Forum Discussion
TIP: Build a Rise Course with a Pretest
There is a way to include a pretest in a Rise course!
Rise doesn't have pretest functionality built in—at least, not yet. But it can be done using a few Storyline blocks, some button blocks, and navigation restrictions.
This demo shows how to let a user skip the content if they pass. If they fail, they have to go through the content.
Caveats: The program can't tell the LMS if the user passed the pretest or if they went through the content. And it can't tell the LMS the user's score. But it can tell the LMS that the user "completed" the course.
*** UPDATE 2024-01-17 ***
As per Ingrid Marcum's comments below, there's another caveat. If a user fails the pretest, exits the course before proceeding to the content, and then relaunches the course, the Storyline block will reset. In other words, the user would be able to retake the pretest. As Ingrid said, the Articulate staff "confirmed that the storyline blocks will always reset when revisiting the page in Rise." So, alas, this method isn't a solution if you're concerned about users doing that.
This is very similar to a solution I used. It's those caveats that kill me. I've found its often a problem with both the LMS and SL or even just the LMS used. It looks like many LMS will only record one score and just write over that score with any quiz. unless there is specifically a table for it to score different types of assessment that are labeled as such in the SCORM then were out of luck.
I honestly try to push back on Pre-Tests as much as possible as the data they provide is often never used or not used well. If they want a "test out" there are loads of things like this example that are perfect. But ultimately if I push and ask what the collected data for the per/post-test is going to be used for they don't have an answer so I just tell them i they want a test out option we can do that but feed them these same caveats.
Good points, Nate.
I think it makes sense to use pretests to allow users to skip content that they already know. Of course, that assumes that the pretest has good questions...
I've seen lots of posts about the need for having scores sent to the LMS. But I wonder how often those scores are ever used -- or even looked at. Is someone's performance review impacted because they passed with 80% instead of 100%?
I've also seen posts about the need for sending response info to the LMS. That could be very useful, especially if it's used to evaluate the validity of the questions. For example, if just about everyone answers the same question incorrectly in the same way, then there's probably something wrong with the question, and/or in how the related content is presented. But I don't know many depts that are actually doing that sort of analysis.
Personally, if I were going to develop a course with a pretest, I'd probably do it in Storyline, since that has the functionality built-in, without having to give up the menu and such. I developed the Rise demo to help the folks in the Forum who've asked about pretests in Rise.
Are you willing to share the storyline file so I can have a play with this option? greg.ward@newcastle.edu.au . I am not great with Storyline, so this would save me some time.
Right on Nate! " It's those caveats that kill me...." haha! There for sure is some wonkiness in going from SL to Rise, particularly when it comes to having this all play nice with our LMS. I have learned to set the bar lower when using the "combo" method. :)
Also, I neglected to say thank you to Judy! This is a terrific work-around, and thanks for posting! :)
Judy this looks fantastic, but I am quite stuck. I can't seem to configure it so that if the storyline quiz is not passed it will not show the continue button. The continue button seems to show whether they pass or fail. How have you configured the completion trigger?
As it says in the instructions included in the Rise example, the Storyline quiz has a completion trigger on the Success layer of its Results slide.
In Rise, the Continue button will only be enabled when that Storyline block is completed. So if the user passes the pretest, the completion trigger will fire, and the Continue button in Rise will be enabled. If the user fails the pretest, the Storyline block can't be completed, so the Continue button won't be enabled.
I seem to still be coming up short. In my SL results slide, on the success layer I have put a course completion trigger. When I load it into Rise, the continue button shows if I fail or pass the quiz.
Settings on Rise: All navigation settings match your demo, the continue button only shows when all blocks are completed.
Completion trigger:It sounds like you've got it set up correctly. If the only completion trigger in the SL block is on the Success layer, it shouldn't complete if the user fails the test. Which means a Continue block that requires all previous blocks to be completed shouldn't be enabled if the user fails the test.
Since you're seeing "unexpected behavior," I suggest you contact the support staff: https://articulate.com/support/contact/360-teams
BTW, the user will only get to the Success layer if they get whatever percent is set as the passing score. So you don't need the condition on the completion trigger.
Hey, so I was having the same problem as Holly. My SL block would complete whether the test was passed or failed. Then I thought to check my publishing options. I found that my tracking options were set to complete the course when the quiz was completed. When I changed it to track by complete course trigger I got that behavior I was expecting.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Dora.
Yes, when the SL pretest file is published to Review, the Tracking needs to be "Complete course trigger" (as shown below).
I'm sorry that detail wasn't in the original version of the "course" in Review. I updated it, so it now includes that info.
