Manually Enter/Edit Student Responses and Constructed Response Grades – DnA & ISE

The Enter/Edit tool allows users to manually enter student responses, and grade items that are not automatically graded by the DnA system, for Flexible and Item Bank assessments. Student responses and scores can be entered using three different views; by Grid, by Student, and by Question. This lesson walks through accessing the Enter/Edit page, how to enter data in each view, as well as best use cases for each, and what students will see when reviewing their test results.

Before You Begin

Required Permission: Users must have the Can Administer permission for the assessment to Enter/Edit student responses and grades.

This lesson begins assuming that an Item Bank or Flexible assessment has been administered to students, and there are scores that need to be manually entered. If this is not the case, take a look at the Online Testing Administration manual.

Summary Assessments also feature an Enter/Edit screen, but it functions slightly differently. To learn more, take a look at Enter and Edit Summary Assessment or Demographic Data.

Where to Start

Go to Assessments.
Select View Assessments.
Select the title of the desired Flexible or Item Bank assessment.

An example assessment with the Administer button labeled as step 4, and the Enter/Edit option labeled as step 5.

Select Administer.
Select Enter / Edit.

Find Students

An example Find Student Responses page, with the filters labeled as step 6, Additional Filters labeled as step 7, the View dropdown labeled as step 8, and the Find Students button labeled as step 9.

Use the search filters to find students to enter/edit grades for. Depending on the user's role, filters may need to be selected for school, teacher, course, and/or section.
Select Additional Filters to reveal further filter options to narrow the search.
Use the View dropdown to view all students, only students with data, or only students without data.
Select Find Students.

Entering Student Responses and Scores

The Enter/Edit page can be useful for users in any scenario where student assessment responses and scores need to be entered or edited manually, whether an assessment was administered online, or with paper and pencil. Common use-cases for utilizing the Enter/Edit screen include the following:

Entering Scores and Responses Whole-Cloth

Users may need to enter all student response data for an assessment that was not administered online, and did not utilize answer sheets that can be scanned and automated. A general assessment or a specific student situation may be ill-suited to online administration or printed bubble sheets, requiring a more individualized paper/pencil administration. The Enter/Edit page offers a flexible tool for recording student data for such assessments, allowing for the continued use of reports in viewing and analyzing that data.

Editing Existing Scores and Responses

Many administration scenarios can necessitate altering student responses and scores that are already recorded in the DnA system. Assessment data may be automatically entered by the system through online testing, input through the Grade with Camera or Grade from Scanner features, uploaded in a file, or manually entered by users in the Enter/Edit page, and require editing for any number of reasons. Students testing online might experience issues in logging into the correct account or assessment instance; internet connection issues might prevent one or more questions from properly loading or displaying; answer sheets might be improperly formatted, improperly filled out, or damaged; students may need to retake assessments or complete a makeup test; or students and instructors may have simply made a mistake that needs to be corrected. Changes and corrections can be easily made through the Enter/Edit screen.

If a student took an assessment via online testing, questions with a letter response, such as Multiple Choice, Multiple Select, and Evidence-Based Selected Response, CANNOT be edited in Enter/Edit.

Scoring Teacher-Graded Items

Certain assessment question types, such as rubric or performance-based questions, cannot be automatically scored by the DnA system, and require manual scoring via the Enter/Edit page. All Constructed Response questions and Drawing Response questions, and Explicit Constructed Response questions when administered via paper/pencil, must be scored manually. Of these, Constructed Response questions are the most commonly used.

Enter/Edit offers three ways to view, add, and edit student scores and responses: by Grid, by Student, or by Question. Each view offers unique features, and may be better suited to user needs based on the situation.

Once entered, responses and scores are instantly rescored and updated within the assessment's Overview page and Reports, as well as in the Student Portal.

By Grid View

The Grid view offers two view tabs: the original Grid, and the Constructed Response view. The Grid view allows users to enter a whole assessment's worth of responses for all students at one time. Students are listed to the left, one student per row, and all assessment questions are listed in subsequent columns, regardless of question type. The Constructed Response view tab similarly lists students to the left, but displays only Constructed Response questions, one question at a time, with each students' written response displayed to the right.

Because all students and questions are listed on one screen, the Grid view is best suited for bulk data entry, and the Constructed Response view tab is best suited for grading shorter written responses that don't require annotation or comment.

An example Enter/Edit screen, with the by Grid view selected and labeled as step 1, the Grid button selected and labeled as step 2, the Save and Autosave options labeled as step 3, the Date Taken column labeled as step 4, the Version column labeled as step 5, a selected cell labeled as step 6, a dropdown cell labeled as step 7, and the print and download options labeled as step 8.

