Questionmark Perception.Questionmark Perception, enterprise assessment lool, Questionmark Corporation (800-863-3950, www.questionmark.com), $2,995 for one year for 50 users. Questionmark is an assessment management system. Its job is testing. This testing can be accomplished through the administration of four different types of tests (survey, exam, quiz, and test) in 19 different formats including drag & drop, multiple choice, hotspots, and embedded Macromedia Flash files. Testing can be administered to the learner off-line using hardcopy, CD-ROMs or download to PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) A handheld computer for managing contacts, appointments and tasks. It typically includes a name and address database, calendar, to-do list and note taker, which are the functions in a personal information manager (see PIM). for later re-sync to a Web-based server. And, what good is testing if you can't compile, compare, and evaluate the data? Another important component of the Questionmark system is its reporting capability. Among the report types are: coaching, score list, grade book, transcript, gap, survey, and item analysis. In particular the item analysis report can help clarify correlation and question validity issues. Questionmark offers a workflow management system that allows organizations to define and enforce processes and rules to control the development and deployment of questions. There is an audit trail if needed for legally defensible high-stakes exams. INITIAL USE For my introduction to Perception authoring software, I tried using "discovery" to surf around the interface. Bad idea! The user interface is not intuitive to the casual user, nor is it meant to be. A 148-page Getting Started with Perception Version 4 online manual walks you through the wizards and dialog boxes or screens used to create or edit topic areas, questions, assessments, and outcomes (feedback). HELP/SUPPORT These types of help are available from within the application: * Wizards that guide you through the authoring process * Indexed, searchable, context-sensitive Windows-based help system that includes a glossary * Authoring best practice guide built into the authoring application As mentioned above, the Getting Started Guide is available in print and online. User manuals are available on the Questionmark customer support site as searchable web documents and printable PDFs. The PDF (Portable Document Format) The de facto standard for document publishing from Adobe. On the Web, there are countless brochures, data sheets, white papers and technical manuals in the PDF format. versions are also available on a CD. There is an online knowledge base and best practice guides available to Software Support Plan subscribers. The web- and CD-ROM CD-ROM: see compact disc. CD-ROM in full compact disc read-only memory Type of computer storage medium that is read optically (e.g., by a laser). feature tours unfortunately are delivered with very irritating (at least to me) background music. The audio-based narration would be nice to listen to if not for the very obtrusive ob·tru·sive adj. 1. Thrusting out; protruding: an obtrusive rock formation. 2. Tending to push self-assertively forward; brash: a spoiled child's obtrusive behavior. background noise. Quite frankly, it was giving me a headache. Questionmark offers both phone and email support. Technical support is free during product evaluation. After purchase, you may choose to subscribe to Verb 1. subscribe to - receive or obtain regularly; "We take the Times every day" subscribe, take buy, purchase - obtain by purchase; acquire by means of a financial transaction; "The family purchased a new car"; "The conglomerate acquired a new company"; a software support plan (pricing is a percentage of the license purchase) or pay on a per incident basis. EASE OF USE Ease of use is obviously a relative term. Easy to use for whom? If you are an instructional designer, Questionmark Perception is understandable, but the user interface does have a learning curve. Like all software, the more you use it, the easier it is to use. The user interface has several different areas on the screen depending upon the feature chosen: * Toolbar A row or column of on-screen buttons used to activate functions in the application. Many toolbars are customizable, letting you add and delete buttons as required. Toolbars may be fixed in position or may float, which means they can be dragged to a more convenient location in the * File menu * Navigation pane * Preview/properties pane * Display pane * Folder views pane Each area of the screen has a special function that changes as you select a feature. However, the Display Pane and Preview/Properties Pane always show the contents of the folder view chosen and the test item selected in the Display Pane. (See the interface screenshot See screen shot. with labels.) To create one of the 20 different reports