Examinations have transformed from how they used to be a couple of decades ago. Exams are no longer limited to only exam halls or exam centers. It is no longer limited to a physical space, like a classroom.
Most schools, colleges and competitive exam takers have shifted to the online examination module where the exam taker can simply use a device such as a phone or a laptop to enroll themselves and appear for an exam from their homes.
Online exams can be prepared using a question bank evaluation method where the exam center or the exam controllers can update all the questions with respect to the various subjects, sub-topics and other such under-studies online.
Online examinations function quite differently compared to offline exams taken in exam halls and centers. Online exams are much easier and completely customizable from the exam controller’s point of view. They can be evaluated easily and results are prepared swiftly.
Question Bank and Online Exams
Most people are familiar with what a question bank is. It is usually a book or a booklet that is used to contain all the important questions or questions that were asked in previous exams, board exams, competitive exams, etc.
Online question banks are different from offline question bank that is mentioned here. In an online examination, question papers are designed by the system and can be randomized or picked out by the various exam committee members. Question bank enables the preparation of exam question papers.
How this is done is quite simple. A subject expert, a class teacher or an exam controller can simply upload a bunch of questions online via softwares or applications that are present these days in the market.
This software enables capturing a large volume of questions. Question bank evaluation is done by the exam committee, and all the questions that are deemed to be important and those that must be specifically asked for a particular exam can all be uploaded into this software. Bulk upload is also possible, which is done using a word file or an excel file.
The benefit of using software to conduct online exams is that the exam committee does not need to generate question papers by themselves or even design the layout for the same. The system does everything in a regularised manner.
All a teacher or exam committee member needs to do is prepare the question bank and upload it to the system and voila! Online exam question papers are ready, along with answer types and difficulty levels that are customisable.
Managing a Large Question Bank
For schools, colleges, and competitive exam centers who need to manage large question banks, here are a few tips to simplify the process:
- Invest in an Online Exam Software
An online exam software is capable of conducting online exams securely and can handle a large question bank with thousands of questions that are subject wise and sub-topic wise segregated.
- Choose the Answer type and method
When using a large question bank, ensure that the answer type is chosen beforehand, such as MCQ, descriptive answers, diagram-based answers, upload-based answers, etc. This helps in the easy generation of question papers.
- Security
The need for security is high in question banks, and therefore having good software that helps in preventing mishandling is necessary.
