add Question at the bottom of the module.

   Note: Changes made to a test will only be reflected on assignments with an incomplete test.

3. You can see the results of previous versions of a test in the My Team hub under Question Breakdown.

Download a test CSV template