In order to maintain compliance with the modern cybersecurity standards that security-conscious customers demand from us, Gravic is making some necessary changes to our servers in late September.

As part of these changes, Gravic’s servers can no longer support older communication protocols used by legacy versions of Remark Office OMR (version 10 and earlier) or Remark Classic OMR (version 6 or earlier).

If you are currently using Remark Office OMR v10 or Remark Classic OMR v6 or earlier, these upcoming changes may affect your software. We recommend contacting the Remark Team or your local Remark dealer to discuss your current version and available upgrade options.

Why Upgrade?

Upgrading to the latest version of Remark Office OMR v12 or Remark Classic OMR v7 helps ensure that you are using a version designed to work with today’s technology while also giving you access to the latest Remark Office OMR features and improvements.

Stay current
Remark Office OMR v10 and Remark Classic OMR v6 were designed for the standards of the mid 2010s. Use a modern version of your Remark product designed for today’s operating environments and technology standards including Windows 11.

The latest features and improvements
Take advantage of the newest functionality, usability enhancements, and product updates available in your Remark product. There have been many new features added over the years. In particular for Remark Office OMR users, features such as anchor marks, ICR, and the AI Assistant help you get more from your forms and help provide accurate and actionable data quicker and easier.

Gets you back on software maintenance and support
You get one year of software maintenance and support with the purchase of an upgrade. This gives you all updates and upgrades to the software as well as access to our award-winning support team to answer any questions you have on the products.

Learn About Your Upgrade Options

If you are using Remark Office OMR v10 or Remark Classic OMR v6 or earlier, contact the Remark Team or your local Remark dealer to learn more about your upgrade options and determine the best path forward for your organization. If you want more information and to be contacted, please fill in the form below or contact the Remark Team.

Request Upgrade Information for your Legacy Remark Software

Complete the form below to learn more about upgrading from your legacy Remark software. A member of our team will review your information and contact you with available upgrade options.

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The post An Important Update for Legacy Remark Office OMR and Remark Classic OMR Users - appeared first on Remark Software.

We’re excited to introduce the latest update to Remark Test Grading, with one major feature and some other enhancements you have asked for over time.

What’s New:

Team Teaching

We are really excited to announce Team Teaching! With this latest update, you can invite multiple instructors to the same class. All instructors have the same level of permissions, so you can manage the class roster, create and grade tests, and run reports on your class and students. You can even use this feature if you are using one of our LMS Connectors. Check out the notifications when you first log into Remark Test Grading to see how to start inviting other instructors to your class. We hope this helps you grade even more efficiently.

Class Grade Export

When exporting grades for an entire class, the Excel spreadsheet now calculates the average score, using both a straight average and a weighted average that takes the total points on the test into consideration.

Responsive List Formatting

We enhanced how lists behave when the browser window changes sizes. Lists of items, such as the Answer Sheets section in the Account Dashboard, now shrink and grow properly as the window is resized.

…And more!

Ready to Try the Latest Features?

Go ahead and log in to see the new features in action. We really hope you enjoy them and don’t forget to keep sending your product ideas our way. Happy grading!

The post What’s New in Remark Test Grading: Team Teaching is Here! - appeared first on Remark Software.

We’re excited to announce that our longtime friends and partners in Colombia, Printers & Parts, will be exhibiting at Edutechnia 2026 from August 26–28 at Corferias in Bogotá, Colombia!

Edutechnia brings together educational institutions, government organizations, EdTech companies, and technology providers to explore innovations that are shaping the future of education.

During the event, the Printers & Parts team will provide live demonstrations of Remark Office OMR and show visitors how they can turn paper forms into actionable data quickly and efficiently.

Why Remark Office OMR?

Remark Office OMR allows schools, universities, and other organizations to:

• Create and print their own tests, surveys, course evaluations, and other forms
• Scan completed forms using an existing image scanner or copier
• Automatically grade tests and analyze results
• Generate detailed reports and export data to other applications
• Eliminate the need for special forms and expensive scanning equipment

If you’re attending Edutechnia, stop by the Printers & Parts stand to see Remark Office OMR in action and learn how it can simplify your data collection and assessment processes.

Event Details

Edutechnia 2026
August 26–28, 2026
Corferias, Bogotá, Colombia

Printers & Parts
Hall 04, Level 01, Stand 409A

We hope you’ll stop by and say hello!

