Taking a Quiz in Quercus

Your instructor may require you to take a Quiz in Quercus. The quiz may be made available to you in a Module, or in the Assignments or Quizzes area of your course.

Checklist for successful online test-taking

Recommended computer and internet connection:

Please note:  The Canvas Student mobile app should not be used for any high-stakes activities such as submitting assignments or quizzes—important tasks and assessments should be completed on a desktop or laptop computer instead.

Before the Test: 

• Verify that your browser and computer are supported by Quercus (Canvas).
• Use a computer with a wired internet connection (avoid dial-up, no wireless, no satellite), we suggest checking the speed and quality (e.g., U. of T. Speedtest for computers on campus) of your network connection. You want a speed faster than (more than) 512 kbps.
• Turn off third-party browser extensions, toolbars, etc.
• Ensure that your system has the most recent updates, e.g., Microsoft update (PC) or OSX software update (MAC) as either may try to restart your machine.

For all Test Takers:

• Turn off any programs that might interrupt your taking of the test by overloading your system’s processor (e.g., Skype, Twitter, IM, email, etc.).
• Make sure pop-ups are allowed before taking the test.
• Avoid running programs in the background that may consume large amounts of bandwidth (e.g., do NOT use Netflix, YouTube, streaming internet TV or other programs that require high bandwidth).
• If you want to resize or refresh the browser window, do it before you start the test.
• Just before the test, log out of the browser by closing all windows and quitting the browser, then re-open the browser and log back into Quercus.
• Only have one browser window open unless otherwise specified by your instructor, and avoid opening multiple tabs.
• For file upload questions, please ensure that your file is saved on your computer prior to submission.  
• Use an Incognito window (for Chrome) or a Private window (for Firefox) if you have encountering persistent access issues (NOTE:  You will need to login to Quercus with your UTORid and password).
• Do the practice test if made available by your professor.

When taking the test

• When opening the test, click the link ONLY ONCE and wait for it to load, be patient.
• Use Quercus navigation buttons, DO NOT use browser ‘back’ and ‘forward’ buttons.
• Click the ‘Submit Quiz’ button ONLY ONCE, be patient.

NOTE:  Exponents for equations in Quercus may not display correctly if using versions of Chrome below 90. Students should make sure Chrome is up to date  before taking a Quiz.

Watch this video to help you prepare to take a quiz in Quercus.

Taking a quiz in Quercus

When you first open the quiz, you will see the Quiz summary, as depicted in the image below.

The Quiz summary includes the due date, points possible, the number of questions, and may include information such as: availability window, time limit and the number of attempts allowed. The instructor may provide additional information that will appear under "Instructions". Once you are ready to begin, click the "Take the Quiz" button.

Your quiz questions will either be presented to you one at a time, or all together on one page.

As shown in the image below, the time and date that you started your quiz will appear under the quiz name. On the right-hand side of the page you will find quiz summary information, including links to individual questions and their status, the quiz attempt due date, and the time remaining for the quiz (if it is a timed quiz). Your quiz questions are saved automatically, and the time that your responses were last saved can be found next to the "Submit Quiz" button.

If your quiz displays one question at a time, when you are ready to move on to the next question, you can select the "Next" button.

Note: if you are be asked to upload a file for a "File Upload" question, Quercus will confirm that the upload worked by showing a message stating "Your file has been successfully uploaded", as shown in the screen shot below.

When you are satisfied with all of your quiz responses, you can click the "Submit Quiz" button. If your instruction has allowed additional quiz attempts, you can access them by clicking the "Take the Quiz Again" button.

Note: Timed quizzes will be automatically submitted when the time has elapsed.

Depending on the options selected by your instructor, you may have access to information about your completed quiz.

For example, you may only see your score for the quiz. Please note, if the quiz has a question with a written answer component, don't panic, you score may be updated once your instructor or TA has completed grading your quiz.

Language settings

Adapted from the UTM Department of Geography, Geomatics and Environment:  Unless otherwise instructed by your instructor, please make sure that your language preference on Quercus is set to English (Canada). To check this, on Quercus at the left-hand side of the site go to: Account --> Settings --> Edit Settings (button on the right-hand side) --> Language dropdown menu should be set to System Default (English (Canada)) then click on the Update Settings button.

Note: Also please make sure to disable translation tools (such as Google Translate) in your browser’s tool bar.

UTM Student Test Practice Module

The UTM Student Test Practice Module is intended to serve two purposes: 1) help UTM students access campus resources that can help them prepare for online assignments / tests; 2) provide UTM students with an opportunity to practice online assignment submission / test-taking skills. It was developed together with a number of UTM campus partners to support students.

UTM Students can access this UTM resource using the link below.  Select the Enroll in Course button and following the instructions to self-enroll:
https://q.utoronto.ca/enroll/7EJKWJ