Dokeos

Fill-in the blanks have become a powerfull tool in Dokeos since multimedia management was added in Dokeos 1.8.  

We discovered in training sessions that many organisations were in need of a "fill-in the form" question type. Because many professionals these days have to deal with forms.

The physician fills a patient file, DHL employees fill delivery forms, Unemployment services fill pension files etc. In language courses, there is a need for crosswords, in mathematics and engineering, there is a need for calculated answers. 

All these question types are variations of the fill in the blanks but need a flexible tool to structure the question: replace simple text by tables, add nice styles so that the online form looks like the paper sheet the professional has to fill-in, etc. In Dokeos, you can do all that with a little help and practice. here are some guidelines. 

How to?

I build my fill-in the form question in Word or Openoffice. I add square parenthesis around the words that will become blanks to fill. It is important that Then I copy this text from Word and I paste in in a Dokeos fill-in the blank question (bottom field). It is very important that I use the Copy from Word button in Dokeos quiz tool, otherwise I will generate scoring calculation mistakes. 

Then, I add style, I organise the layout with a table, I add images, colors, whatever, so that the question looks like a real-life form or activity.

What I get now is a fill-in the blank (or fill in the form) question where some images appear as a complement: maps, diagrams, etc.  Web design in this online authoring tool is less flexible than MS-Word, ok. But it allows you much more: it is online, with media, Flash, video and it offers true remote interaction with your trainees.

Below, an example quiz built by the French Red Cross instructional designers.