What problems might there be with on-line assessments?
Multiple choice questions present a number of problems. If the student is using magnification then scrolling is a problem. A good solution is to have each question open up in a new window if at all possible. This is also highly advantageous for someone using a screen reader. It is very difficult to answer questions (check the radio button using the space bar) and then move on to another question on the same page. This may demand quite complex navigational strategies. Uploading an assignment may also be problematic and quite difficult in some cases to do without any help. Note also that there must be tolerance where students need to supply an exact word or phrase – most VLEs have no spell checker. It is also important to remember that if there is a time limit then extra time might be required to complete the assignment. Remember the student may be getting no visual clues.
