The Q&A element is a 'call and response' style element.
Explorers see a question.
Explorers type a response.
Explorers see prepared feedback after submitting their response.
In the video below, we show you how you can add the Q&A element to your topics or articles:
How do creators set-up the Q&A element?
After you add the element, there are several choices to complete:
Question. You need to pose a question for the explorer to answer. TIP: Consider the nature of the question you are asking. If you ask a very closed question, which just needs a yes or no answer, perhaps a simple yes or no poll might be better. Use Q&A to have explorers think and answer with more detail.
Response. You need to prepare a set response which will be shown to the explorer AFTER they provide their answer. TIP: Your response will be the same regardless of the explorer answer. Keep that in mind when creating your response.
Max answer length? You can then set the maximum length of answers in characters from 100 to 5,000 characters. This allows you to have Q&As which require just short, simple answers, though to Q&A that is longer and in an essay style.
Journal capture? You can select whether the question and the EXPLORER'S answer is copied into their journal. If not, the results will just appear on the screen for the explorer (and in the topic reporting in Admin). By enabling this option, the explorer's answer will also be copied into their journal. This is very handy when you are asking questions about next steps or ideas that you want to explorer to have access to later in their journal. It is also useful when you know the journal might be sent to the explorer's manager or adviser, and you want them to see the answer.
Set colours. You can choose to adjust the colour of the heading.
Explorer requirements. These requirements outline what explorers must do in order to complete the question. You can choose whether the explorer must submit a response. You can also choose to have an assessor verify the explorer's response. Note: we discuss assessing in more detail below. You can choose whether to turn both the submission required and the assessor verification on, just one of them, or neither, depending on your requirements.
Progress settings. There are two progress setting options. Firstly, you can choose whether the explorer is able to continue through the part without the explorer requirements being met, or whether they are unable to do so until all requirements have been met. Secondly, you can choose whether the explorer is required to complete the explorer requirements in order to complete the topic. As with the explorer requirements, you can choose to turn on either progress setting, turn on both, and turn on neither.
What do explorer's see when interacting with a Q&A element?
Explorers will see your Q&A question and an input box for their response.
The input box will scale to a size to suit the maximum number of allowed characters.
Explorers can answer with formatted text (bullets, bold, links, italic etc...).
Explorers can save their answer as a draft to consider before submitting their final answer.
Assessing the Q&A element
You can choose to make the Q&A element assessable by requiring an assessor to review and 'pass' the explorer's response.
To do this, mark the checkbox "Assessor must review and 'pass' the explorer's response" in the 'Explorer requirements' section. Once explorers have submitted their answer, they will be informed that an assessor will grade their response:
Assessors have a separate tab in the platform, called “Assess”. This tab can be found in creator mode and is not visible to explorers:
Assessors and Creators can click on 'Assess Q&A' to review the explorer's responses. They can mark the outcome as pass or fail. Optionally, they can also include a score and any comments.
If an outcome is marked as a 'pass' the learner will be informed of this:
Alternatively, if an outcome is marked as 'fail' the explorer will be informed and told to submit a new response:
Using the Q&A element
Here are three different ways you can use the Q&A element to help you get inspired!
You could use Q&A to:
Automate content into the journal, such as key takeaways or next steps.
Provide a scenario for explorers to respond to.
Break up plain text by asking the explorer what they think the answer is, and then revealing the facts afterwards. This is a great way to engage the explorer rather than having them passively read.
How does Q&A differ from Reflect?
The Q&A element is similar to the Reflect element. Both elements ask explores to answer an open question - the difference is in the feedback to the explorer after they answer.
With Q&A, the explorer receives feedback from the creator. So this is a good way to keep their contributions private or use Q&A to reveal additional knowledge. Use Q&A to capture private actions or responses, or to use a 'call and response' style of learning.
With Reflect, the explorer can review answers from other explorers. Reflect is perfect for social learning as it allows explorers to contribute knowledge and compare to their peers. It may reinforce their thinking or challenge them with new ideas.