What Auto-Marking Can (and Can't) Do for You
An auto graded quiz can save a whole evening of marking, but only if you point it at the right kind of question. ClassKite marks objective questions automatically and has no open-writing questions at all. This post sets out what it handles the instant a student submits, what it leaves to you, and how to design your checks so the software does the routine part and you keep the judgement.
What auto-marking can do
Objective question types mark themselves the moment a student submits, against the answer key you set when you create or review the question. There's no pile to carry home, and every student sees straight away whether each answer is right (except in SBQ mode, where results wait until you release them). It covers:
- Multiple choice and true/false.
- Fill-in-the-blank, with a one-word answer (capitals don't matter) or a number answer.
- Matching and jumbled-sentence questions.
- Questions with maths written in LaTeX, so symbols and equations display properly.
Because the marking is instant, the same questions work whether you run them live with the class or set them as self-paced practice. Build a set once, save it to your question bank, and reuse it term after term. Afterwards, class reports give completion, average score, right first time, solved and a per-student breakdown you can export to CSV.
What auto-marking can't do
ClassKite has no question type for these, so none of them is marked automatically:
- Extended or open writing, essays and long-form answers.
- Free-text responses that don't have one fixed correct answer.
- Anything needing your professional judgement, partial credit or a written comment.
The answer is in how you design the check. When you want instant results, build the check from objective types: a few multiple choice, a couple of fill-in-the-blanks, a matching task. Keep open writing for the lessons where you want to read it. Used this way, auto-marking suits quick checks like exit tickets that mark themselves, and it is a dependable way to reduce marking time without cutting corners on the writing that counts.
Build an auto-marked check from a few objective questions and run it with your class.
Frequently asked questions
Does ClassKite mark essays or long writing automatically?
No. There are no essay or open-writing questions in ClassKite. Build instant checks from multiple choice, true/false, fill-in-the-blank, matching and jumbled sentence, and mark essays by hand.
Is auto-marked practice free?
Yes. On the free Teacher Basic plan you write questions by hand and run practice with instant marking, and students join free with a join code. Class-wide reports, the Live Student Grid and CSV export are part of the paid Teacher Plus and School plans. Compare the plans.
How does ClassKite know the correct answer?
From the answer key you set when you create or review each question. Each submission, including a number in a fill-in-the-blank, is checked against that key.
Related reading: how to reduce marking time, exit tickets that mark themselves, and our reports feature page.