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Assessment: Best practice for quizzes

How long a quiz should be, how to mix knowledge checks with a scored quiz, and how to keep learners engaged through assessment.

Keep a scored quiz to around 20 questions or fewer, and spread knowledge checks through the course so people aren't meeting every question at the end. That combination keeps engagement up and gives learners a sense of how they're going before the assessment arrives.

Two shapes of assessment

Coassemble gives you two, and using both is usually stronger than leaning on one:

  • A knowledge check is a single question on an ordinary screen, not scored. Use it as you go, right after the idea it tests.
  • A scored quiz is its own section, with a cover screen, a screen per question and a results screen. Use it for the test or final assessment.

In the Classic builder, assessment sits on a Quiz screen. The guidance below applies either way.

Ideal length

Avoid more than 20 questions in a single scored quiz. Larger quizzes lead to a poor experience through fatigue and reduced engagement. Split a long set, say 100 questions, into several smaller quizzes: five quizzes of 20 keeps focus and engagement much higher than one of 100.

Design guidelines

  1. Focus on key topics: include questions that directly align with the learning objectives of your course.
  2. Balance difficulty: mix easy, medium and challenging questions to hold interest.
  3. Keep it concise: around 10 to 20 questions lets participants finish in one sitting without losing focus.
  4. Write real feedback: each question block carries a correct response message and a separate message per wrong answer option, so you can address the particular misconception behind the option someone picked.
  5. Set the rules deliberately: on the quiz cover screen, Quiz options lets you turn scoring on with a passing grade, set a number of retries or allow unlimited retries, shuffle the question order, and make short answers case sensitive.

User experience considerations

  • Engagement: participants are more likely to complete shorter quizzes, which lifts overall course completion.
  • Clarity: smaller quizzes help learners understand and reflect on their progress before moving on.
  • Completion: with scoring on, a learner who doesn't reach the passing grade hasn't passed, and that holds up course completion. Decide the retry setting with that in mind.

Frequently asked questions

Should every course end with a quiz?

No. Knowledge checks through the course are often enough. Add a scored quiz when you need a record of who passed.

Can I generate quiz questions rather than writing them?

Yes. Ask the agent for a quiz, or use the Generate quiz button at the bottom of a section, which opens the agent with the prompt already written so you can add your own instructions before sending it.