Method and system for creating and evaluating quizzes

• US 6,685,482 B2
• Filed: 04/13/2001
• Issued: 02/03/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Marsha A. Hopp, Theodore H. Hopp
• Original Assignee: Marsha A. Hopp, Theodore H. Hopp
• Inventors: Hopp, Marsha A., Hopp, Theodore H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hughes, S. Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): ADAMS, CHANDA L
• Application Number:
  US09/834,843
• Publication Number:
  US 20020161732A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,026 Days
• Field of Search: 434/350, 434/322, 434/323, 434/118, 434/362, 434/336, 463/9
• US Class Current: 434/323
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/02 of the type wherein the student is expected to construct an answer to the question which is presented or wherein the machine gives an answer to the question presented by a student

Abstract

Educational software using a computer and having a data storage system including a software module database management system and a user database management system. There is a quiz module database, maintained by the software module database management system, containing at least one quiz module, and a structured learning material editor module database, maintained by the software module database management system and containing at least one structured learning material editor modules. The software also has a structured learning material database, maintained by the user database management system, for storing at least one structured learning material data set created by a user. A user interface is provided for selecting system control functions, editing structured learning materials, presenting quizzes, receiving user answers to quizzes, and displaying quiz analysis results. A control system retrieves software modules from the software module database management system and activates them.

Claims

1. Educational software on a computer-interpretable medium using a computer for generating quizzes, comprising:

A. a data storage system including;

1. a user database management system containing and maintaining a structured learning material database for storing structured learning material data sets created by a user, each data set being free of data specific to the generation of quizzes;

2. a software module database management system containing and maintaining;

a. a structured learning material editor module database containing at least one structured learning material editor module, at least one editor module being selectable for use in editing structured learning material data sets

b. an extensible quiz module database containing at least one quiz module, each quiz module including a generator, a presenter, and an analyzer, the generator transforming structured learning material data sets into screen presentation data and quiz answer analysis rules, the presenter displaying the quiz to the user, accepting a user'"'"'s answers to the quiz and displaying analysis results to the user on those answers; and

the analyzer evaluating a user'"'"'s answers to a presented quiz using the answer analysis rules provided by the generator;

whereby quizzes may be dynamically generated from the structured learning material data sets entered by a user, and whereby additional quiz modules which can generate quizzes from structured learning material data sets already contained in the data storage system may be added to said quiz module database;

B. a user interface for selecting system control functions, editing structured learning materials, presenting quizzes, receiving user answers to quizzes, and displaying quiz analysis results; and

C. a control system for retrieving software modules from the software module database management system and activating them.

2. Educational software as defined in claim 1 wherein the software module database management system further contains and maintains

a data structure mapping module database, containing at least one data structure mapping module, each data structure mapping module being usable

to transform structured learning material data sets into input data for a quiz module.

3. Educational software as defined in claim 2, wherein said quiz module examines said data storage system to select at least one structured learning material data set which is consistent with a selected quiz type.

4. Educational software as defined in claim 1, wherein said quiz module examines said data storage system to select at least one structured learning material data set which is consistent with a selected quiz type.

5. Educational software as in claim 1, including a user identification and authentication system and wherein said structured learning material database is segregated into distinct areas by user.

6. Educational software as in claim 5, including means to transfer data between different user areas.

7. Educational software as in claim 1 wherein said user database management system also maintains a record of a user'"'"'s past results on quizzes.

8. Educational software as in claim 7 wherein the quiz module uses said record of past results to generate quizzes that reinforce items for which the user has previously provided incorrect answers.

9. Educational software as defined in claim 1 wherein the analyzer is capable of:

(i) customized methods of quiz evaluation; and

(ii) evaluating each answer independently; and

(iii) evaluating an entire corpus of answers as a unit; and

wherein the quiz module is capable of;

(i) providing hints and suggestions as to the correct answers with or without scoring; and

(ii) adjusting the level of feedback for the analysis results to suit the user.

10. Educational software as defined in claim 1 wherein there are alternative methods for implementing the various database systems, and (i) the data storage system is the local file system of the computer, and/or (ii) the data storage system is implemented using server scripts accessed over a computer network, and/or (iii) the data storage system is a commercial database management system.

11. Educational software as in claim 1 wherein a portion of the educational software is arranged to operate as an applet within a browser or other applet viewing program, and to operate on more than one computer system.

12. Educational software as in claim 11 wherein the control system permits users to take quizzes collaboratively.

13. Educational software as defined in claim 1 wherein quizzes are generated using data obtained from sources other than the selected structured learning material data sets in addition to data present in the selected structured learning material data sets.