The post See Remark Office OMR at Edutechnia 2026 in Bogotá! - appeared first on Remark Software.

What’s New in Remark Office OMR 12.4?

We’re excited to introduce the newest update to Remark Office OMR, featuring enhancements designed to make processing forms even more accurate, efficient, and reliable. This update includes new Template Editor options, workflow enhancements, some recognition changes, and important fixes that help streamline everyday scanning and data collection.

What’s New:

Improved Recognition on Poorly Filled/Scanned Forms

We’ve made behind-the-scenes improvements to recognition with and without anchor marks to help ensure the highest possible recognition of real-world forms. These enhancements continue to improve the speed and reliability you have come to expect from Remark Office OMR.

Anchor Mark Settings

Anchor marks are one of the best ways to improve recognition, and they’re now even easier to configure. New template editor preferences allow you to customize anchor mark settings giving you more flexibility in your form design while improving the software’s ability to find your anchor marks when processing your forms.

Print Images with Ease

Oops! In a previous version we removed the ability to print images from the image viewer thinking this was not a feature that was used. However, we quickly heard from customers that our research was wrong. You are using this feature and it’s back! Need a physical copy of a scanned form? The ability to print directly from the image viewer toolbar has been restored, providing quick access to image printing whenever you need it. To those who reported our misstep, a big thank you! We do listen to our customers, so please keep your feedback coming!

Expanded Barcode Support

As 2D barcodes have become more popular in forms processing, we have increased the number of data elements that can be contained in a single barcode to 99 (it was 15), giving you greater flexibility to pack more data in a single, compact space.

Fixes and Reliability Improvements

Remark Office OMR 12.4 also includes several smaller fixes and enhancements to improve day-to-day performance. To see the full list of new features and fixes, click here.

Ready to Upgrade?

Whether you’re processing surveys, assessments, registration forms, or other paper forms, Remark Office OMR 12.4 helps you work more efficiently while delivering the accuracy and reliability you would expect from the market leader in OMR software.

Current customers with an active software maintenance agreement can download and install Remark Office OMR 12.4 from within the software now. Please contact our sales team at sales@gravic.com if your maintenance has lapsed and you want to get up to date with the software.

The Remark Team hopes that you will like the new update and thanks you for your continued support of Remark Office OMR!

The post Remark Office OMR 12.4 includes lots of enhancements for our customers! - appeared first on Remark Software.

In the video, you’ll see how Remark Test Grading streamlines the entire grading process by automatically reading completed bubble sheets and calculating results in minutes. Rather than spending valuable time hand-grading exams, educators can scan completed answer sheets and immediately access scores, reports, and performance data. This approach helps reduce grading time, improve accuracy, and provide faster feedback to students.

Bubble sheets remain a popular testing solution because they are simple to administer, easy for students to complete, and highly reliable for large-scale grading. Whether you’re grading classroom quizzes, benchmark assessments, certification exams, or district-wide tests, automated grading tools can significantly reduce administrative workload while maintaining consistent results.

Watch the video below to learn how Remark Test Grading can help you grade bubble sheet tests faster and with greater confidence.

The post What’s the Fastest Way to Grade Bubble Sheet Tests? - appeared first on Remark Software.

Do you have a test that you want to give at the beginning of a class, then again at the end of a class to determine what was learned? Do you want to gauge opinions on a topic prior to a presentation, then ask the same opinion questions about the topic afterward to determine if your presentation had an impact on your attendees’ opinions on the topic? You can do this in Remark Office OMR if you know what is needed on your form and what must appear in your collected data. Join us as we discuss how to accomplish working with Pre/Post data in Remark Office OMR.

This webinar is targeted to intermediate and advanced Remark Office OMR users. But whether you are a beginner user or a seasoned pro, this webinar is tailored to provide invaluable information to leverage grading more effectively. Secure your spot today by clicking the link below and take your data analysis skills to new heights!

Click here to sign up for this month’s webinar.

Webinars are free to customers with current maintenance or technical support agreements. If you do not have a current agreement, each webinar costs $50 USD. Why not consider purchasing a support agreement? A support agreement entitles you to attend any monthly webinar at no additional cost. For support status information, contact our support department.

You can view our upcoming support webinars here.

