Introduction to Multi-Format Assessment

 

 

What is a Multi-Format Assessment?

A Multi-Format Assessment (MFA) is a new type of exam or assignment in Cadmus. Unlike classic Cadmus assessments, which primarily support long-form text-based assessments, MFA can include different types of questions within the same assessment. These question types include:

• Multiple choice
• Short answer
• Extended response
• Fill in the blanks
• True & False
• Numerical
• Hotspot
• Matching

MFA is compatible with all devices and browsers that you already use with Cadmus. For more details on supported devices and browsers, refer to our support documentation.

Completing your assessment

Once you’re ready to get started on your assessment, you can access it from the subject page in the LMS by following these instructions.

When accessing an exam, You’ll see the exam details with the assessment title.

Click Go To Cadmus to enter the MFA student environment and begin the assessment

MFA Student environment

The MFA Student Environment is made up of three main parts:

• Assessment
• Notes
• Action Bar

Assessment

The Assessment tab is where you’ll find information about your assessment, as well as the questions you’ll be answering.

Assessment overview

The Assessment overview is where you’ll find the requirements, resources, and academic integrity agreement.

Once you click Start Exam:

To access the resources provided as a part of the assessment, click the Resource link or the File tile under the Resources section.

To go to the first question click Next, or the Arrow next to the Submit button.

Assessment outline

The Assessment outline is the left panel which includes a list of all the sections and questions in the assessment. You can use this to quickly navigate through the entire assessment.

The outline also shows the status of each question.

• A tick indicates that a question has been attempted
• A label icon indicates that a question has been bookmarked.

Work Area

This is the main area where you’ll find the questions within the assessment and respond to them.

Each question block displays:

• The question number.

• The question text.

• Points - Maximum points that can be awarded for each question.

• Bookmark button - Saves a question to be revisited later.

• Response options - Varies based on the question type.
• Back and Next Buttons - Click these buttons to navigate through the assessment. Note that clicking these buttons without answering the question automatically flags the question as skipped.

How to use the response options to answer each type of question is covered here, under "How to Answer"

Count-down Timer

The countdown timer indicates the time remaining until the assessment is due.

To hide the countdown timer, click the X button. To show the hidden countdown timer, click the Clock icon. 

Action Bar

The Action bar enables you to access the Cadmus Manual, toggle the spell-checker, navigate through the questions, and submit your work. It also displays the saved status of your work.

To access the Cadmus Manual:

• Click the Book button to open up the Cadmus Manual. It’s full of helpful university resources on things like academic writing and referencing.

Inside the Cadmus Manual, you’ll also find a link to the Cadmus Help Centre in case you have any questions or issues while working in Cadmus.

To toggle the Spell Checker:

• Click the Settings button to open up a dropdown-menu
• Enable or disable the spell checker by clicking on the Toggle button

To navigate between questions:

• Click the right arrow button to move to the next question.
• Click the left arrow button to move to the previous question.

Submitting work in MFA

To submit your assessment when all questions have been answered, Click Confirm and Submit.

To submit your assessment when some questions haven’t been answered:

1. Click Submit
2. When there are questions that haven't been answered, you’ll be asked to confirm your submission.

1. Click Yes, Submit to submit anyway.
2. To go back to the assessment click Cancel.
3. To go back to the assessment and reattempt a question click on the Question number. 

The final submission for your assignment will be displayed in a new tab called Final next to Assessment.

The process of submitting drafts remains the same.

To submit your assessment when some questions haven’t been answered, but the time is up for an exam

1. When the time is up, and some questions haven't been answered, you’ll be asked to confirm your submission.
2. To submit on time, with questions that have not been answered, click Submit Now.
3. To re-attempt any skipped or bookmarked questions and continue working, you’ll need to accept a late submission penalty. You can do this by clicking Continue working and submit late. This will take you back to the assessment
4. You can also click the Question Number to go back to a specific question. Doing so will also incur a late submission penalty.

What is bookmarking and how to use it

Bookmarking a question allows you to tag a question that you want to revisit at any point during the assessment.

To create a bookmark, simply click on the Label Icon on the desired question block.

This question will be displayed as saved for later in the Assessment outline.