14. A computerized educational method, comprising:

a. providing a plurality of quiz types;

b. providing a plurality of structured learning material data sets, each data set being of one of a plurality of structured learning material types and each data set being free of data specific to the generation of quizzes;

c. providing for user selection of one of the plurality of quiz types and one or more structured learning material data sets, such that the selected data set types are compatible with the selected quiz type;

d. dynamically generating a computerized quiz of the selected type using the selected structured learning material data sets, said generated quiz being capable of receiving input in the form of answers from the user in response to the quiz;

e. receiving user input of answers to the quiz;

f. analyzing answers to the quiz provided by the user according to a set of analysis rules; and

g. delivering the results of the analysis to the user.

15. An educational method as defined in claim 14 further comprising:

a. providing a plurality of structured learning material editors, one for each structured learning material type;

b. providing a repository for storing structured learning material data sets of a multiplicity of types;

c. providing for user selection of one of the plurality of different structured learning material data set editors;

d. entering a new structured learning material data set of a particular type into said repository using the selected editor, each data set so entered being free of data specific to the generation of quizzes;

e. providing for user naming of structured learning material data sets so entered;

f. modifying structured learning material data sets previously entered in said repository;

g. deleting structured learning material data sets from said repository.

16. An educational method as defined in claim 15 further comprising the step of providing for user selection of the next action to be performed, said action including creating structured learning material, editing existing structured learning material, deleting structured learning material, taking a quiz, and stopping the system.

17. An educational method as defined in claim 15 wherein the quiz is generated using data obtained from sources other than the selected structured learning material data sets in addition to data present in the selected structured learning material data sets.

18. A method as defined in claim 14, further comprising adding additional quiz types which are selectable by the user for generating quizzes from structured learning material data sets already contained on the computer-interpretable medium.

19. An automated educational method for a user, comprising:

a. selecting one of a number of different quiz types available on a computer;

b. selecting one or more structured learning materials data sets which are available on a computer and are compatible with the selected quiz type, each data set being free of data specific to the generation of quizzes;

c. dynamically generating and presenting a quiz in the form of the quiz type selected in step a. using the data selected in step b;

e. receiving user input of answers to the quiz; and

f. evaluating the answers.

20. The educational method defined in claim 19 wherein a user first selects a single structured learning material data set and then selects one of said quiz types available which are compatible with the selected data set.

21. The educational method defined in claim 20 wherein a user selects multiple data sets of the same structured learning material type.

22. The educational method defined in claim 21 further comprising:

a. modifying one of a number of structured learning material data sets available on a computer; and

b. deleting a structured learning material data set from the computer.

23. The educational method defined in claim 19 further comprising:

a. a user modifying quiz answers after receiving an evaluation of quiz answers; and

b. receiving an evaluation of the modified answers.

24. The educational method of claim 19 further comprising:

a. selecting one of a plurality of structured learning material editors; and

b. entering a new structured learning material data set so it is available for selection for quizzes, each such data set entered being free of data specific to the generation of quizzes.

25. In educational software on a computer-interpretable medium using a computer for presenting quizzes, of the type which includes a user interface for controlling and interacting with the software and a control system of retrieving and activating software modules from the software module database management system, the improvement comprising:

a data storage system including;

A. a user database management system containing and maintaining a structured learning material database for storing structured learning material data sets created by a user, each data set being free of data specific to the generation of quizzes; and

B. a software module database management system containing and maintaining;

1. a structured learning material editor module database containing at least one structured learning material editor module, at least one editor module being selectable for use in editing structured learning material data sets in response to a request through the user interface;

2. an extensible quiz module database containing at least one quiz module, each quiz module including a generator, a presenter, and an analyzer, the generator transforming structured learning material data sets into screen presentation data and quiz answer analysis rules for a quiz, the presenter, through the user interface, displaying the quiz to the user, accepting a user'"'"'s answers to the quiz and displaying analysis results to the user on those answers, and the analyzer evaluating a user'"'"'s answers to a presented quiz using the answer analysis rules provided by the generator, whereby quizzes may be dynamically generated from the structured learning material data sets entered by a user, and whereby additional quiz modules which can generate quizzes from structured learning material data sets already contained in the data storage system may be added to said quiz module database.

26. Educational software on a computer-interpretable medium using a computer comprising:

a. a data storage system for storing a plurality of structured learning material data sets of different structured learning material types;

b. a structured learning material editor set, each element of the set being a software module for editing at least one of a plurality of different structured learning material data sets each data set being free of data specific to the generation of quizzes each being free;

c. a dynamic quiz generator having at least one quiz module for transforming input data into screen presentation data and quiz answer analysis rules for a quiz and displaying the quiz to the user, accepting a user'"'"'s answers to the quiz and displaying analysis results to the user on those answers; and

evaluating a user'"'"'s answers to a presented quiz using answer analysis rules whereby quizzes are dynamically generated using one or more of the structured learning material data sets, and quiz modules may be added which operate with data sets already contained in the data storage system;

d. a user interface for presenting data generated from the selected structured learning materials data set in the form of a selected quiz type for the student to take using the computer; and

e. a quiz evaluation system for evaluating the student'"'"'s results of a presented quiz using the rules for analyzing the quiz answers provided by the quiz generator.