8.6: Create Completion And Drag-The-Words Questions

Completion questions embed response positions inside a sentence or passage. They work well for vocabulary, syntax, formulas, and process language, but the remaining text must provide enough context for one defensible completion.

In this section, you will create Fill in Blanks, Multiple Dropdowns, and Drag the Words questions.

Before You Begin

Write the complete correct sentence first. Then choose the words or phrases the learner should supply. Read the passage without those answers to confirm that it still communicates the intended context.

1. Create A Fill In Blanks Question

Use Fill in Blanks when the learner should type the missing text.

1. Select Questions and choose Fill in Blanks.
2. Enter the complete sentence or passage in the question body.
3. Select the exact word or phrase that should become a blank.
4. Select Create Blank in the contextual toolbar.
5. Repeat for each additional blank.
6. Select a blank and turn on Case Sensitive only when capitalization is part of the answer.
7. Open Present, complete every blank, and submit the question.

The selected text becomes the correct answer for that blank. Matching is case-insensitive by default. Every blank must be answered correctly for the question to be correct; individual blanks do not receive partial points.

When revising the passage, choose the operation that matches your intent:

• Blank to Text restores the selected blank's correct answer as normal text.
• All Blanks to Text restores every blank as text.
• Delete Blank removes the selected blank and its answer text.
• Delete All Blanks removes all blanks and their answer text.

Use the “to Text” commands when you want to preserve the sentence. Use Delete only when the answer text itself should disappear.

If no text is selected, Create Blank may add a new blank at the end of the body. Select the intended text first to avoid creating an empty or misplaced response position.

2. Create A Multiple Dropdowns Question

Use Multiple Dropdowns when each missing part should be selected from a local list.

1. Select Questions and choose Multiple Dropdowns.
2. Enter the complete correct sentence.
3. Select the word or phrase that should become the correct option.
4. Select Create Dropdown.
5. Select the new dropdown and open Incorrect Answers.
6. Add plausible alternatives, then save the list.
7. Repeat for every dropdown in the passage.
8. Open Present and test every list.

The selected source text is the correct option. The player combines it with that dropdown's incorrect answers and rearranges the list. Keep all options grammatically compatible with the surrounding sentence so grammar alone does not reveal the answer.

Every dropdown must contain the correct selection for the complete question to be correct.

To revise the passage, use Dropdown to Text or All Dropdowns to Text to preserve correct text. Use Delete Dropdown or Delete All Dropdowns only when the corresponding text should also be removed.

3. Create A Drag The Words Question

Use Drag the Words when learners should move words from a bank into positions in the passage.

1. Select Questions and choose Drag the Words.
2. Enter the complete correct sentence or passage.
3. Select a non-empty word or phrase.
4. Select Add correct word. The selected text becomes a target, and its answer is added to the word bank.
5. Repeat for every word the learner should place.
6. In the word bank, select Add incorrect word when a useful distractor is needed.
7. Open Present, place all correct words, and submit the question.

Selecting existing text produces the clearest answer immediately. You can also place the caret without selecting text and choose Add correct word; the editor inserts a generated placeholder that you can replace. The command is unavailable when the selection contains an existing response area or an authored word is already focused.

The learner must place every correct word in its matching target. A missing or misplaced word makes the whole question incorrect; individual targets do not receive partial points.

To revise the question:

• use Word to Text or All Words to Text to restore correct words to the passage;
• use Delete Word or Delete All Words to remove the targets and their text; and
• use Remove All Incorrect Words to clear distractors without changing the correct targets.

4. Proofread And Preview

After creating the response positions:

1. read the passage for repeated spaces and misplaced punctuation;
2. check singular/plural agreement around every option;
3. remove duplicate answers that create ambiguity;
4. confirm the intended capitalization rule;
5. preview wrapping at desktop and narrow widths;
6. submit a partially completed response; and
7. submit the fully correct response.

Punctuation usually reads best outside the response control unless punctuation itself is being assessed.

Troubleshooting

Quick Check

You have completed this section when every embedded response has one clear solution, conversion and deletion behave as intended, and only a fully correct completion earns the question score in Present.

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