Select by Grid.
- By Grid is default selected after filtering students.
Select Grid.
- The Grid option is default selected after selecting the by Grid view.
Select the Autosave checkbox to enable the system to automatically save data as scores are entered. If this is unchecked, manually save by selecting Save.
- Autosave is default enabled.
(Optional) Enter the Date Taken by typing or selecting the date from the calendar module. If this field is left blank, it will automatically fill with the current date.
Enter the assessment Version, if there are multiple versions of the assessment.
Select the cell for the desired student and question number, and type the appropriate text to add or change the student response.
- Cells can be navigated by using the arrow keys, or using Tab to move to the right, and Enter to move down.
- Select and drag the bottom right corner of a cell to fill down a column or row with the same value.
Questions graded with a point scale, including rubric questions, feature a dropdown to select values. Values can also be typed directly into these cells.
The Enter/Edit table can be downloaded as an Excel, PDF, or .txt file. Select More to further customize download options.

Constructed Responses

Any Constructed Response item with the Math Equation Editor (MEE) enabled is not supported in the Grid view. Constructed Response items utilizing the MEE must be scored by Student or by Question.

An example Enter/Edit page by Grid, with the Constructed Responses button selected and labeled as step 9, the question arrow buttons labeled as step 10, the Show Question button labeled as step 11, the question score column labeled as step 12, the Student Response column labeled as step 13, and the Question Info tab labeled as step 14.

Select Constructed Responses to jump to constructed response questions and see students' written responses.
Use the arrow buttons to move between questions.
Item Bank Assessments Only: Select Show Question to view the question and rubric, if included, in a separate window.
Enter the student scores in the scoring column to the right of the student's name. Use the dropdown or type the score directly into the cell.
Students' written responses display in the Student Response column.
Item Bank Assessments Only: Select the Question Info tab to view the question and rubric, if included, in the same screen as the Enter/Edit Grid.

By Student View

The Student view displays all of an assessment's questions at once, one student at a time. One student is selected, and the assessment questions are listed on the left side of the screen, with question details and student response information for the selected question displaying to the right. If administered online, Constructed Response questions will display the student's text response, with options for instructors to add annotations and comments, allowing for individualized feedback. Constructed Response items with a Multi Trait Rubric will appear as a multi-part question, with each Trait on the rubric displaying as a letter part of the Constructed Response item, allowing each Trait to receive an individual score.

The Student view is best suited for entering responses and scores for a full assessment, one student at a time, and for grading Constructed Response items with Multi Trait Rubrics, as it provides the easiest workflow to utilize when assigning multiple scores to one student response.

Select by Student.
Use the student dropdown or the arrow buttons to navigate between students.
(Optional) Enter the Date Taken by typing or selecting the date from the calendar module. If this field is left blank, it will automatically fill with the current date.
Enter the assessment Version, if there are multiple versions of the assessment.
Select the cell in the Result column for the desired question number, and type the appropriate text to add or change the student response.
- Cells can be navigated by using the arrow keys or the Tab key.
- Select and drag the bottom right corner of a cell to fill down a column with the same value.
- Questions graded with a point scale, including rubric questions, feature a dropdown to select values. Values can also be typed directly into these cells.
If the assessment was administered online, the student response to the selected question row will appear to the right.
- If the question was automatically scored by the system, relevant information regarding what the student answered correctly and incorrectly displays.
Item Bank Assessments Only: Select the Question Info tab to view the question and rubric, if included.
(Optional) Enter comments regarding the question and student response.
- These comments will display to students when they are reviewing the assessment in the Student Portal.
Select the Autosave checkbox to enable the system to automatically save data as scores are entered. If this is unchecked, manually save by selecting Save.
- Autosave is default enabled.

Constructed Responses

An example Enter/Edit screen with the by Student view selected, with an example Multi Trait Constructed Response item labeled as step 10, the student written response labeled as step 11, and the annotation menu labeled as step 12.

Selecting a Constructed Response question to grade in the by Student view offers further scoring features. Constructed Response items with a Multi Trait Rubric will appear as a multi-part question in the left-hand menu. Each Trait is represented by a letter, allowing for each Trait to be scored independently.
After selecting a Constructed Response question that was administered online, the student's written response appears to the right. Response details, including word and character counts, are also listed.
(Optional) Text annotations can be added to students' written responses, which they can view when reviewing the assessment in the Student Portal.
- Select a word or phrase to add an annotation to.
- The text annotation menu offers quick corrective notes, with positive comments highlighted in green, and constructive comments highlighted in red.
- Select Write to enter a custom note, using the appropriate green or red highlight to indicate a positive or constructive message.

What Do Students See?

An example of how students will see annotations on their Constructed Response text answer.

