Assessments in elearning are quick and easy as they only have to be set up once and, as long as they are running off an LMS (Learning Management System), the results are automatically recorded and reported. One question we often get from new clients is “What type of assessments can I have in an elearning course?”
The most common assessment questions in elearning are multiple choice, true/false, matching (ie. match a definition to the correct word), sequencing (putting steps in the correct order) and hotspots (pick the item on the screen). We don’t recommend short or long answer as short answer becomes a test of a person’s spelling ability and long answer questions need to be manually marked.
The other thing to consider when putting an assessment into elearning is the options if the learner does not answer correctly. Do you want to give them one attempt only or as many as it takes for them to get it right? If they get it wrong, do you want to take them back to the slide with the information, or give them the correct answer in the “Incorrect” message? Or do you want them to have to complete the course and then do all questions that they got wrong again? Or should they have to redo all questions regardless of whether they got some right?
So, as you can see, there are a lot of different options when it comes to assessments. Just be sure that you consider the best option for the type of course and the audience, like you should for every aspect of the course.