Added Assessment Types

teach_online/assessment_types.md

@@ -1,7 +1,119 @@
 # Assessment Types
 
-TODO TALK ABOUT ALL SORTS OF ASSESMENT PROBLEM TYPES
+In this section,
+we will be discussing a wide range of assessment types.
+You will likely be familiar with most of these,
+but some might be new,
+and all are worth discussing.
 
-TRUE/FALSE, SHORT ANSWER, NUMBER, CODING, PARSONS, etc.
+## True/False
 
-PULL FULL LIST + BETTER NAMES FROM ED AND COGNITERRA
+A {term}`True/False Problem` is a problem in which the student
+must select either "True" or "False" as their answer.
+This problem type lacks any open-endedness in student responses,
+and it is trivial to automatically grade.
+
+## Multiple Choice
+
+A {term}`Multiple Choice Problem` is a generalization of a
+{term}`True/False Problem` in which
+the student must select the correct answer(s)
+from a list of prewritten options.
+The solution could either be a single correct selection
+(commonly known as a "Select One" problem)
+or a correct selection of multiple options
+(commonly known as a "Select All" problem).
+This problem type allows for *some* open-endedness in student responses,
+but constrained to a set of predefined options
+(though "Select All" questions can add quite a bit of open-endedness
+due to the large number of potential selections),
+and it is trivial to automatically grade.
+
+## Short Answer
+
+A {term}`Short Answer Problem` is a problem in which the student
+freely types in their response to the problem prompt as text.
+Because it is open-ended,
+this assessment type can be a bit trickier to grade automatically:
+checking for perfect string equality to a correct answer string can be problematic
+(e.g. allowing case-insensitivity).
+Depending on the tool you are using to administer assessments,
+you may be able to add flexibility by using a correct answer
+[Regular Expression (Regex)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regular_expression)
+or writing a script (e.g. in Python) to check a response for correctness.
+
+## Essay
+
+An {term}`Essay Problem` is a longer version of a {term}`Short Answer Problem` in which
+the student must write an essay about a specified topic or prompt.
+Because it is *completely* open-ended,
+this assessment type is extremely difficult to grade automatically:
+it typically requires an instructor to read and evaluate manually.
+
+## Numerical
+
+A {term}`Numerical Problem` is a special type of a
+{term}`Short Answer Problem` in which the answer must be a number.
+This problem type is a bit less open-ended than a {term}`Short Answer Problem`,
+but it is typically much easier to automatically grade:
+the assessment tool will have you specify the correct number to check against,
+and most assessment tools will also support some level of error in student responses
+(e.g. due to rounding).
+
+## Reorder
+
+A {term}`Reorder Problem` is a problem in which the student is given multiple blocks of text,
+and the student must rearrange them into the correct order to form an answer.
+The correct answer may include just a subset of the given blocks of text.
+
+## Programming
+
+A {term}`Programming Problem` is a problem in which a student must
+write a program (or programs)
+to solve some task or perform some algorithms.
+You might give the student some amount of "Starter Code" to add structure to the task,
+or you may want to keep it open-ended to test students' ability to write a program from scratch.
+Because student solutions are programs,
+this assessment type is typically graded automatically using some grading script
+(e.g. testing different inputs and outputs,
+running commands from the command line, etc.),
+meaning you can write potentially complex logic for grading for correctness,
+as well as for giving accompanying feedback
+(e.g. a custom message if the student's code didn't compile,
+a differenti message if the student's code compiled but crashed, etc.).
+
+## Parsons
+
+For situations in which a {term}`Programming Problem` is too open-ended
+(e.g. on an exam),
+a {term}`Parsons Problem` is a special type of a
+{term}`Reorder Problem` in which the student rearranges blocks of code to create a specific program.
+Just like in a {term}`Reorder Problem`,
+the correct answer could include just a subset of the given blocks of code.
+
+```{glossary}
+Essay Problem
+  A longer version of a {term}`Short Answer Problem` in which the student must write an essay about a specified topic or prompt.
+
+Multiple Choice Problem
+  A generalization of a {term}`True/False Problem` in which the student must select the correct answer(s) from a list of prewritten options.
+
+Numerical Problem
+  A special type of a {term}`Short Answer Problem` in which the answer must be a number.
+
+Parsons Problem
+  A special type of a {term}`Reorder Problem` in which the student rearranges blocks of code to create a specific program.
+
+Programming Problem
+  A problem in which a student must write a program (or programs) to solve some task or perform some algorithms.
+
+Reorder Problem
+  A problem in which the student is given multiple blocks of text,
+  and the student must rearrange them into the correct order to form an answer.
+
+Short Answer Problem
+  A problem in which the student freely types in their response to the problem prompt as text.
+
+True/False Problem
+  A problem in which the student must select either “True” or “False” as their answer.
+```