Printed on 6/16/2005TestGen Export-to-WPS Version 2.0
TestGen Export-to-WPS
Version 2.0
For use with TestGen 6.0.1 and WPS 5.5.1
June 30, 2005
Contents
Exporting TestGen questions for import into WPS
Export in either WPSML 1.5 or WPSML 2.0 format
Installing the correct TestGen version
Activating the WPS Export Feature
Organization of this document
Exporting to WPSML 1.5 format
How TestGen levels map to WPSML 1.5 objects
Media Library links in exported WPSML 1.5 content
Special characters that convert to images during WPSML1.5 exports
"Instruction" and other TestGen lists not preserved as lists
Questions with instructions may need editing as WPSML 1.5 content
TestGen information that exports as WPSML 1.5 metadata
Volume metadata
Metadata stored for objects between the volume and the questions
Question metadata
How TestGen questions map to WPSML 1.5 question types
Supplementary question info that exports to WPSML 1.5
WPSML 1.5 export procedure
Report of issues and problems
Importing WPSML 1.5 content into WPS
Import warning that you can ignore
Exporting to WPSML 2.0 format
How TestGen levels map to WPSML 2.0 objects
Media Library links in exported WPSML 2.0 content
TestGen information that exports as WPSML 2.0 metadata
Volume-level metadata
No metadata stored for objects between the volume and the questions
Question info that exports as question-level metadata
How TestGen questions map to WPSML 2.0 question types
WPSML 2.0 export procedure
Report of Issues and Problems
Importing WPSML 2.0 content into WPS
Release Notes for TestGen v 6.0.1 Export Tool
IMS Compatibility
Known Issues
Media library graphics conversion
WPSML v 2.0-to-WPS limitations
Function plots
Template conversion to MathML
WPSML v 1.5 and v 2.0 HTML conversion
Exporting TestGen questions for import into WPS
You can use TestGen 6.01 to export questions from a test bank to a .zip file that can be imported into Pearson Higher Ed’s Web Publishing System (WPS). You can select and export items at any level in a test bank.
Top-level chapters selected for export
Individual questions selected for export
Export in either WPSML 1.5 or WPSML 2.0 format
When exporting from TestGen, you are offered a choice between exporting the selected TestGen content as "WPSML 1.5 Format" or "WPSML 2.0 Format".
WPSML 1.5 is the new name for what has historically been called "CWML." This is the current version of the (evolving) format in which WPS content has been stored, exported, and imported since the initial WPS release. WPSML 1.5 content exported from TestGen can be imported into WPS and manipulated in all the same ways as content created in WPS.
The WPSML 2.0 format is new, and permits the export of TestGen features not supported in WPSML 1.5. These include algorithmic content, function plot support, Unicode support, IMScompliant packing, and others.
Limited support for the WPSML 2.0 format was introduced in WPS release 5.4.1. Only the following WPS operations are currently supported for WPSML 2.0 content:
WPS Operations Supported for WPSML 2.0 contentImport XML / WPSML 2.0 content is always imported as a complete volume, and, so, always into a discipline. The TestGen test bank from which the volume was exported (the .bok file) can be imported with the WPSML 2.0 volume, for archival purposes.
Left navigation / WPSML 2.0 objects appear in the WPS left navigation in the same way as WPSML 1.5 (CWML) objects. Nothing is done in the left navigation to indicate an object's XML format.
Export XML / A WPSML 2.0 volume can be exported as XML (in its entirety) from any location in the volume.
Download Source File / When a .bok file is uploaded with a WPSML 2.0 volume, the .bok file can subsequently be downloaded by clicking the Source File link that appears on the WPSML volume page in WPS.
Media Library / A read-only Media Library window is provided for viewing the names of the media files imported with a WPSML 2.0 volume.
History / The log of actions performed on a WPSML 2.0 object is accessible via the History command (in the same way as for CWML objects).
Security Manager / Divisional Administrators can configure access to WPSML objects in the same way that access to CWML objects is configured.
Installing the correct TestGen version
Important: There is an older version of the Export WPS Problemsets feature in TestGen versions 5.5 and 6.0. It should not be used. It does not produce the results described in this document.
To use the Export WPS Problemsets features described in this document, you must install TestGen 6.01 (or later).
Activating the WPS Export Feature
If you install TestGen version 6.01 (which is intended for use by CMG Production), the Export WPS Problemset functionality described in this document will be available and enabled by default.
