TAs
As TAs you have the same features available to you as the professor, your access will just end when the semester closes, so please peruse the Instructor help pages for all the classics, like:
Assignment solutions
Question Search (and bulk exporting/importing questions)
Choosing the best Assignment for your Purpose
Student Late Submit queries
Exam timers and late submits (both may be needed)
Link Quest and Canvas so grades are sent automatically
Encourage Student Studying via Custom Reviews
Review someone's webcam proctoring for an exam
The Quest team is here to help support you with any Quest related concerns, set up, or familiarity tutorials–feel free to send us a note at questhelp@austin.utexas.edu (the best during pandemic times), call 512.232.1076, or (by appointment only during Covid times) drop by PMA 15.320G (post pandemic). We want to hear from you and make your lives easier, and your input helps shape features that are
Below are some helpful tips that previous TAs offer to you to help make your semester streamlined.
If you have suggestions you'd like to see here please let us know! We are always improving and your input is essential to grow in meaningful ways!
Basics
Tools on how to create a new Assignment, copy from other's material (you will need to first be added as an importer or additional instructor), check how often the question has been used at your institution (using a history tab). Additional information on assignments found here.
If you and your lead instructor are using Canvas as your gradebook, please follow these steps to automatically link assignments and grades so they are automatically synchronized between Quest and Canvas. If you'd like other methods to export student grades, instructions on how to do so found here.
Communicating with Students: you can post class announcements, or if you need to just let a few students know something, you can grab their email off the roster (on the left side bar). This could take a few steps out using Canvas as the communication run around.
Due to order and number randomization, students working on the same question will likely have different numbers in the problem. You can access a specific student's homework a few ways:
1) by clicking the assignment in question, then selecting "Answer Key" from the left side bar, and picking the designated student. This will bring up their assignment and responses (clicking on the green 'tries' shows the various responses that student has entered)
2) select "Student Grades" on the left side bar, choose the appropriate tab (exams, homework, learning module, etc), and click on the interested score for student/assignment.
Can I adjust my student's grades? Yes, look here, and make sure you're in communication with your professor as to what is and is not within your responsibilities and duty.
Before Your First Exam
Student eids may need to be reconciled in the Quest system. If you notice that in Canvas there is one name/eid and in Quest another, please confirm with the student that they have more than one UT eid, and have reconciled them, and send us a note (questhelp@austin.utexas.edu) to do the same (unfortunately it isn't already automatic).
For online tests:
Go through this checklist well before the exam to make sure everything is covered.
Use the exam dashboard to monitor your students in real time while taking the test.
If needing to reset time after the test has already closed, please navigate to the assignment, on the left side bar: answer key, select the student, and click the reset timer button. The student will still need a late submit to access the assignment.
For bubblesheet tests:
We are here to help ensure your process of printing (optional) and scanning bubblesheets for exams. Please consult these pages to print and scan bubblesheets–there is a scanner in the Quest office PMA (RLM) 15.320G (open 9:30-5:30, M-F), as well as in the math departmental office (PMA 8th floor, east hallway, 8-5pm, closed noon-1pm, M-F)
(Especially in large classes) Sorting the bubblesheet scantrons may be useful should there be need to find a particular student's response (usually to check version number, eid, or misscans, where more than one bubble per question row is marked). Having a procedure where students turn in the bubblesheets so they're all oriented the same way (name/version face up, clipped corner in upper right hand) may save you some time and papercuts later.
More
How do I create a question bank? In editor, you can use an existing question to make a copy to your personal bank by clicking the 'Use an existing question as a template' option and entering in the id number of the question you want. Leta (512.232.1076, PMA 15.320G) is happy to meet with anyone wanting initial training on how to make questions.
Review the statistics of an assignment by clicking on "Statistics" in the left side bar. Histograms of grade distributions await! More info on statistics Quest provides here.
