Interaction types
Every kind of question AIB can deliver, what a candidate does with it, and a sample to try.
An interaction is the part of an item a candidate answers. Each one is one question, with its own correct response and scoring, and an item can hold several. Each page in this section describes one kind and shows a working sample from AIB’s shipped content. Try it: nothing you do there is saved or scored.
Choosing an interaction
| Interaction | The candidate… | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Choice | picks one option, or several | Multiple choice and multiple response |
| Inline choice | picks from a drop-down in a sentence | Cloze passages with set options |
| Text entry | types a short answer in a sentence | Words, numbers, measurements |
| Extended text | writes a longer answer | Essays and explanations, marked by a person |
| Hottext | selects words or phrases in a passage | Proofreading, finding evidence |
| Gap match | drags words into gaps in a passage | Cloze passages with a word bank |
| Match | pairs items from one set with items from another | Matching terms to definitions, grids of ticks |
| Associate | pairs items within one set | Opposites, partners, reversible changes |
| Order | puts options in order, or chooses some and ranks them | Sequences, timelines, rankings |
| Hotspot | clicks an area of a picture | Labelled diagrams, maps |
| Graphic gap match | drags labels or pictures onto a picture | Labelling a diagram |
| Portable custom | uses an interaction built for the purpose | Anything the standard kinds cannot do |
| Likert scale | chooses a point on a scale | Opinions, attitudes, confidence; not scored |
An end attempt button is also an interaction: it lets a candidate finish an attempt early, for example to ask for a hint in an adaptive item.
Which ones the editor can add
The item editor’s Insert menu (and the Inline menu, for those that sit in a sentence) adds choice, inline choice, text entry, extended text, hottext, gap match, match and order interactions, each with a response declaration and scoring ready to fill in. The Question menu adds a Likert scale. See The item editor.
Associate, hotspot, graphic gap match and other portable custom interactions arrive by import, or are written in the item’s source. Once in the bank they can be edited in the editor like anything else.
Tip: The Interaction Support page lists every option and style class AIB supports for each interaction.