If you install a later (public) version of TestGen, the functionality may be available but not enabled. To make the Export WPS Problemsets option appear on the TestGen File menu the next time you start TestGen:
Edit the file named “title1.cfg” in the folder that contains the TestGen 5.5 program. Put this statement anywhere except the first line: user-level = author.
- On a Windows system, the default installation folder is c:\Program Files\TestGen.
- On an older Macintosh system, the default is Macintosh HD:TestGen.
- On a Mac OS X system, go to the default applications folder (or the alternate location where you installed TestGen), then to the TestGen folder. In the TestGen folder, control-click the TestGen application and choose "Show Package Contents" to open the TestGen bundle in a new window. In that window, go to the Contents folder, then to MacOS to find the "title1.cfg" file.
NoteWhen you export a large TestGen file with hundreds of questions, the export can take several minutes or more. The more questions you export, the longer the export will take. From experience, you can expect large exports to take anywhere from 5 to 35 minutes.
Organization of this document
The remainder of this document describes:
Topic / PageExporting TestGen content to the WPSML 1.5 format / 6
Importing WPSML 1.5 content into WPS / 16
Exporting TestGen content to the WPSML 2.0 format / 19
Importing WPSML 2.0 content into WPS / 24
Release Notes for TestGen v 6.0.1 Export Tool / 25
Exporting to WPSML 1.5 format
This section describes how TestGen content converts to WPSML 1.5 content, then steps through the process of exporting to the WPSML 1.5 format.
How TestGen levels map to WPSML 1.5 objects
Regardless of the level from which you export in TestGen, the .zip file produced by TestGen's Export WPS Problemsets command will always mirror the structure of the test bank. Even if you export one question, a WPS volume will be generated that will reflect the hierarchy above the question in the test bank.
When you export to WPSML 1.5 format, you have a choice of exporting the top-level items in the test bank as WPS chapters (the default) or as WPS parts that have WPS chapters as their children. The tables on the following pages show:
The way that different TestGen structures map to a hierarchy of WPS objects, depending on your choice (chapters or parts at top).
The way titles in TestGen map to WPS object titles.
The "Type" metadata values that are stored in WPS to indicate the types of the items in TestGen (i.e., before they were converted during export). For a discussion of other TestGen information that carries over to WPSML 1.5 as metadata, see TestGen information that exports as WPSML 1.5 metadataon page 9.
TestGen Levels/Titles / Export w Chapters at TopWPSML 1.5 hierarchy / WPS object title / Value of TestGen
"Application Type"
.bok (TG "1-level")
chapter "ChapTitle"
question "QuestTxt" / volume / <name of exported .zip> / book
chapter (medialib) / "ChapTitle" / chapter
problemset / Inserted Problemset for "ChapTitle" / NA
question ... / "QuestTxt" / {bimodal | essay | ... }
.bok (TG "2-level")
chapter "ChapTitle"
section "SectTitle"
question "QuestTxt" / volume / <name of exported .zip> / book
chapter (medialib) / "ChapTitle" / chapter
problemset / "SectTitle" / question group
question / "QuestTxt" / {bimodal | essay | ... }
.bok (TG "3-level")
chapter "ChapTitle"
section "SectTitle"
subsection "SubsecTitle"
question "QuestTxt" / volume / <name of exported .zip> / book
chapter (medialib) / "ChapTitle" / chapter
group / "SectTitle" / section
problemset / "SubsecTitle" / question group
question / "QuestTxt" / {bimodal | essay | ... }
.bok (TG "4-level")
chapter "ChapTitle"
section "SectTitle"
subsection "SubsecTitle"
subsection2 "Subsec2Title"
question "QuestTxt" / volume / <name of exported .zip> / book
chapter (medialib) / "ChapTitle" / chapter
group / "SectTitle" / section
group / "SubsecTitle" / subsection
problemset / "Subsec2Title" / question group
question / "QuestTxt" / {bimodal | essay | ... }
.bok (TG "5-level")
chapter "ChapTitle"
section "SectTitle"
subsection "SubsecTitle"
subsection2 "Subsec2Title"
subsection3 "Subsec3Title"
question "QuestTxt" / volume / <name of exported .zip> / book
chapter (medialib) / "ChapTitle" / chapter
group / "SectTitle" / section
group / "SubsecTitle" / subsection
group / "Subsec2Title" / subsection2
