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Frequently asked
questions on Softexam
What
is Softexam?
Is it a product by
Microsoft?
Is this an experiment by
Microsoft?
What does Softexam mean?
Does it support only
Windows?
Is there support for open
source?
Is it available only in
English?
Is the questions prepared by Team e-biz?
Are the questions only related to Microsoft products?
Are the questions very
simple?
How is it different from
conventional method of conducting
examination?
What are the benefits of
conducting practical examination using
Softexam?
Is this going to be used
for the first time?
Is Softexam evaluated by
any reputed software testing
authorities?
Is
it available only based on Microsoft .Net Framework?
Why are you using Microsoft .Net Framework?
-
What is Softexam?
First
ever software program for evaluating IT
Practical examinations in schools. It
can also assist in conducting the
Practical examinations and help teachers
in preparing the Individual and
consolidated mark sheet. The key part of
this software is the tracking engine we
have developed. It can track 3rd party
applications like Microsoft Office
package and open source OpenOffice. It
is available for Windows and Linux
platforms.
-
Is it a product by Microsoft?
No. It is
developed by Team e-biz Limited for IT @
School Project, Directorate of Public
Instructions, Government of Kerala.
-
Is this an experiment by Microsoft?
No. It is
an attempt by the IT @ School Project,
Directorate of Public Instructions,
Government of Kerala to automate and
standardize the evaluation of IT
Practical examinations in schools. It is
available for Windows and Linux,
Microsoft Office as well as open source
OpenOffice.
-
What does Softexam mean?
The 'Softexam'
stands for 'Software for examination'
-
Does it support only Windows?
No. It
supports both Linux and Windows from
version 2.0 onwards.The schools can choose the preferred operating system.
-
Is there support for open source?
Yes.
Support for open source is available
from version 1.0 onwards. The schools can choose the preferred office package (Microsoft Office or open source OpenOffice)
-
Is it available only in English?
No. It is
available in English, Malayalam, Tamil
and Kannada from version 2.0 onwards.
Version 1.0 is available in English and
Malayalam
-
Is the questions prepared by Team e-biz?
No.The
questions were prepared by the experts
of Kerala Education Department and SCERT. We developed the
evaluation logic corresponding to the
supplied questions. For example if the
question is 'give fly from left
animation to a presentation' we
develop the software code for evaluating
the student activity to check whether
the animation given is correct as per
the question.
-
Are the questions only related to Microsoft products?
No. The
questions are common for Microsoft
Windows and Linux. The same questions
can be answered in Microsoft Office
package or open source OpenOffice
-
Are the questions very simple?
The
questions were prepared by the experts
of Kerala Education Department. The
questions available in earlier versions
like 1.0 and 2.0 are of higher
difficulty level. Based on the feedback
received after conducting these
examinations and subsequent to the
Government decision to reduce the
maximum marks from 30 to 5 marks the
Education Department decided to reduce
the difficulty level in versions 3.0,
3.1 and 3.0.1
-
How
is it different from conventional method of conducting examination?
There is
no much difference except that the
evaluation and report preparation is
automated.
| |
CONVENTIONAL MANUAL METHOD |
SOFTEXAM |
| 1 |
Students choose the familiar
operating system (Windows or
Linux) |
Same as of
manual method |
| 2 |
Students choose the familiar
Language (English, Malayalam,
Tamil and Kannada) |
Same as of
manual method |
| 3 |
Students choose the familiar
Office Application (Microsoft
Office or Open source OpenOffice) |
Same as of
manual method |
| 4 |
The Teacher randomly
selects the questions from the
data bank of questions and
provide them to the student |
The Softexam
randomly selects the questions
for the student from the data
bank of questions and display it
on the computer screen |
| 5 |
The students answer the
question in the corresponding
Office application (Word
processor, Spreadsheet,
Presentation etc. in Microsoft
Office or Open source OpenOffice)
as per the steps in the
question. |
Same as of
manual method |
| 6 |
The Teacher manually
evaluates the answers and
provide marks as per the
department guidelines |
The Softexam
instantly evaluates the answers
and provide marks as per the
department guidelines |
| 7 |
The Teacher manually
prepares the Individual Mark
Sheet |
The Softexam
instantly prepares the
Individual Mark sheet with step
wise mark and explanation |
| 8 |
The Teacher manually
prepares the Consolidated Mark
Sheet |
The Softexam
automatically prepares the
Consolidated Mark Sheet |
| 9 |
The Teacher copies
the answer files to the CD for
future reference. Less secure |
The Softexam
automatically stores the result
and answer files in encrypted
format for future reference.
Highly secure. |
-
What are the benefits of conducting
practical examination using Softexam?
Ease of
use
Less time consuming
Accurate Evaluation
Minimal Expertise
Less Man Power
Consistent Operation
Highly Secure
-
Is
this going to be used for the first
time?
No.
Softexam has been used 4 times before.
It has more than 1,00,000 installations.
Version 1.0 in February 2004 for 9th
Annual examination, Version 2.0 in
August 2004 for 10th First
Terminal examination, Version 3.0 in
December 2004 for 10th Second
Terminal examination and Version 3.1 in
January 2005 for 10th SSLC
Model examination. We have considered
all the feedbacks and suggestions
received during these exams while
developing the final Version for 10th
SSLC public examination
-
Is
Softexam evaluated by any reputed
software testing authorities?
Yes. It
has been evaluated and approved by NIC
(National Informatics Centre) and STQC (Standardisation,
Testing and Quality Cerification),
Department of Information Technology,
Ministry of Communications and
Information Technology, Government of
India
-
Is
it available only based on Microsoft .Net Framework?
No. The Linux version is
based on Java Development Kit (JDK) and the Windows version is based on Microsoft .Net Framework.
-
Why are you using Microsoft .Net Framework?
We use the latest and advanced technologies available in the market while developing applications in each platform. We used Java Development Kit 1.5 (JDK 1.5), the latest that is available from Sun Microsystems while developing the Linux version.
Similarly we used Microsoft .Net Framework 1.1, the latest that is available from Microsoft while developing the Windows version.
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