This article covers the choice matrix task type.
For a general overview of tasks and what they can do, see An introduction to tasks and for general instructions on how to add them to your course, see How to add a task to your course.
Overview of the choice matrix task
The Choice matrix task lets learners choose items in one or more rows using a set of column options.
When should I use a choice matrix?
Choice matrix tasks are effectively just a set of similar multiple choice questions grouped together. As we see it, there's two main reasons choice matrices are great:
They save on space and repetition
They encourage comparisons
Let's take a look at some examples.
Example 1 - True or false
Using the Choice matrix type means we don't have to repeat the stem ("Read the statements...") and make learners read it over and over again. It means we've effectively asked six multiple choice questions in the space of one.
Example 2 - Encouraging comparisons.
In this example, learners are encouraged to compare and contrast through looking at the pattern of check marks. This kind of task can be a really useful summary activity after learners have seen a range of methods or theories.
How do I create a choice matrix task?
All tasks load with an example task to give an idea of what each field is for. To add your own task details, you can type over the existing content in the fields or select Clear task content, to start completely fresh.
Standard fields
This task has the standard fields/options that all tasks have.
At the top:
Question: Where you set the main question/task which tells learners what to answer or do.
And at the bottom:
Hint: Add a hint to give pointers or clues to give learners extra guidance to complete the task. Learners can choose to See hint so it allows them to get this help “on demand”.
Feedback: Add feedback to give learners an automated response when they submit the task. See Writing feedback for tasks for pointers and ideas.
In between the top and bottom standard fields we have the following areas and fields.
Row and column options
Add your row options and column options. To add more options use +Add.
To remove an option use the bin icon to the right.
The button to the left of each field allows you to re-order how the options appear to your learners.
Setting the correct answer
Under Correct, select the correct item(s) to allow the task to be automarked.
If there are more correct answers, use the + to add alternative answers.
You can also choose to not set a correct answer. If you don’t want the question to be automarked, do not select any item(s) under Correct. In this case, the task will not be automarked and the task will be allocated the complete/incomplete with feedback marking template to allow facilitators to manually mark the task (if desired).
Other options
Multiple correct responses allows you to select more than one answer as correct.
Shuffle options will display the response options in a different order each time the question is shown.