problemset / "Subsec3Title" / question group
question / "QuestTxt" / {bimodal | essay | ... }
Mappings, titles, and "Application Type" values when "chapters at top" option is used
TestGen Levels/Titles / Export w Parts at Top, Chapters in PartsWPS hierarchy / WPS object title / Value of Testgen
"Application Type"
.bok (TG "1-level")
chapter "ChapTitle"
question "QuestTxt" / volume / <name of exported .zip> / book
part / Inserted Part for "ChapTitle" / NA
chapter (medialib) / "ChapTitle" / chapter
problemset / Inserted Problemset for "ChapTitle" / NA
question / "QuestTxt" / {bimodal | essay | ... }
.bok (TG "2-level")
chapter "ChapTitle"
section "SectTitle"
question "QuestTxt" / volume / <name of exported .zip> / book
part / Inserted Part for "ChapTitle" / NA
chapter (medialib) / "ChapTitle" / chapter
problemset / "SectTitle" / question group
question / "QuestTxt" / {bimodal | essay | ... }
.bok (TG "3-level")
chapter "ChapTitle"
section "SectTitle"
subsection "SubsecTitle"
question "QuestTxt" / volume / <name of exported .zip> / book
part / "ChapTitle" / chapter
chapter (medialib) / "SectTitle" / section
problemset / "SubsecTitle" / question group
question / "QuestTxt" / {bimodal | essay | ... }
.bok (TG "4-level")
chapter "ChapTitle"
section "SectTitle"
subsection "SubsecTitle"
subsection2 "Subsec2Title"
question "QuestTxt" / volume / <name of exported .zip> / book
part / "ChapTitle" / chapter
chapter (medialib) / "SectTitle" / section
group / "SubsecTitle" / subsection
problemset / "Subsec2Title" / question group
question / "QuestTxt" / {bimodal | essay | ... }
.bok (TG "5-level")
chapter "ChapTitle"
section "SectTitle"
subsection "SubsecTitle"
subsection2 "Subsec2Title"
subsection3 "Subsec3Title"
question "QuestTxt" / volume / <name of exported .zip> / book
part / "ChapTitle" / chapter
chapter (medialib) / "SectTitle" / section
group / "SubsecTitle" / subsection
group / "Subsec2Title" / subsection2
problemset / "Subsec3Title" / question group
question / "QuestTxt" / {bimodal | essay | ... }
Mappings, titles, and "Application Type" values when "parts at top" option is used
Media Library links in exported WPSML 1.5 content
During WPSML 1.5 exports, the following media files are placed in medialib folders at the level of the questions’ parent chapters:
Equations, templates, and special characters that are converted from their native TestGen formats to images during export to WPSML 1.5. You are given a choice when exporting of exporting this content as transparent GIFs (the default) or as JPEGs.
Image files in the TestGen Graphics Library that are referenced by questions being exported. These images always export as JPEGs, regardless of their format in the Graphics Library.
Special characters that convert to images during WPSML1.5 exports
TestGen characters with UNICODE values above 255 (decimal) are converted to GIF or JPEG images during export. This conversion to images is done to avoid problems where TestGen palette symbols and other characters displayed properly on some, but not all, WPS-supported platforms.
"Instruction" and other TestGen lists not preserved as lists
In TestGen, the following information is stored in central lists and then referenced by individual questions: Instruction, Topic, Skill, Objective, User1, and User2.
User1 and User2 content is not exported to WPS. For the other lists, the referenced content (instruction, topic, skill, or objective) is incorporated into each question, either as content (for an instruction) or as question metadata (for topic, skill, and objective).
Questions with instructions may need editing as WPSML 1.5 content
The inclusion of an instruction in each question that references the instruction changes the "shape" of the quiz in WPS. While an instruction might be shown once and apply to the next 10 questions in a TestGen quiz, that instruction will be included and displayed in each of those 10 questions when they are exported to WPSML1.5. This may require editing in WPS. You might, for example, want to place the instruction in the Page Content of the WPS problemset, and limit the questions in the problemset to the 10 questions that use the instruction. (You would also need to remove the instruction from each of the 10 questions where it was exported.)
TestGen information that exports as WPSML 1.5 metadata
A variety of information in the test bank exports to WPSML 1.5 as object metadata.
