Creating an Assessment

This article walks through creating a new assessment in PaperScorer, including how to choose a template, what each setting does, and what to do after creation.

Before You Begin

It helps to have these ready before you start:

• A name for the assessment (e.g. “Unit 4 Vocabulary Quiz”)
• The questions and answer key (you’ll enter these after creating the assessment)
• A class to associate the assessment with (optional — see Creating a Class if you don’t have one yet)

Creating the Assessment

From the dashboard, click Create New and select Assessment.

A pop-up will appear with the create assessment form.

Name (required)

A short but descriptive identifier so the assessment is easy to recognize in your assessment list later.

• Good names: “Chapter 3 Quiz,” “Q2 Math Benchmark,” “Vocabulary Review – Week 4”
• Generic names to avoid: “Test,” “Quiz 1” — gets confusing when you have multiple of the same kind.

Performance Band (optional)

Defaults to your account’s default performance band. A performance band translates raw scores into meaningful tiers (e.g. Below Basic, Proficient, Advanced). You can change this here, or later from the assessment’s settings — see Changing an Assessment Performance Band.

Custom performance bands are a Teacher Pro feature; the system default works for everyone.

Assessment Template (required)

The template determines the starting layout:

• Blank assessment — start with no questions. You add questions one at a time using the question manager. Use this for custom layouts.
• Pre-generated bubble sheet questions — start with a placeholder set of multiple-choice questions already laid out. Faster when you know you want a specific count of bubble questions and would rather edit than add from scratch.

Once you save, you’ll be redirected to your active assessment list with the new assessment added.

Next Steps

1. Add or manage the questions on the assessment. See the dedicated articles per question type:
   • Multiple Choice Questions
   • Numeric Response Questions
   • Written Response Questions
2. Print the assessment for a class when you’re ready to test.
3. Distribute the printed sheets. Share Testing Guidelines with students so scans process cleanly.
4. Scan completed sheets via the mobile app or a bulk upload.

Can I Edit the Assessment Later?

Most assessment settings can be changed after creation:

• Name — editable any time.
• Performance band — editable; previously scored students get re-tiered automatically. See Changing an Assessment Performance Band.
• Questions — editable until students have scanned sheets. Once scans exist, structural changes are limited to avoid invalidating existing scores. Adjusting correct answers and point values is generally still fine.
• Template — not editable after creation. If you need a different layout, create a new assessment.

Related Articles

• Manage Assessment Questions
• Creating and Managing Rubrics
• Changing an Assessment Performance Band
• Sharing an Assessment
• Managing Multiple Versions