How to Change Point Value on an Assignment or Test

After creating an Assignment or Test, you might need to change the point value for the Assignment or Test question(s). The instructions below detail how to change the point value on an Assignment or Test that has already been created. If you need to create a new test or assignment, see the pages on those topics.

• Changing Point Value on an Assignment
• Changing Point Value on a Test
• How to Enable and Use Negative Points
• Enable Negative Points on the Test
• Enable Negative Points for a Question

Step-by-Step Guide

How to Change Point Value on an Assignment or Test

Changing Point Value on an Assignment

1. Locate the Assignment that you want to edit.
2. Hover over the item and select the drop-down arrow to the right of the Assignment name to open the Item Options menu.
   
    
3. Select Edit from the menu.
   
    
4. Scroll down to the Grading area and enter the desired point value in the Points Possible box.
   
    
5. When you are done, click Submit. A blue bar will appear at the top of the next screen to let you know the Assignment was successfully edited.
   
    

Changing Point Value on a Test

1. Locate the Test that you want to edit.
2. Hover over the item and select the drop-down arrow to the right of the Test name to open the options menu.
   
    
3. Select Edit the Test.
   
    
4. Scroll down to the question you want to edit. Click on the Points box to the far right of the question.
   
    
5. Enter the updated point value in the box and select whether the question is extra credit or full credit.
   
    
6. When you are done, click Submit. A blue bar will appear at the top of the next screen to let you know the Test was successfully edited.
   
    

How to Enable and Use Negative Points

You can penalize students' incorrect answers with negative points. This feature is most often used in multiple choice tests to discourage guessing. You can enable the negative points option during question creation or when editing a question.

Negative points for incorrect answers is available for the following question types:

• Matching
• Multiple answer
• Multiple choice

For example, if a multiple choice question awards 5 points for a correct answer and 0 points for skipping it, you can set -20% (or -1 point) for each of the incorrect answers. Valid negative point percentage values for a question are -100.0 to -0.0.

You cannot use this for pools or surveys. 

If you need to remove negative points, you can only do so on each question individually. 

Use the following steps to enable the negative points option and use it for individual questions.
 

Enable Negative Points on the Test

1. On the Control Panel , expand the Course Tools section.
2. Select Tests, Surveys, and Pools.
   
    
3. On the Tests, Surveys, and Pools page, select Tests.
   
    
4. On the Tests page, click the action link  to the right of a test's title to access the contextual menu.
   
    
5. Select Edit.
   
    
6. On the Test Canvas, click on Question Settings in the upper right hand corner of the frame. 
   
    
7. Under Scoring, ensure the check box for Specify negative points options for answers is selected.
   Please Note:  In order to make negative points visible, you need to ensure Specify partial credit options for answers is also selected.
8. Click Submit to save the settings change.
    

Enable Negative Points for a Question

1. For each question you want to have negative grading, select the check boxes for Allow Partial Credit and Allow Negative Scores for Incorrect Answers.
   
    
2. For each incorrect answer, type a negative percentage in the Partial Credit % box.
   Please Note:  With Negative Grading Enabled, you can enter a percentage between -100.0% and 100.0% into the Partial Credit box.
3. Click Submit.

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