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How to Find Questions on HelpTeaching.com

HelpTeaching.com is an online resource that uses member generated content to assist teachers in building quality tests and activities with a little help from their colleagues around the country. You can create your own questions. Or you could cherry pick the best questions created by others. Or you could create a test that is a perfect combination of both!

The vast amount of resources provided by HelpTeaching.com could be overwhelming, which is why this week’s post will focus on the different ways to locate the perfect questions for your upcoming assessment or activity.

Search Method #1: Browse by Category

Every question on HelpTeaching.com is categorized by subject area to make your searching simple and easy. Subjects include English Language Arts, Math, Science, and Social Studies. (The content on Help Teaching isn’t just for those who teach major subjects. You will also find questions categorized by the Arts, Business, Technology and many more.)

Most categories are then further divided by subcategories, which makes locating your specific topic just a few clicks away.

For example: A few months back I was giving a quiz on American expansion.  I simply clicked on “Social Studies”, then “US History”, then “The Frontier” and presto! Pages of user created questions were waiting for me.

Search Method #2: Search by Member

If in your searching you find that one particular user has created a plethora of questions that match your style and curriculum, just click on that member’s name and scroll through their content. Your academic soul mate just may have even more to offer you when you view their entire collection of questions.

For example: I wanted to change up my Economics test on supply and demand. While searching the Economics database, I came across user adriscoll24422, whose questions matched my testing philosophy and vocabulary, and the difficulty level necessary for my students.

Search Method #3: Search Box

Need a very specific question to finish that test? Don’t feel like scrolling through all of questions about the Frontier on HelpTeaching.com? Just type in the term you’re looking for in the Search box at the top of the page. It will return any question in the database with terms in your query.

For example: I knew there was probably a small amount of user created questions about government subsidies. Instead of searching through all of the Economics questions, I searched for the term “subsidy” and located the only question in the HelpTeaching.com database about that topic.

Search Method #4: Advanced Search

Sometimes your needs are just too specific to search by a single term. Luckily, HelpTeaching.com has an advanced search option that can narrow your results down even further than a typical search would. The advanced search allows you to refine results by category, grade, and/or question type.

For example: In searching for questions on “supply” for my Economics test, over 50% of the questions weren’t even about Economics! Categories ranged from Vocabulary to Zoology. By using the advanced search function, I was able to refine my search by keyword (supply), category (Social Studies), sub-category (Economics), grade (9, 10, 11, and 12), and question type (multiple choice). The results of my advanced search left me with 20 questions, all of which fit my needs. The hardest part was picking which one to use!

There are multiple ways to sort through the HelpTeaching.com database of questions. Which method you use depends upon your unique situation.

Next week I’ll discuss ways you can customize your test using the HelpTeaching.com Test Setup feature.

Related Topics:
Using Math Images on HelpTeaching.com
Using Question Groups on HelpTeaching.com
How to Customize Your Tests Created on HelpTeaching.com
How to Find Questions on HelpTeaching.com
How to Write Good Test Questions

How to Design a Good Test

How to design a good test

Putting together a challenging yet fair test for your students is a difficult task for even the most experienced teacher. So many variables go into choosing the format, creating the questions, and locating the appropriate maps, charts, passages, and documents that some very basic, but very important, factors often go forgotten. So if you’re grappling with how to design a good test, keep reading… we’ve put together useful tips and advice you can use right away.

1)    Give the students confidence right away.

The first question of your test should be relatively easy. The students with test anxiety and those who are unsure of their knowledge will feel their confidence buoyed from getting the first question correct.

2)    Mix it up…

Each test can and should have a mixture of question types. Earlier grades should have a mixture of multiple choice, true/false, and others. Upper grades should blend multiple choice questions, questions with documents, and short answer questions. You can utilize our Free Test Maker to come up with questions for all K-12 subjects.

3)    …But the format within those question types should remain consistent.

For example, all of the multiple choice questions on your test should have the same amount of choices.

4)    Be chrono-logical.

Students will often recall your lessons and classwork while taking the test. Putting your test questions in the order in which you taught the unit will allow them to cycle through the unit in their mind and hopefully jog their memory.

5)    Search to the ends of the earth for a good question.

Whatever your state assessments may be, there are past tests out there for you to peruse and use.  Find similar assessments from around the country and use their questions. Have a skill that you would like to reinforce on your test? Do an image search for the perfect picture, graph, or chart and create a question around the document. Websites such as HelpTeaching.com give you the ability to create tests from user created content from teachers just like you.

6)    Timing is everything.

It’s better to have your weakest student finish early than to have them not finish at all. Don’t try to pack too many questions into one class period. If there is just too much information to limit the amount of questions, spread out your test over two days, or change your assessment to an essay. Written assignments allow you to assess greater amount of content in one overriding question instead of 25 smaller questions. If you are afraid your higher level students will finish too early or will not be sufficiently challenged, prepare a secondary assignment those who finish early can complete in class and those who do not can finish at home.

Test or quiz creation can be a difficult task. A poorly created test can make an well prepared unit finish with a crushing thud, forcing you wait a whole year to rectify those mistakes. Follow the tips above for a smoother testing period. Good luck!

My next post will focus on customizing your tests using the features on HelpTeaching.com.