Proceeding Through a Test

Students can respond to questions, pause a test, review previously answered questions, and submit a test. The following sections describe each of these tasks.

Viewing Stimuli

When a test question is associated with a stimulus, students should review that stimulus before responding to the question.

About Reading Passages

When the stimulus is a reading passage, the content is read on the left side of the page (i.e., screen) (indicated in figure 1).

Sample reading passage from a practice test

Figure 1. Sample reading passage

Between the passage and the test question (stem) are two arrows. To expand the passage section, select the [Expand Passage] right-arrow [] icon. The section will expand and overlap the question section for easier readability. To expand the test question section, select the [Expand Question] left-arrow [] icon.

To collapse the expanded passage, select the [Collapse Passage] left-arrow [] icon. To collapse the expanded test question, select the [Collapse Question] right-arrow [] icon.

About Videos

When the stimulus is a video, students can use standard video features to control the playback. These are shown in figure 2.

Video screen showing cartoon of sky and plowed fields

Figure 2. Video Playback Features

  • To play a video, the student or test examiner selects the [Play] triangle [White triangle in a black box] in the video playback area.
  • To jump to a different point in the video, the student or test examiner drags the slider to the required location.
  • To adjust the speed at which the video plays, the student or test examiner selects the [Speed] 1x [White '1x' on a black backround] icon, and then selects the required speed from the menu that appears.
  • To mute or unmute a video that includes audio, the student or test examiner selects the [Volume] speaker [White speaker on a black background] icon in the lower-right corner.
  • To expand the video to full screen mode, the student or test examiner selects the [Screen Size] expand [Four corners highlighted in a square format] icon in the lower-right corner. To exit full screen mode, the student or test examiner selects the [Screen Size] icon again.

Responding to Test Questions

A student answers test questions depending on the question’s type.

  • Multiple-choice questions: A student selects a single answer option.
  • Multiselect questions: A student selects one or more answer options.
  • Technology-enhanced questions: A student follows the instructions given for each question. Technology-enhanced questions require the student to do one of the following tasks:
    • Select one or more choices from a list of answer options
    • Use an on-screen keypad to generate an answer
    • Select graphic objects or text excerpts on the screen
    • Place points, lines, or bars on a graph
    • Drag and drop text or graphic objects around on the screen
    • Enter text in a text box or table
    • Match answer options together
    • Modify a highlighted word or phrase in a reading selection
    • Enter input parameters to run an on-screen simulation

Some test pages (i.e., screens) may have only one question, and others may have more. Some questions may consist of multiple parts that students must answer. After students respond to all the questions on a page, they select [Next] to proceed to the next page.

All responses are saved automatically. Students can also manually save their responses to questions by selecting [Save] in the global menu.

Selecting the “Mark as No Response” Option (CAA for Science Only)

When a student taking a CAA for Science embedded PT is presented with a question and does not respond, a test examiner may select the Mark as No Response option on the context menu. Using this option provides information about the student’s testing experience. This option is highlighted in the context menu shown in figure 3.

Context menu that shows the available Mark for Review, Notepad, Mark as No Response, and Strikethrough options

Figure 3. Context menu with the Mark as No Response option

Refer to the Response Options for Alternate Assessments for additional information about using the Mark as No Response option for a student who takes the CAA for Science.

Pausing Tests

Students can pause the test at any time. Pausing a test logs the student off the test.

To pause a test:

  • The student selects the [Pause] parallel line [Two vertical parallel lines in a circle] icon in the global menu. A confirmation message appears.
  • The student selects the [Yes] button. This logs the student off. The Student Sign In page appears.
  • To resume testing, the student repeats the sign-in process. Refer to the subsection Signing In to the Student Testing Site.

Reviewing Questions in a Test

Students may return to a previous question and modify their response if the test was not paused for more than 20 minutes. Refer to the Pause Rules subsection for more information.

Students can use the [Back] left-arrow [] icon or the Questions drop-down list to return to questions they want to review. The drop-down list displays “(marked)” for any questions marked for review and the [Mark for Review] flag-check icon [] (refer to figure 4).

Mathematics practice test question marked for review, the question number and the question number toggle showing it as marked

Figure 4. Question marked for review

Reaching the End of a Segment

In a segmented test, the End Segment page appears after students complete the last question in the current segment. This page allows students to review questions from the current segment or proceed to the next segment. A flag appears for any questions marked for review (refer to figure 5). A warning icon appears for any unanswered questions.

End Segment page, which identifies the questions marked for review with a flag

Figure 5. End Segment page

To review questions:

  1. The student selects a question number.

To move to the next segment:

  1. The student selects [Next] in the global menu.

Submitting a Test

This section describes how students submit a test when they are finished answering questions.

Reaching the End of a Test

After students respond to the last test question but before they submit their test, the [End Test] red-square [] icon appears in the global menu; refer to figure 6 for global menu options.

Screen capture of the Global Menu with the [End Test] button displayed

Figure 6. Global Menu with [End Test] button

To end a test:

  1. The student selects the [End Test] icon. A confirmation message appears.
  2. The student selects [Yes].

End Test Page

When students end a test, the End Test page appears (refer to figure 7). This page allows students to review answers from the current test segment and submit the test for scoring. A [Marked for Review] flag icon appears for any questions marked for review. A warning icon appears if there are any unanswered questions.

End Test page that with the text, Congratulations, you reached the end of the test

Figure 7. End Test page

To review answers:

  1. The student selects a question number.
  2. To return to the End Test page, the student selects [End Test] in the global menu.

To submit the test:

  1. The student selects [Submit Test].

Test Summary Page

After students submit the test, the Test Summary page (i.e., screen) appears, displaying the student’s name, the test name, and the completion date (refer to figure 8).

Test Summary page for a sample student who took a practice test

Figure 8. Test Summary page

Closing the Student Testing Site on Tablets

After a test session ends, close the SecureTest application on student tablets.

To close the student testing application on iOS devices:

  1. The student double-taps the [Home] button. The multitasking bar appears.
  2. The student locates the SecureTest app preview and slides it upward.

To close the student testing application on Chromebooks:

To close the Student Testing Site on Chromebooks:

  1. The student selects [Close Secure Browser] in the upper-right corner.