The Turnitin assignment activity can be used for e-exams in MyCourses. Here are typical cases where it can be beneficial:
- Essays that the teacher assesses and grades using the Turnitin similarity report and feedback tools
- Compared with other activities in MyCourses, the following are the benefits of a Turnitin assignment:
- The Turnitin similarity report helps the teacher to assess whether the principles of scientific writing have been followed and helps notice possible plagiarism
- Annotation (=commenting on the text) on different file types is possible
- Drag-and-drop reusable phrases for giving feedback
- A voice comment for up to 3 minutes long
- Compared with other activities in MyCourses, the following are the benefits of a Turnitin assignment:
- A pen-and-paper exam assignment containing equations or diagrams submitted as a photograph or scanned file allows the teacher to assess the answers using the Turnitin feedback tools
- Compared with other activities in MyCourses, the benefit of the Turnitin assignment is that
- annotation (=comment on the text) on different file types, like a graphics file, is possible
- Compared with other activities in MyCourses, the benefit of the Turnitin assignment is that
Example 1: Each student submits one text file containing the exam answer(s)
- Each student submits one file containing one or more essays-type answers
- If students are expected to refer to different sources in their essays, ask them to
a) paraphrase and cite the source
b) put possible direct quotes within quotation marks (quotations should be used only for justified reasons)
c) list the references
- The time to answer is limited.
- The Turnitin similarity reports are generated automatically after the exam is closed. The teacher can interpret them while assessing the essays.
- When assessing the answers, the teacher can give feedback via reusable phrases, annotations, an audio recording (max 3 minutes per student), or a rubric.
- The teacher gives the overall grade manually or uses the rubric to assign the grade automatically that the student can view both in the submission box as well as in the Grades section of the course.
Settings that need to be edited (the default values may be left for the other settings):
Name of the setting | Value of the setting | Example or more information on the setting |
|---|---|---|
General | ||
Turnitin assignment name: | Give the exam a name | Exam 17 October 2023 at 2-4 pm |
Summary: | Write the exam question(s) and technical instructions for submitting the answer(s). | The following example instructions can be added next to the exam questions: File types that are accepted as an answer are listed here: https://wiki.aalto.fi/display/mchelp/Similarity+checker%3A+Turnitin Start submitting a few minutes before the due time. Your consent for saving a file in the Turnitin standard repository is asked before submission. By giving your consent your text will be protected against plagiarism by others. If you use Turnitin for the first time ever, you will be asked to accept the Turnitin User Agreement before the submission is completed. You may submit another version of the file that replaces the earlier one before the due time. After submission wait until you get a digital receipt of the successful submission on the screen. You will also receive the receipt by email. |
Grade | ||
Type: | Point | Note! Only integers are accepted as exam grades. |
Maximum grade: | the highest mark on the scale | If you wish to assess an exam with a finer scale, choose a bigger maximum grade. |
Grade to pass: | marks on the scale to pass | If the scale is 0-5, set Type = Point, Maximum grade = 5, Grade to pass = 1 |
Assignment Part 1 | ||
Start Date: | day and time when the exam starts | |
Due Date: | day and time when the exam ends | |
Post Date | day and time when students can view their grades and other possible feedback (this date can be edited later if needed) | |
Max marks: | the same as Maximum grade above | |
Similarity report options | ||
Allow submissions after the due date: | No | |
Report generation speed: | Generate reports on the due date (students can resubmit until the due date) | |
Store student papers: | Standard repository | |
Restrict access | ||
Add restriction: | Date > enter the starting date and time of the exam. | Without the time restriction, students can see the exam questions ( in the Summary) before the exam starts. The start date of the assignment part 1 applies only to the possibility of submitting. |
Optional settings: | ||
GradeMark Options | ||
Attach a rubric to this assignment | Choose a rubric from the dropdown menu. | If you have not created a Turnitin rubric before, you have to create one at first. |
Example 2: Each student submits two to five text files as exam answers
- The answer to each question is submitted in a separate file. The exam can have five questions at the most.
- If students are expected to refer to different sources in their essays, ask them to
a) paraphrase and cite the source
b) put possible direct quotes within quotation marks (quotations should be used only for justified reasons)
c) list the references
- The Turnitin similarity reports are generated automatically after the exam is closed. The teacher can interpret them while assessing the essays.
- The teacher assesses and grades each answer separately.
- Furthermore, the teacher can give feedback via reusable phrases, annotations, an audio recording (max 3 minutes per student), or a rubric.
- The exam grade is calculated automatically based on the points given for each answer. The student can view the grade both in the submission box as well as in the Grades section of the course.
