Grading & Results

Auto-Grading

Auto-grading instantly scores objective questions when a learner submits an exam. This eliminates manual work for question types that have a definitive correct answer, allowing instructors to focus their time on essay and subjective questions.

How Auto-Grading Works

When a submission arrives, the system compares the learner's answers against the stored answer keys in the question data. For each auto-gradable question:

The learner's answer is extracted from the submission
It is compared against the correct answer defined in the question's data field
The isCorrect flag is set and marksObtained is calculated
The autoGraded field on the question submission is set to true
The submission's autoGradedQuestions count is incremented

Auto-Gradable Question Types

The following question types are fully auto-gradable:

Field	Required	Type	Description
MCQ (Single)	Optional	MCQ	Compares the selected option against the correct option marked in the question data. Full marks for a correct match, zero for incorrect.
MCQ (Multiple)	Optional	MCQ	Compares the set of selected options against all correct options. Full marks only if the selection exactly matches the answer key.
True / False	Optional	TRUE_FALSE	Compares the selected boolean value against the correctValue stored in the question data. Exact match required.
Fill in Blanks	Optional	FILL_IN_BLANKS	Each blank is checked against the correctAnswer and any defined alternatives. Supports optional case-sensitive matching per blank.
Matching	Optional	MATCHING	Verifies that each left-column item is paired with its correct right-column counterpart. All pairs must be correct for full marks.

Questions Requiring Manual Grading

These question types cannot be auto-graded and must be reviewed by an instructor:

Field	Required	Type	Description
Essay	Optional	ESSAY	Free-form text responses require manual evaluation. The instructor grades against a rubric or sample answer.
Matrix	Optional	MATRIX	Complex grid-based answers may require partial credit assessment and manual review.
Hotspot	Optional	HOTSPOT	Image-based questions where learners click on regions. Accuracy depends on region overlap which may need manual verification.

Triggering Auto-Grade

Auto-grading can be triggered in two ways:

Automatic on Submission — When a learner submits an exam, auto-gradable questions are scored immediately as part of the submission pipeline
Manual Trigger — On the grading page for a specific submission, the instructor can click the "Auto Grade" button to re-run auto-grading. This is useful if answer keys were updated after the initial submission

Auto-Grade Button

The "Auto Grade" button on the submission grading page is disabled when all questions have already been auto-graded (i.e., autoGradedQuestions equals totalQuestions). This prevents unnecessary re-processing.

Mixed Exams

For exams containing both auto-gradable and manual questions, auto-grading handles the objective questions immediately. The grading progress bar reflects both auto-graded and manually-graded counts, so you can see exactly how many questions still need instructor attention.

Grading Dashboard

Manual Grading (Essays)