The post Upcoming Support Monthly Webinar Wednesday, July 15 - appeared first on Remark Software.

We’re excited to introduce the latest update to Remark Test Grading, packed with new features and enhancements designed to make creating tests, collecting responses, and managing results even easier. From more accurate scanning to simplified online testing and improved exception handling, this release focuses on saving you time while giving you greater flexibility.

What’s New:

Anchor Marks

Whether you need to get more questions on a form or are worried about printing and scanning offset, anchor marks are for you! Anchor marks are small black boxes in the corners of a test form that help Remark recognize the bubbles on the form even if the scanned image is a bit off from the original. Anchor marks allow you to put more questions on the form without sacrificing recognition. You can find anchor marks in the Design Settings when creating a test and administrators can turn on anchor marks by default in the application’s settings. We strongly recommend using anchor marks for every test to ensure you have the best possible recognition.

Shared Test Link

Are you conducting online tests? You can now provide one test link to all participants using the Shared Link option when distributing test! You can then copy the link or use a QR code to provide the link to students. This feature also allows you to easily conduct anonymous or rosterless online testing.

Download All Test Images

Archiving test images? From the test details page, you can now download all students’ test images at once by clicking the Data button and choosing Download Test Images.

Exception Cleaner

The new Exception Cleaner allows you to clear all exceptions at once based on the type of exception (e.g. clear all blank responses). Use the Exception Cleaner button on the review page to choose the type of exceptions you want to clear. Clearing the exceptions clears them for all students who have exceptions on the test.

Multiple Test Versions Update

Standard test forms are great, especially when you include the ability to use multiple versions of a test. With the latest update, if you are using a test answer sheet that allows multiple tests versions, but you are only using one test version, Remark Test Grading assumes each student took the first version, even if the student doesn’t mark a test version on the answer sheet. This feature allows you to use standard forms that allow multiple test versions but not always utilize all the test versions.

…And more!

Ready to Try the Latest Features?

Whether you’re grading paper tests, conducting online assessments, or integrating with your learning management system, these enhancements are designed to help you work faster while maintaining the accuracy and reliability you expect from Remark Test Grading.

Click here for a video overview of some of the bigger features. Then simply log in and start taking advantage of these new capabilities. Happy grading!

The post What’s New in Remark Test Grading: New Features and Improvements - appeared first on Remark Software.

In this tutorial, we show you exactly how to build a clean, scan-ready 30-question answer sheet using Microsoft Word. This step-by-step walkthrough covers some best practices to ensure your form is fully compatible with Remark Office OMR for accurate automated data capture and grading.

Remark Office OMR from Gravic, Inc. makes it easy to take your Word-designed forms and turn them into powerful data collection tools. Once your forms are printed and completed, you can scan them using a standard scanner and instantly process results, saving time, reducing manual entry errors, and improving your reporting efficiency.

Watch the video below to learn how to quickly and easily create professional answer sheets that are ready for high-volume scanning and analysis.

The post How to Create a 30-Question Answer Sheet in Microsoft Word (Remark Office OMR Tutorial) - appeared first on Remark Software.

Remark Test Grading allows instructors to create exams, print them on copy paper, scan them with any imaging scanner or copier, and have them automatically graded. Instructors don’t need to sacrifice their time grading the exams. And Remark provides instant feedback on class, student, and test performance all with a few clicks of the mouse.

Watch the video below to see how you can return to reliable testing with modern efficiency.

The post Can Bubble Sheets Stop Cheating? - appeared first on Remark Software.

Over the past few years, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic, educational institutions have been rushing to push almost all educational materials to a screen. Phones, laptops, and other screen-based devices are impossible to avoid. A generation of students has grown up with the temptation and distraction of having a screen in their pocket (or hand) at all times. How much is too much? Are there any ways that schools can start limiting screen time for students? Educators and parents are increasingly asking these questions, and now some local governments are getting in on the act by introducing bills aimed at limiting the use of screens in schools.

Screens Increase Frustration for Educators

In addition to potentially being addictive and used for bullying and other societal problems, screens in the classroom are a huge source of frustration for educators.

Screens are a Distraction

Whether it’s scrolling social media instead of listening to lectures, chatting with their friends in another class, taking pictures of classmates or teachers, or otherwise wasting valuable educational time, screens in class are a distraction.