Is there a way to use your shared review content as a template?
The Rise project I developed to demonstrate this pre-test function isn't available for sharing.
The "course" in Review (accessed via link in the main post) includes detailed instructions for how to set up your own project with a pre-test.
Hi Judy, thank you so much for this valuable tutorial on adding a pre-test using a storyline block! I have successfully added this to a Rise course (getting completion through both pathways), but I am running into one issue and wondering if you have further advice?
If a user fails the pre-test but doesn't use the button to start the course, choosing instead to close the course and then re-launch, they are able to have a second chance at taking the pre-test.
I unsuccessfully tried using triggers in Storyline to prevent this, as it seems that when a user re-opens that page in the Rise lesson, the SL project starts over as if it's a brand-new user. And since the button that directs the users who pass relies on the SL block, I can't move those to a new page.
Have you come across this issue before or have any suggestions on preventing a user from having multiple attempts at the pre-test?
Thank you again and in advance of any guidance you are willing to share.
Hi, Ingrid,
Thanks for sharing your concern. Are you seeing that ability to close-relaunch-retake in an LMS? Or is that just what you're experiencing when looking at the course in Review or on another website?
- When a course is on a website, the program has nowhere to store "resume" data. Thus, the course always restarts from the beginning when the user exits and re-opens the course.
- When a course is in an LMS, the program stores "resume" data in the LMS. That allows the user to restart the course at the point where they left it.
I'd assume that Rise's LMS resume data would include the settings for the SL block. But, frankly, I've never tested that. In fact, I've never used this pre-test method myself. The courses I develop for clients are typically in Storyline. When I use Rise, it's usually for simpler courses where a pre-test isn't needed. I only figured out this pre-testing method in Rise because I saw a few posts asking about it, and that presented an interesting challenge.
So...
- If your Rise-with-pre-test course is in an LMS (with any LMS-specific relaunch functions set to resume the course), and it resets the SL block to allow another attempt whenever the user relaunches the course, then, alas, this method isn't fool-proof.
- If you've only checked your Rise-with-pre-test course on the web, check it in your LMS or the SCORM Cloud to see if the SL block will reset or not.
Hi Judy,
Thank you for the quick response.
Yes, this was testing in an LMS. I did connect with Articulate support, who unfortunately confirmed that the storyline blocks will always reset when revisiting the page in Rise — regardless of what triggers and restrictions have been set in the storyline project. Therefore this is the expected behavior. So even though the rest of the Rise content in the course bookmarks as expected, the storyline block will not.
I should add that if the user moves on from that first page, then this is not a problem. The only time this presents an issue is if the user takes the pre-test, fails, and then closes the course before using the button to go to the first content lesson. However, in our arena (compliance), we can't take that risk.
We were hopeful this would work, as we have an existing Rise course and just wanted to add a pre-test without rebuilding in Storyline or another platform. The completions both worked beautifully when set up as you demonstrated in your example, so thank you for that!
Hopefully this feature will be available in the future.
Thanks again!
This occurs with a pretest option in a course created in SL360 if the course publish has the option of prompt to resume or never resume because if the user is prompted, they can choose to restart, which will allow them to take the pretest again. We chose to always resume, so they don't get the choice and will bring them back to the results slide showing that they failed the pretest.
Cheryl, I've applied a "resume saved state" to every slide in the SL pre-test. However, once loaded into Rise, what I reported previously still occurs. If I take the pre-test, then close the page instead of moving on, when I re-open the course, it still resets, allowing me to re-take the pre-test. Is there a different place where I can make a change that prevents the SL block from re-setting in Rise?
Ingrid Marcum
Cheryl Powers
This occurs with a pretest option in a course created in SL360 if the course publish has the option of prompt to resume or never resume because if the user is prompted, they can choose to restart, which will allow them to take the pretest again. We chose to always resume, so they don't get the choice and will bring them back to the results slide showing that they failed the pretest.
Cheryl, I've applied a "resume saved state" to every slide in the SL pre-test. However, once loaded into Rise, what I reported previously still occurs. If I take the pre-test, then close the page instead of moving on, when I re-open the course, it still resets, allowing me to re-take the pre-test. Is there a different place where I can make a change that prevents the SL block from re-setting in Rise?
Ingrid,
As per the Rise User Guide (Rise 360: Use Storyline Blocks to Embed Storyline 360 Courses - Articulate Support), "Storyline courses in Rise 360 always start over from the beginning when learners revisit them." That's why I added the update to the original post after you discovered the loophole for retaking the pretest in Rise.
Cheryl's note is about preventing someone from retaking a pretest in a Storyline course (not a Rise course with a Storyline block).
