How to Run a Live Quiz in an Online Class (Timed, With Results)

To run a live quiz in an online class, prepare a short test before the lesson, publish it at the moment you want evidence of learning, give students a fixed time to answer, and read the results straight away. In Educastic, students answer against a countdown and you see who answered each question correctly.

A live quiz is the fastest way to find out whether a class understood what you just taught. Asking "Is that clear?" gets nods. Three questions with a timer get evidence, from every student, in two or three minutes.

This guide shows how to build a test in Educastic, publish it during a session and use the results to decide what to teach next.

What is a live quiz in an online class?

A live quiz is a short, timed set of questions that every student answers at the same moment during the lesson, with the results available to the teacher immediately. In Educastic it is called a test: you create it in your dashboard, publish it from the whiteboard, and it opens on each student's screen with a "Time Left" countdown.

It differs from homework in one important way: you see the answers while the class is still in front of you, so you can reteach on the spot.

How do you create a test in Educastic?

Create a test from Exams in your dashboard menu before the class starts.

1. Click Create New Test.
2. On the Create Assignment Quiz form, enter a Title and the Duration (Minutes): the time students get once you publish it.
3. Add your first question and choose its Answer Type:
   • Multiple answer: checkboxes, with one or more correct options.
   • Radial choice: one correct option out of several.
   • Text field: a short written answer.
4. Type the answer choices and tick the correct ones.
5. Add the next question, then click Save And Continue.

Your tests appear on the Exams page, each with its number of questions. From each test you can edit it, delete it or open its Total Published list.

Tip: keep a live quiz to 3 to 5 questions and 2 to 4 minutes. Longer tests belong in homework.

How do you publish a test during the class?

Publish a test from the whiteboard's top bar with the Publish Questions button. Only the teacher sees this button.

1. Click Publish Questions. A window titled "Choose a test to share with your learners" lists your tests, each with its number of questions.
2. Use Search tests if you have many, then click the test you want.
3. Click Publish.

The test opens at once on every student's screen, with the test title, the questions and the countdown. Students click Submit when they finish. When the timer reaches zero, the answers are submitted automatically, so nobody keeps working after time is up.

How do you see the results during the lesson?

Educastic shows the teacher a Test answers summary as soon as students submit, and it updates with each new submission. For every question it groups students into Correct, Wrong and No Answer, and shows how many seconds each student took.

Use it to decide your next five minutes:

Text field answers are not marked against a key, so read them yourself in the results page after class.

Where do you find the results after class?

After class, open Exams, click Total Published on the test and choose View Result for the session you want. The Result page lists each student's answers question by question, grouped into correct and wrong, with the seconds each answer took, and the Download button saves the table as a spreadsheet.

Because each publication is stored separately, you can reuse the same test with another group, or with the same class a week later, and compare the results.

How can you use live quizzes in different lessons?

Live quizzes work at three points in a lesson.

• Start of class (retrieval): three questions on last week's topic. It warms students up and shows you what has stuck.
• Middle of class (hinge question): one radial choice question at the point where the lesson could go two ways. The answers decide whether you continue or reteach.
• End of class (exit ticket): two questions on today's goal plus one text field question: "What is still confusing?"

For more ways to check learning in a live lesson, see how to check for understanding online, and for test practice before exams, read online exam revision sessions.

What should you keep in mind with timed quizzes?

Keep timed quizzes short, clear and low stakes.

1. Write wrong options that reveal a misconception. A wrong answer then tells you what to fix.
2. Set the timer for the slowest reader in the class, not the fastest.
3. Tell students the quiz is for practice. They answer more honestly when it does not count.
4. Show the class the pattern, not the names. "Half of us chose B" starts a discussion; naming students shuts it down.
5. Prepare the test before the lesson. The Publish Questions window only lists tests you have already created.

Frequently asked questions

Can students see the questions before I publish them? No. The test only opens on students' screens when the teacher clicks Publish.

What happens if a student does not finish in time? Their answers are submitted automatically when the countdown reaches zero.

Can I use the same test with more than one class? Yes. A test can be published in as many sessions as you like, and each publication has its own results.

Can I export the results? Yes. The Result page has a Download button that saves the answers as a spreadsheet.

Does the live quiz cost extra? No. Educastic includes all of its teaching features in the free version.

Try a live quiz in your next lesson

Write three questions on today's topic in Exams, then publish them halfway through your next class on the Educastic online whiteboard.

Create your first quiz free