Cheating is Easier Than Ever

Perhaps just as bad, the ability to use technology to assist students in cheating on tests and assignments is worse than ever. This change has led to grade inflation and a culture of cheating in schools. It is an endless battle for educators to try to ensure students are doing their own work.

They Do Not Always Lead to Increased Productivity

Even when used in labs designed for screen use, technology has a way of proving to be frustrating. Inevitably, a battery will not have been charged, someone will forget a password, the internet will fail, lockdown browsers will not be installed properly, or any number of technical issues can occur to waste educational time. Recently, even high-stakes testing has proven to be problematic due to IT issues.

Screens Lead to Teacher and Parent Dissatisfaction

In addition to being detrimental to students, all of this has led to increased job dissatisfaction among education professionals, and the satisfaction rating of K-12 schools is at an all-time low.

How Can We Cut Back on Screentime in Classrooms?

Paper? Yes, Paper to the Rescue!

Student assessment is one of the many areas that has been changed with technology. However, it is also one of the easiest areas in which to pull back some screen usage. There are many great uses for online, and technology-enabled assessments, but there are also many times when paper is going to be easier, less expensive, and less prone to cheating. Students and teachers know how to navigate paper tests and assessments. It is a familiar format that students have used for ages. The technology needed is limited to a pencil or pen. Paper does not require a password, does not need a battery, and will not randomly freeze in the middle of a test (although the student may). 

How Remark Test Grading Can Limit Screen Time while Improving Assessment Effectiveness

Remark Test Grading provides instructors with an easy-to-use tool that allows them to return to the simplicity of paper testing, while eliminating the hours of manual correction sometimes associated with paper testing. The software generates custom bubble (OMR) sheets for a test, allows them to be printed on the school’s copiers for a fraction of a penny, and then uses that same copier, or any image scanner, to scan the completed tests and automatically grade them. It can all be done in a few minutes, with a few clicks of a mouse. Remark Test Grading provides detailed reports on the student, test, class, and test items. Data can be broken down by learning objectives to provide more detail to the educator on what their students are struggling with so that they can tailor their instruction to the class, or to individual students. These are things that will improve student outcomes and will improve educator’s job satisfaction.

Finding a Better Balance with Technology

The debate over screen time isn’t about eliminating technology from classrooms. It’s about using it more intentionally. Digital tools are invaluable for collaboration, research, and creative work. But assessments don’t always need to happen on a device. Consider using modern paper tests as an alternative where possible.

Sometimes the most forward-thinking solution is the one that blends the best of old and new—less screen time for students, less grading time for teachers, and more room for meaningful learning.

The post Is Screentime in Classrooms a Problem? Yes – But There are Solutions - appeared first on Remark Software.

From grading multiple-choice exams, collecting survey responses, tallying ballots, and evaluating safety forms, to any other structured data collection need, forms processing technologies like OMR, OCR, and ICR help organizations save time, reduce manual data entry, and improve accuracy.

Watch the video below to see how it all works.

The post What are OMR, OCR, and ICR? - appeared first on Remark Software.

A scaled score converts a student’s raw score on a test into a common scale that allows for numeric comparison among students. This advanced feature is particularly useful when a specific test grade is needed from an external grading system. When implementing a scaled score, various reports can display these scores, The Student Achievement Report provides the ability to look at student scores in terms of whether they achieved the benchmark set for the test. You can view scores for the overall test and any learning objectives defined in Advanced Grade. It allows you to quickly see who has and has not mastered the information.

This webinar is targeted to intermediate and advanced Remark Office OMR users. But whether you are a beginner user or a seasoned pro, this webinar is tailored to provide invaluable information to leverage grading more effectively. Secure your spot today by clicking the link below and take your data analysis skills to new heights!

Click here to sign up for this month’s webinar.

Webinars are free to customers with current maintenance or technical support agreements. If you do not have a current agreement, each webinar costs $50 USD. Why not consider purchasing a support agreement? A support agreement entitles you to attend any monthly webinar at no additional cost. For support status information, contact our support department.

You can view our upcoming support webinars here.

The post Upcoming Support Monthly Webinar Wednesday April 15 - appeared first on Remark Software.

