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This chapter is the bridge between WeBWorK authoring and using WeBWorK inside ADAPT. It collects common question interaction patterns (question types) and pairs them with a practical workflow and a short QA checklist so you can ship reliable assignments without surprises.
Most biology and biochemistry prompts start as a story with a single decision, a short label, or a short workflow. If the grading needs robust math parsing, multiple equivalent forms, or algorithmic variants, use PGML-first WeBWorK. If the task is recognition, labeling, or a short protocol step check, these interaction types are usually faster to build and easier to maintain.
Instructors usually lose time in two places: blank binding mistakes and generic error testing loops. Use the workflow and QA page as the default finishing step, even when a question looks correct in author view.
WeBWorK problems are authored using PG (a Perl-based setup layer) and PGML (a markup layer for the student-facing prompt). In this guide, PG is treated as minimal scaffolding and PGML is the default authoring style.
Life-science-first emphasis: examples and checklists are written to answer "what breaks when the content is biology?" and to prioritize patterns that grade reliably for biology-style prompts. For advanced techniques such as colored emphasis, table layouts, and matching with two-column displays, see Advanced PGML Techniques.
- 5.1: Question Types Overview
- Introduces a shared set of common question types and when each one is a good fit, including a decision rule for choosing between types. After finishing, you can map a task to an interaction pattern before writing any code or distractors. Use it to choose between single-answer, multi-answer, matching, numeric entry, blanks, and ordering.
- 5.2: Multiple Choice
- Shows how to write strong multiple choice items with science-relevant distractors and common failure patterns. After finishing, you can produce a single-best-answer concept check that targets a specific misconception. Use it when you want a fast, reliable concept check that is easy to grade.
- 5.3: Multiple Answer
- Shows how to write select-all-that-apply questions with clear criteria and set boundaries. After finishing, you can design choices that avoid ambiguity and make it clear why each selection is correct or incorrect. Use it when the concept requires recognizing a set of correct statements rather than one best answer.
- 5.4: Matching
- Shows how to use matching for definitions and associations in science, with guidance for avoiding trivia-style pairing. After finishing, you can create prompt and choice sets that test understanding rather than trivia recall. Use it when you want students to connect terms, steps, or concepts to their correct descriptions.
- 5.5: Numerical Entry
- Shows how to use numeric entry with explicit tolerance and units expectations, framed as a reporting convention. After finishing, you can set tolerances that match rounding and measurement context and avoid unexpected grading behavior. Use it for quick calculations where a single numeric result is the right target.
- 5.6: Fill in the Blank
- Shows how to use fill-in-the-blank for short textual answers with explicit variant handling. After finishing, you can define acceptable variants such as plural forms and common synonyms in a controlled way. Use it for vocabulary checks and short labels where a small set of responses is appropriate.
- 5.7: Multipart Questions
- Shows how to design prompts with multiple blanks that each ask for a specific item, with guidance on blank clarity and cognitive load. After finishing, you can write multi-step prompts with unambiguous blank labels and consistent formatting for answers. Use it for short multi-step prompts where each step has a short response.
- 5.8: Ordered List
- Shows how to test sequencing knowledge with an ordered list question and warns against memory-game items. After finishing, you can choose sequences that have a single standard order and avoid turning the item into a memory game. Use it for protocols and workflows that have a single standard sequence.
- 5.9: Workflow and QA
- Combines a practical ADAPT workflow checklist with a compact QA pass for biology-style WeBWorK items, plus a sharper testing recommendation. After finishing, you can run a repeatable clone-edit-preview-publish process and catch the common failure modes that lead to "generic error" screens. Use it as your final pre-release routine whenever you add or revise questions in a bank.
This page titled 5: Different Question Types in WeBWorK was last modified on Fri, 27 Feb 2026 15:34:46 GMT and is shared under a CC BY 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Neil R. Voss.
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