Volume metadata
The following information exports to the WPS volume that is at the top of the exported content:
The TestGen Test Bank's / Located in / Exports to WPSML 1.5 volume asTest bank Name / Test bank Setup dialog / Title (object content, not metadata)
Edition / Test bank Setup dialog / Edition (book metadata)
ISBN / Test bank Setup dialog / ISBN (book metadata)
Author / Test bank Setup dialog / Author First Name,
Author Last Name
If multiple author names are entered, only the first name is parsed correctly. For example, if two names are entered, the second name appears in the Author Last Name field.
Type / not supported in TestGen / Always "book" (external identifier)
Copyright / not supported in TestGen / Always the year you imported data and created the volume in WPS (website metadata)
Metadata stored for objects between the volume and the questions
For as many levels as there are in the test bank above questions (chapters, chapters + sections, chapters + sections + subsections, and so on), the following information is exported:
The TestGen Level's / Located in / Exports to WPS objects asTitle / Item's content / Title
Position in TestGen hierarchy / written to WPS metadata according to position / "Type" in object’s external identifier metadata:
- Top level (under book) is "chapter"
- Level immediately above questions (a problemset, in WPS) is "question group"
- Levels between "chapter" and "question group", top to bottom, are "section_1", "section_2", "section_3".
Question metadata
The following information exports to the WPSML 1.5 volume as question metadata.
The TestGen question's / Exports to WPS question's metadata as"Topic" descriptor* / Subject/Discipline, either standard or nonstandard value
"Skill" descriptor* / Skill Name
"Objective" descriptor* / Objective
“Difficulty” descriptor / Difficulty
“Created On” descriptor / Created On
Question ID / Question ID
Question type / The TestGen "Type." One of: multiplechoice, essay, shortanswer, matching, true/false, bimodal, vocabulary. (For a mapping of TestGen types to WPSML 1.5 types, see How TestGen questions map to WPSML 1.5 question types on page 11.
* The names of these descriptor fields are editable in TestGen. Even if renamed in TestGen, these fields still export to WPS in the metadata fields indicated.
How TestGen questions map to WPSML 1.5 question types
The chart below shows how TestGen question types map to the WPSML 1.5 (CWML) question types in WPS:
TestGen Question Type / Exports to WPSML 1.5 AsMultiple Choice, Bimodal / Multiple choice
True/False / True/False
Short Answer / Patternmatch or Essay
Exports as either Patternmatch or Essay depending on the number of characters in the questions correct answer. For details about this threshold, see WPSML 1.5 export procedure on page 13.
Important: Only one correct answer ever exports to WPS patternmatch questions. If there are multiple correct answers defined in TestGen, only the first is exported.
When a ShortAnswer exports to WPS as an essay question, no correct-answer information is preserved.
Special Short Answer / Essay*
Matching / Group exports as single WPS matching question.
Essay / Essay
Vocabulary / Essay*
*The rarely used Vocabulary and Special Short Answer question types are not supported fully in WPSML 1.5. They are exported as essay questions when present, but are flagged in the error report from an WPSML 1.5 export job, and will not be usable without editing after being imported into WPS.
Supplementary question info that exports to WPSML 1.5
The following chart lists the information attached to TestGen questions that exports to WPSML 1.5:
Feature / When WPSML 1.5 Is ExportedInstructions / Included separately with each question that references instruction.
Question ID, Topic, Skill, Objective, Difficulty Level, and Created On / Exported as question metadata. (See TestGen information that exports as WPSML 1.5 metadata on page 9.)
User 1, User 2 / Not converted.
Page Reference / Not converted.
Difficulty / Not converted.
Workspace / Not converted.
Explanations (MC, SA, SSA, TF) / Exported as feedback for MC, SA. Not exported for SSA, TF.
Enhanced Short Answers / Not converted.
Graphics / Export as JPEGs. (Not affected by GIF/JPEG choice during Export.)
Symbols from palettes / Export as GIFs or JPEGs.
Templates / Export as GIFs or JPEGs.
Function Plots / Export as GIFs or JPEGs.
Worksheet variables / Not exported. The question that uses variables is exported with whatever values for the variables are currently displayed in TestGen, and those values are static.
Programmed algorithms / Not exported. The question that uses programmed algorithm is exported with the current TestGen values.
Tables from table editor / Converted to HTML tables.
WPSML 1.5 export procedure
To export TestGen questions to WPSML 1.5 format:
1Select the chapters, sections, or questions to export.
2Select Export WPS Problemsets from the File menu and select WPSML 1.5 Format from the submenu.
A dialog displays in which you set export options.
Use the following information to accept or change the defaults.