From grading multiple-choice exams, collecting survey responses, tallying ballots, and evaluating safety forms and more, OMR technology helps organizations save time, reduce manual data entry, and improve accuracy.

Watch the video below to see how it all works.

The post What Is OMR? (Optical Mark Recognition Explained) - appeared first on Remark Software.

Anchor marks help the Remark software to properly recognize data on forms, particularly those forms that are tightly packed or have lines or other elements near the OMR bubbles. Even when forms are skewed or offset, the anchor marks help to ensure the accurate reading of your forms in Remark Office OMR.

When using anchor marks on your forms, it is recommended that the form layout and location of the anchor marks on the form meet the Remark Form Design Best Practices.

The anchor marks must be located in the printable area on the form (varies by printer). It is recommended that you have at least a 0.50 inch (1cm) margin or border area around the edge of your form. 3 or 4 anchor marks are needed to validate the anchoring of your form in Remark.

Anchor marks need to be a minimum 0.25 inches (6.35mm) by a maximum 0.75 inches (19.05mm) for both width and height, and one of the anchor marks should be notably larger than the others.

All readable for elements (e.g. OMR bubbles, text, or handwriting) that you plan to recognize must be contained inside of the anchored area (i.e. the outer corners of the anchor marks). Anchor marks should align to form a rectangle, where each anchor mark has two sides touching the edge of the rectangle.

The Auto Anchor feature in the Remark Template Editor will attempt to automatically recognize the anchor marks that are present on your form.

Click here for a sample Word document that you can use to create forms with anchor marks.

Did you know? Remark Office OMR 12 even comes with an Anchor Mark utility that adds anchor marks to your existing forms. Search Remark Office OMR Anchor Mark utility in your Windows search.

Remark Product Support can be reached Monday – Friday (except for major holidays) from 9AM – 6PM Eastern time at 610-647-8595 or by email at support@gravic.com

Remark Support Support Request

Email

Call +1.610.647.8595

Chat

Knowledgebase

The post Having Trouble with Skewed Forms? Here’s How Anchor Marks Can Help. - appeared first on Remark Software.

As an educator for over 35 years, the first time I saw a student completely freeze during a test, I didn’t understand what was happening. To put test anxiety into perspective and help explain how proper study habits can be employed to address it: Meet “Chris,” a fictitious student in this article who is a composite of many students I have taught.

Chris was a bright, funny, and talented student, who, on one occasion I observed sat staring at the wall while the rest of the class wrote furiously. This was the kid who joked with classmates, played soccer and had the lead in a school musical, and a kid who never missed an assignment. Yet on test days, it was as if someone had flipped a switch. His confidence evaporated. He second‑guessed everything. His scores tanked. And he wasn’t alone.

Anxiety had been rising in my classroom for years, but Chris made the problem impossible to ignore. Within months, he started staying home on test days and avoidingmakeup tests. He wasn’t failing because he didn’t care or didn’t prepare. He was failing because his study habits never actually brought him to mastery, and his anxiety almost swallowed him whole.

Why Traditional Study Habits Fail Under Pressure

Chris’ experience is far from rare and has nothing to do with effort. His struggle, like that of so many students, comes down to how he studies. Most students rely on rereading notes, highlighting what seems important, or flipping through old assignments. They can spend hours doing this and genuinely feel productive, yet still walk into an assessment unprepared. The problem is that passive review only builds recognition. It creates a sense of familiarity that feels smooth and reassuring, but it doesn’t produce the kind of active retrieval needed for real mastery. Students like Chris interpret that gap as a personal failure. They believe it’s proof that they aren’t smart enough or can’t improve. That’s the moment anxiety slips in and takes over.

The Science Behind Retrieval Practice and Memory Strength

Brain science has a simple answer for students like Chris. They need to focus on frequent, fast retrieval exercises to ensure they learn the material. Retrieval is the act of recalling information from memory. The act of recall strengthens learning by rebuilding the memory of the concept. Each time students retrieve knowledge, the neural pathways connected to that information are reinforced, making it easier to access again later. When students retrieve information many times before a test, they access that information faster, spend less working memory on recall, and keep the cognitive load low. This frees up mental space for important testing needs, like understanding complex questions, applying knowledge to different situations, and avoiding careless mistakes.