Settings that need to be edited (the default values may be left for the other settings):
Name of the setting | Value of the setting | Example or more information on the setting |
|---|---|---|
| General | ||
Turnitin assignment name: | Give the exam a name | Exam 17 October 2023 at 2-4 pm |
Summary: | Write the exam question(s) and technical instructions for submitting the answer(s). | The following example instructions can be added next to the exam questions: File types that are accepted as an answer are listed here: https://wiki.aalto.fi/display/mchelp/Similarity+checker%3A+Turnitin Start submitting a few minutes before the due time. Your consent for saving a file in the Turnitin standard repository is asked before submission. By giving your consent your text will be protected against plagiarism by others. If you use Turnitin for the first time ever, you will be asked to accept the Turnitin User Agreement before the submission is completed. You may submit another version of the file that replaces the earlier one before the due time. After submission wait until you get a digital receipt of the successful submission on the screen. You will also receive the receipt by email. |
Number of parts: | 2, 3, 4 or 5 Ask students to submit one file for each question (= per part). Maximum number of parts (= files per student) is 5. | Note: The text in the Summary field is common to all parts (tabs) of the activity. |
Grade | ||
Type: | Point | Note! Only integers are accepted as exam grades. |
Maximum grade: | the highest mark on the scale | If you wish to assess an exam with a finer scale, choose a bigger maximum grade. |
Grade to pass | marks on the scale to pass | If the scale is 0-5, set Type = Point, Maximum grade = 5, Grade to pass = 1 |
Assignment Part 1 | ||
Name: | Answer 1 | |
Start date: | day and time when the exam starts | |
Due date: | day and time when the exam ends | |
Post date: | day and time when students can view their grades and other possible feedback (this date can be edited later if needed) | |
Max marks: | maximum marks for this question | |
Assignment Part 2 | Possible questions in parts 3, 4 and 5 are handled in a similar manner. | |
Name: | Answer 2 The other settings as in Assignment Part 1. | |
Similarity report options | ||
Allow submissions after the due date: | No | |
Report generation speed: | Generate reports on the due date (students can resubmit until the due date) | |
Store student papers: | Standard repository Additionally: If you wish to assess exams with a rubric or a list of criteria with points or without points, see instructions on how to add one. | |
Restrict access | ||
Add restriction: | Date > enter the starting date and time of the exam. | Without the time restriction, students can see the exam questions ( in the Summary) before the exam starts. The start date of the assignment parts applies only to the possibility of submitting. |
Example 3: Photograph(s) or scanned file of a handwritten exam
- The student
- does math or draws by hand
- photographs or scans the answers and
- submits the picture/scanned files in the Turnitin assignment
- Each student's exam answer comprises one to five files
- The teacher can give feedback on answer files and give a grade using the all assessing tools in Turnitin's Feedback Studio
Settings that need to be edited (the default values may be left for the other settings):
Name of the setting | Value of the setting | Example or more information on the setting |
|---|---|---|
| General | ||
Turnitin assignment name: | Give the exam a name | Exam 17 October 2023 at 2-4 pm |
Summary: | Write the exam question(s) and technical instructions for submitting the answer(s). | The following instructions can be added next to the exam questions: If you use Turnitin for the first time ever, you will be asked to accept the Turnitin User Agreement before the submission is completed. You may submit another version of the file that replaces the earlier one before the due time. After submission wait until you get a digital receipt of the successful submission on the screen. You will also receive the receipt by email. |
Number of parts: | 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 Ask students to submit one file for each question (= per part). Maximum number of parts (= files per student) is 5. | Note: The text in the Summary field is common to all parts (tabs) of the activity. |
Allow submission of any file type? | Yes | |
Display Similarity Reports to Students | No | Turnitin cannot compare image files and so cannot generate a meaningful similarity report. |
Grade | ||
Type: | Point | Note! Only integers are accepted as exam grades. |
Maximum grade: | the highest mark on the scale | If you wish to assess an exam with a finer scale, choose a bigger maximum grade. |
Grade to pass | marks on the scale to pass | If the scale is 0-5, set Type = Point, Maximum grade = 5, Grade to pass = 1 |
Assignment Part 1 | ||
Name: | Answer 1 | |
Start date: | day and time when the exam starts | |
Due date: | day and time when the exam ends | |
Post date: | day and time when students can view their grades and other possible feedback (this date can be edited later if needed) | |
Max marks: | maximum marks for this question | |
Assignment Part 2 | Possible questions in parts 3, 4 and 5 are handled in a similar manner. | |
Name: | Answer 2 The other settings as in Assignment Part 1. | |
Similarity report options | ||
Allow submissions after the due date: | No | |
Check against stored student papers: | No | |
Check against internet: | No | |
Check against journals, periodicals and publications: | No | Since the submission is not checked against stored student papers, the internet, or journals, periodicals and publications, the similarity report is not generated. |
Store student papers: | No repository Additionally: If you wish to assess exams with a rubric or a list of criteria with points or without points, see instructions on how to add one. | Storing the image file(s) in Turnitin's standard repository makes no sense since images cannot be compared. |
Restrict access | ||
Add restriction: | Date > enter the starting date and time of the exam. | Without the time restriction, students can see the exam questions ( in the Summary) before the exam starts. The start date of the assignment parts applies only to the possibility of submitting. |
Additional tips
You cannot attach the exam questions as a file in the Summary field, but you can create a link to a file or a page that is available elsewhere in the MyCourses workspace and put this in the Summary field. If you do so, in addition to the access restriction set in the activity, remember to restrict access to the file/page only to those doing the exam.