If annotations are being used, they will appear when the student reviews their work in the Student Portal. Comments will appear at the top of the page.

By Question View

The Question view displays the full list of students and their responses for one question at a time. One question is selected, and the students are listed on the left side of the screen, with student response information for the selected student displaying to the right. If administered online, Constructed Response questions will display the student's text response, with options for instructors to add annotations and comments, allowing for individualized feedback.

The Question view is best suited for grading Constructed Response items with Simple Rubrics, as it offers a multitude of task and review options within one screen, and allows instructors to focus on one set of rubric criteria at a time.

Select by Question.
Use the question dropdown or the arrow buttons to navigate between questions.
(Optional) Enter the Date Taken by typing or selecting the date from the calendar module. If this field is left blank, it will automatically fill with the current date.
Enter the assessment Version, if there are multiple versions of the assessment.
Type in the Filter students field to narrow the list of students.
Select the cell in the question result column for the desired student, and type the appropriate text to add or change the student response.
- Cells can be navigated by using the arrow keys or the Tab key.
- Select and drag the bottom right corner of a cell to fill down a column with the same value.
- Questions graded with a point scale, including rubric questions, feature a dropdown to select values. Values can also be typed directly into these cells.
If the assessment was administered online, the selected students' response to the question will appear to the right.
- If the question was automatically scored by the system, relevant information regarding what the student answered correctly and incorrectly displays.
Item Bank Assessments Only: Select the Question Info tab to view the question and rubric, if included.
(Optional) Enter comments regarding the question and student response.
- These comments will display to students when they are reviewing the assessment in the Student Portal.
Select the Autosave checkbox to enable the system to automatically save data as scores are entered. If this is unchecked, manually save by selecting Save.
- Autosave is default enabled.

Constructed Responses

An example Enter/Edit by Question screen, with Constructed Response labeled as step 11, the question result column displayed as step 12, the student's response statistics labeled as step 13, and the annotations menu labeled as step 14.

Select Constructed Response to immediately navigate to the first Constructed Response question on the assessment, if applicable, and limit the visible questions to only Constructed Response questions.
The question result column displays with a dropdown to select point scale values. Scores can be selected from the dropdown, or typed directly into cells.
After selecting a student that was assessed online, the student's written response appears to the right. Response details, including word and character counts, are also listed.
(Optional) Text annotations can be added to students' written responses, which they can view when reviewing the assessment in the Student Portal.
- Select a word or phrase to add an annotation to.
- The text annotation menu offers quick corrective notes, with positive comments highlighted in green, and constructive comments highlighted in red.
- Select Write to enter a custom note, using the appropriate green or red highlight to indicate a positive or constructive message.

What Do Students See?

An example of how students will see annotations on their Constructed Response text answer.

If annotations are being used, they will appear when the student reviews their work in the Student Portal. Comments will appear at the top of the page.

Item Bank Question Info

The Question Info tab appears on the far right side of the Enter/Edit page when viewing the by Grid Constructed Responses tab, the by Student view, and the by Question view for Item Bank assessments. This pop-out tab displays a preview of the currently selected item, the item details, and any included rubrics.

An example Constructed Response assessment in the Enter/Edit screen, with the Question Info tab opened and labeled as step 1, the item preview labeled as step 2, Detailed Information labeled as step 3, and Show Rubric labeled as step 4.

Select the Question Info tab to open the pop-out menu.
The item preview, including the item type, linked standards, the question prompt, and the student response options, appears.
Select Detailed Information to view further item details.
Select Show Rubric, if available, to view the rubric linked to the item.

An example Constructed Response assessment in the Enter/Edit screen with the Question Info tab opened, and the Question column labeled as step 6, the multi trait rubric details labeled as step 7, Hide Rubric displayed as step 8, and the Question Info tab labeled as step 9.

Both simple and multi trait rubrics will display, if available, in the Question Info tab.
Constructed Response items with a Multi Trait Rubric will appear as a multi-part question in the left-hand menu. Each Trait is represented by a letter, allowing for each Trait to be scored independently.
Multi Trait Rubrics will display the included Traits, Point Score Labels, and Descriptors. Each of the listed Traits corresponds to a letter part of the question to be scored. The available options under the Result dropdown reflect the range of Point Scores that were enabled in the Multi Trait Rubric for each Trait.
Select Hide Rubric to return to the item preview.
Select Question Info again to minimize the pop-out screen.

To learn more about how Multi Trait Rubrics work, take a look at Using Multi Trait Rubrics.

Next Steps

Once scores and results have been entered, users can view assessment data using Assessment Prebuilt Reports, and students can take a look at Reviewing My Test Results in Student Portal to learn how to access the Student Portal to review their assessment results.