Implementing Retrieval Practice in the Classroom

I recently started helping my students understand the power of retrieval. They are all naturally interested in themselves and how their brains work, so they are open to hearing about brain-based learning and how to improve studying. I also model quick retrieval exercises in class. As a language teacher, I want my students to memorize a lot of vocabulary words so they can access them easily when trying to speak or write in the target language. The better they know their vocabulary, the less they will struggle on formal assessments.

Using Low-Stakes Quizzes to Build Mastery

At the beginning of the week, I give them a list of 20-25 new vocabulary words. We go over them; talk about any important issues they might have and practice them with in-class activities. The next day, we begin class with a low-stakes multiple choice quiz on all the words. This is the first bit of retrieval. I use Remark Test Grading to grade and analyze the quizzes. It works so quickly, I can grade the quizzes while students work on another assignment. Before the end of class, students get the test grade report and can see which words they did not remember.

Brain Dump Activities and Self-Testing Strategies

For homework, they analyze the words they got wrong and do brain-dump vocabulary retrieval activities. For example, students can take a blank piece of paper and write as many of the vocabulary words they can remember in the target language and check it against the list.  Next, they can take that list and write the meanings next to the vocabulary words. They can write down the five words they have the hardest time remembering and reflect on why they are hard to remember. They can give themselves multiple choice quizzes.

Leveraging Assessment Technology for Immediate Feedback

The next day we begin class again with a quick multiple-choice quiz. I make up about five quizzes for each vocabulary list. Sometimes I project them on PowerPoint and the students answer on the Remark answer sheet. I have also used games like Kahoot or Gimkit to generate quizzes, and the students can also answer on the Remark answer sheet. The beauty of Remark is that I can give the students accurate feedback immediately. They can keep track of the words they know and the ones they need to practice. All of this helps them transfer vocabulary words into their long-term memory.

Retrieval Practice and Performance Assessments

At the end of a unit, students have a performance assessment in which they demonstrate their ability to use the language by listening, reading, speaking and writing. The units cover a good deal of material including vocabulary, cultural topics and probably a new grammar concept. The tests are rigorous and students need to be able to finish within one class period. They now know how to use consistent, short retrieval activities to master the vocabulary. When they take their assessment, they will be able to retrieve words instantly from long-term memory and will have more brain power available for grammar, meaning and problem-solving.

Helping Students Replace Anxiety with Mastery

If we want students like Chris to succeed, we have to help them replace passive review with strategies that actually build mastery. Anxiety doesn’t come from a lack of effort; it comes from the painful mismatch between the hours students spend “studying” and the results they see on test day. When we teach them how learning really works, how to retrieve, apply, and practice knowledge in active ways, we don’t just improve their performance. We give them back a sense of control. And for many students, that shift is the difference between shutting down and finally believing they can grow.

Authors Bio

Guest blog provided by Barbara Goodale, a recently retired high school teacher in suburban Philadelphia. Ms. Goodale taught language classes for over 35 years and worked diligently to find solutions to the evolving challenges students have faced during these years. The student “Chris” in this article is a fictitious student who is a composite of many students she has taught.

The post Remark Guest Blog: Using Retrieval Techniques to Battle Test Anxiety - appeared first on Remark Software.

On the bottom right corner of any window, you will see the AI Assistant button. Click on it to launch the assistant.

From here, any questions regarding Remark Office can be asked by typing questions in the chat box. The AI will then search the software’s documentation and summarize the information for you.

Questions not directly related to Remark and its functions cannot be answered.

Click here for a how-to-video: Using AI Assistant with Remark Office

Remark Product Support can be reached Monday – Friday (except for major holidays) from 9AM – 6PM Eastern time at 610-647-8595 or by email at support@gravic.com

Need more helpful Remark Support resources?

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The post How Do I Use the AI Assistant in Remark Office OMR 12? - appeared first on Remark Software.

This webinar is targeted to all Remark Office OMR user levels. But whether you are a beginner user or a seasoned pro, this webinar is tailored to provide invaluable tips and techniques to leverage surveying effectively. Secure your spot today by clicking the link below and take your data analysis skills to new heights!

Click here to sign up for this month’s webinar.

Webinars are free to customers with current maintenance or technical support agreements. If you do not have a current agreement, each webinar costs $50 USD. Why not consider purchasing a support agreement? A support agreement entitles you to attend any monthly webinar at no additional cost. For support status information, contact our support department.

