Why do I have to print multiple versions of an answer sheet?
This article explains why PaperScorer sometimes asks you to print more than one version of an answer sheet, and when a single sheet covers your whole class.
When an assessment has more than one version, the versions can differ in two ways: the answer choices can be shuffled, or the question order can be shuffled. Those two differences are not the same when it comes to printing.
When one sheet covers every version
If your versions only shuffle the answer choices — the questions stay in the same order — every version has the exact same bubble layout. A student fills in the same grid no matter which version they were given, so you only need to print one answer sheet for the whole class. PaperScorer records which version each student took from the version bubble they mark, and grades each sheet against the right answer key.
The same is true if every question is the same type and size — for example, all multiple-choice with four options. Shuffling the order of identical-looking questions doesn't change the printed grid, so one sheet still works.
When you need a separate sheet per version
You need a separate sheet for each version when both of these are true:
- Your questions are a mix of types or sizes — for example, some multiple-choice, some grid, some written response.
- At least one version shuffles the question order.
When those combine, the bubbles land in different places on each version's page — question 1 might be a four-bubble multiple-choice on one version and a written-response box on another. A single sheet can't represent both layouts, so each version gets its own printed answer sheet.
NOTE: PaperScorer decides this for you. If the print screen shows a single sheet, one sheet is all you need. If it shows a sheet per version, the layouts genuinely differ.
How PaperScorer splits your class
When you print for a class and choose which versions to include, PaperScorer randomly distributes your students across those versions — one version per student — and pre-fills each student's name on the correct sheet. Handing different versions to students sitting next to each other is a simple, effective way to discourage copying.
Because students are split across the versions in a single pass, you print them all together with Generate selected versions rather than one version at a time.
NOTE: Each answer sheet is tied to one version, so give each student the question paper for that same version. Because the questions are in a different order on each version, an answer sheet and a test from different versions won’t line up.
How scanning knows which version
Every printed sheet carries its version, so when you scan it back in, PaperScorer grades it against that version's answer key automatically — you don't have to sort or label anything by hand.