System and method for dynamic online test content generation

• US 9,672,753 B2
• Filed: 09/21/2015
• Issued: 06/06/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Co. (Private Equity))
• Original Assignee: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Co. (Private Equity))
• Inventors: Bosko, John, O'Brien, Corey S., Rogers, Timothy A., Mutum, Raghubir S.
• Primary Examiner(s): EGLOFF, PETER RICHARD
• Application Number:
  US14/859,600
• Publication Number:
  US 20160012744A1
• Time in Patent Office: 624 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/00 Electrically-operated educational appliances working with questions and answers G09B7/00; simulators G09B9/00; advertising or displaying in general G09F
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/07 providing for individual presentation of questions to a plurality of student stations

Abstract

An online test platform facilitates automatic scrolling of test materials in a web browser while maintaining a text prompt associated with the test materials. The platform also facilitates development, delivery, and management of educational tests with interactive participation by students, teachers, proctors, and administrators even when some or all of them are remotely located. The platform may include administrator interfaces, test proctor interfaces, and test taker (e.g. student) interfaces to allow each participant to view, navigate, and interact with aspects of the online test platform that are intended to meet their needs.

Claims

1. A method of dynamic online test content generation, comprising:

storing test assembly information in a database that is operatively coupled to a server in an online testing platform;

receiving a request for an educational test session for a test taker at a test taker station;

preventing applications other than the educational testing application to be operable during the educational test session;

compiling, at the server and in response to a request for the test from the test-taker, the test assembly information, including updated test content for use in a single user session of the online testing platform; and

transmitting the updated test assembly information as a file from the server to a web browser in the test taker station, wherein the updated test content is compiled based on an interaction of the test-taker with a previous portion of the test, wherein the interaction of the test-taker with a previous portion of the test is selected from the group consisting of how long the previous portion was displayed before the test taker answered a question and how many changes were made to an answer to the previous portion; and

transmitting an uncompiled second portion of the test assembly information from the server to the web browser for presenting, in accordance with user preferences, the updated test content in the web browser.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the updated test content is a test question.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

compiling, at a computer running the web browser, the uncompiled portion of the test assembly information, in accordance with user preferences.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the request for the test includes a response by the web browser to a poll from the server.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising saving a compiled version of the test assembly information for subsequent use.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising saving each instance of the test assembly information so that changes by a subsequent user do not cause a compiled test assembly information to change while a user is taking a test with the compiled test assembly information.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of compiling comprises assembling an ordered sequence of questions into the test.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the test taker is an individual test taker and wherein the online testing platform server records and logs the interaction of the individual test taker with the previous portion of the test.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising verifying that the test taker station has a correct configuration in order to communicate with the online testing platform.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the correct configuration is at least one of a hardware configuration and a software configuration that permits the educational test session to run successfully on the test taker station.

11. A system for dynamic online test content generation, comprising:

an online testing platform server operatively coupled to a storage facility for storing test assembly information; and

a compiler, at the online testing platform server, that, in response to a request for a test for a test taker, compiles the test assembly information, including updated test content, for use in a single user session of the online testing platform, wherein the updated test content is compiled based on an interaction of the test-taker with a previous portion of the test and wherein the interaction of the test-taker with a previous portion of the test is selected from the group consisting of how long the previous portion was displayed before the test taker answered a question and how many changes were made to an answer to the previous portion,

wherein the compiler is adapted for transmitting an uncompiled portion of the test assembly information from the online testing server platform to a web browser for presenting to the test taker, in accordance with user preferences, the uncompiled portion of the test assembly information in the web browser.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the updated test content is a test question.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the request for the test includes a response by the web browser to a poll from the server.

14. The system of claim 11, further comprising memory at the online testing platform server for storing each instance of the test assembly information that is compiled.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the test assembly information includes software for compiling selected test questions in a desired sequence for the test.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the compiler is adapted for transmitting an uncompiled portion of the test assembly information from the online testing server platform to a web browser for presenting to the test taker, in accordance with user preferences, the uncompiled portion of the test assembly information in the web browser.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the previous portion of the test was a screen and the updated portion is a next screen of the test.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein the test taker is an individual test taker and wherein the online testing platform server records and logs the interaction of the individual test taker with the previous portion of the test.

19. A method of dynamic online test content generation, comprising:

storing test assembly information in a database that is operatively coupled to a server in an online testing platform;

receiving a request from a test taker for an educational test session;

preventing applications other than the educational testing application to be operable during the educational test session

compiling, at the server and in response to a request for the test from the test-taker, the test assembly information, including updated test content for use in a single user session of the online testing platform;

transmitting the test assembly information as a file from the server to a web browser, wherein the updated test content is compiled based on an interaction of the test-taker with a previous portion of the test, wherein the interaction of the test-taker with a previous portion of the test is selected from the group consisting of how long the previous portion was displayed before the test taker answered a question and how many changes were made to an answer to the previous portion; and

transmitting an uncompiled second portion of the test assembly information from the server to the web browser for presenting, in accordance with user preferences, the updated test content in the web browser,

wherein the previous portion of the test was a screen and the updated test content is a next screen of the test.