Computer Aided Assessment

Undergrad Computer Aided Assessment (CAA) underpinned by Computer Algebra
calmaeth, mathxl, AiM, mapleTA and stack

CAA is usually for use in large classes, though experiments with new aspects are sometimes done with smaller classes.

I use any CAA system in the genre which is

• affordable
• underpinned by a Computer Algebra package that I already know
• preferably in use, or soon to be in use, elsewhere in Australia

There are lots of CAA systems, so selection is needed.

• I prefer free, open-source systems. (AiM is free and open-source *except* for the maple underpinning it. However the commercial - maple - component, has been enough to disqualify AiM from use at UWA from 2008, as the maple vendor has increased the price to stop us using AiM.)
• I prefer systems which are used at several universities worldwide (e.g. AiM, mapleTA).
  • I prefer systems where there is active sharing of question databases.
    (Mind you, quality is a real issue, and I *wrongly* assumed mapleta materials up to be shared would be OK when, in fact, we discovered in the use in 2008 that they were severely buggy.)
  • I prefer systems where there is active work at integrating the systems with the Managed Learning Environments used at UWA (and Curtin) (moodle and WebCT).
• I prefer systems one runs on one's own servers.
  (mathxl - and other systems from publishers - do not satisfy this preference.)

However one can't always get what one prefers.

I quite like writing my own questions, provided that I believe they will get continuing use. I prefer working with others,

• Kevin Judd (UWA) for calmaeth work
• people at Curtin for AiM and, hopefully, at some stage in the future, some other system that we both use
• colleagues at UNSW, etc. for mapleTA if we give it another trial in some future year

Some history of my authoring efforts since 2000 is given in this list of some CAA systems.