that Perception offers, you use the Perception Enterprise Manager and choose the Enterprise Reporter menu option. Based on the permissions granted by the Administrator, users can run different reports on course statistics, student statistics, or test item statistics. BEST USES AND FUNCTIONALITIES The Questionmark Perception system has four major functions: * Authoring: Word templates for SMEs, Windows-based authoring manager, browser-based authoring * Delivery: standard browsers (Netscape, MS Internet Explorer Microsoft's Web browser, which comes with Windows starting with Windows 98. Commonly called "IE," versions for Mac and Unix are also available. Internet Explorer is the most widely used Web browser on the market. It has also been the browser engine in AOL's Internet access software. , AOL (A division of Time Warner, Inc., New York, NY, www.aol.com) The world's largest online information service with access to the Internet, e-mail, chat rooms and a variety of databases and services. , etc.); Questionmark Secure; Windows CD (no reporting); PDA, hardcopy printout (PRINTer OUTput) Same as hard copy. * Administration and scheduling: manage participants, manage schedules * Reporting (Enterprise Reporter): assessment overview, grade book, question statistics, survey, coaching, gap, item analysis, score list, and transcript; export to ASCII ASCII or American Standard Code for Information Interchange, a set of codes used to represent letters, numbers, a few symbols, and control characters. Originally designed for teletype operations, it has found wide application in computers. or Excel spreadsheet available In Version 4, a new Authoring Manager replaces Question Manager and Assessment Manager, allowing the user to author and publish questions and assessments. Important enhancements include: * WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) Pronounced "wiz-ee-wig." It refers to displaying text and graphics on screen the same as they will print on paper or display on a Web page. HTML HTML in full HyperText Markup Language Markup language derived from SGML that is used to prepare hypertext documents. Relatively easy for nonprogrammers to master, HTML is the language used for documents on the World Wide Web. editing: used to author questions * Support for style sheets: Version 4 supports cascading style sheets A style sheet format for HTML documents endorsed by the World Wide Web Consortium. CSS1 (Version 1.0) provides hundreds of layout settings that can be applied to all the subsequent HTML pages that are downloaded. CSS2 (Version 2. , which enables easier global updates to existing assessments * Repositories: central repositories make it easier and faster to organize, store, secure, and publish assessment content. Authors can work directly with local or shared repositories alone or in collaboration with other authors COMPATIBILITY Perception Version 4 uses the original authoring tool for editing files. Questionmark supports open standards Specifications for hardware and software that are developed by a standards organization or a consortium involved in supporting a standard. Available to the public for developing compliant products, open standards imply "open systems;" that an existing component in a system can be replaced , and Perception is compatible with many learning management systems. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Questionmark, Perception is one of only two assessment management systems to demonstrate interoperability with Blackboard, Sakai, WebCT, and Moodle. VALUE FOR THE MONEY The cheapest Perception license is 50 participants for $2,995.00. Other testing options are using an LMS system or a testing site such as Prometric. The proof is in the pudding, or one might say "in the reports." What good is raw data if you can't sift, sort, mash, and mull Mull, island, 351 sq mi (909 sq km), Argyll and Bute, NW Scotland, largest island of the Inner Hebrides, separated from the mainland by the Sound of Mull and the Firth of Lorn. it? One measurement of the value of Perception or any other assessment system is how you can aggregate and view the data for evaluation purposes. The system offers a long list of built-in reports that would seem to meet most needs. RECOMMENDATION Take a close look at the Questionmark's Perception assessment tool if you are in the business of certification and compliance training. While testing is being administered in most organizations at different levels of the Kirkpatrick model, certification and compliance call for a very structured, valid, and reliable assessment system. Questionmark Perception might be the answer to your assessment challenges. Questionmark's Perception star rating CATEGORY Installation and initial use 4 Documentation 4 Help/Support 3.5 Interface 3.5 Ease of use 3.5 Compatibility 4 Value for the money 4 Overall rating 4 |
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