You can view our upcoming support webinars here.

The post Upcoming Support Monthly Webinar Wednesday January 21 - appeared first on Remark Software.

If you are a teacher, professor, trainer, or other education professional, you are aware of the amount of time and energy it takes to grade your students’ exam answer sheets. Here are some options for you to consider that should save you a considerable amount of time and effort.

Option #1 – Manually Grading Exam Answer Sheets (The Worst)

As every educator knows, a good percentage of free time (like their weekend) is consumed with the task of grading exams and quizzes.  When grading by hand, each answer sheet may take several minutes to review and grade. The amount of time your task takes depends upon the number and type of questions on the exam and the number of students who took the exam. Here is a guide on how manual grading typically works: First, an answer key sheet is prepared and filled out with the correct answer to each question. Make sure to do this accurately or all your tests will be graded incorrectly. Now the real grading can begin! For each exam answer sheet, the lucky grader can compare each exam question response to the answer key and mark the ones that are incorrect on the student’s paper, often in red pen. Make sure that you don’t miss any of them! Then, to figure out the grade, the grader counts the incorrect responses and uses math skills to figure out the percentage of correct responses on the test. This may then be translated to a letter grade based upon a pre-defined grade scale. This process is repeated for each student’s test. Finally, once the grades for all the students are completed, the tired teacher can type the grades into their online gradebook. What could possibly go wrong?

Option #2 – Hope your school has an OMR reader (Good but…)

For many years, schools have invested in hardware-based OMR readers for grading exam answer sheets.  OMR, or optical mark recognition, converts filled in bubbles on an exam answer sheet to data. For instance, a test question having five possible answers (options A, B, C, D, E) is presented on the answer sheet as five individual bubbles, each representing one of the answer options. A student fills in the second bubble to indicate the second option as their answer. The OMR reader sees the filled in bubble and know the student selected “B” as her answer.

Over the years, OMR readers from companies such as Scantron, NCS, and Apperson have been sold to schools for handling this task. These machines typically require the use of specially printed forms and for students to use a soft lead pencil (HB#2) to fill in the forms. The OMR readers are quick enough to grade a stack of forms in minutes. However, there are a few limiting factors with these machines. First, since there may only be one machine in a school, exam sheets are often turned over to a staff member who will process them when convenient. “When convenient” may not be too convenient for the instructor. Feedback for students should be prompt when the assessment is still fresh in their minds. Sometimes it may take a few weeks to get the results back, which mostly negates the value of the data to be gleaned from the exam. Without special software, the OMR readers typically only print a grade on the exam answer sheets, and the instructor still has to manually enter grades into a gradebook. Finally, these devices tend to be expensive, requiring the purchase of special forms and maintenance contracts. While OMR readers have been used to grade billions of answer sheets over the years, they are typically used for large scale exams and are not always a great solution for a busy instructor needing to quickly grade an exam for a single class.

Option #3 – OMR Software to the rescue (Best)

The first OMR software product, Remark Office OMR, was released in 1991 by Principia Products and there have been several other products released over the years. OMR software is a very effective tool for grading exam answer sheets. There are two types of software available, those that use phone cameras to grade answer sheets, and those that use image scanners for the scanning.

Image scanners are the solution

Scanning answer sheets with an image scanner is the best of both worlds. Most schools have a fleet of copiers that include built-in scanners. Instructors can quickly scan a batch of test forms into a PDF file that can be processed with OMR scanner software products. Even simpler, there are many low-cost desktop image scanners with document feeders available on the market for a few hundred dollars from companies such as Xerox, Ricoh, Canon, and others.

These scanners typically scan 25 to 50 or more pages per minute, meaning your tests will be processed in a few minutes. OMR software such as Remark Office OMR or Remark Test Grading automatically scans and grades the exam answer sheets and transfers the grades directly into many gradebook products. Image scanning is a low-cost alternative to a dedicated OMR reader. A scanner with OMR software has added benefits, such as the ability for teachers to create and print their own customized answer sheets.  The scanners can be used for many other tasks, so they are not limited to just scanning answer sheets.

Honorable Mention – Phone cameras for smaller jobs

Almost everyone now has access to a phone camera. There are several online hosted applications that will allow a grader to take a picture of a student exam, and the image ill is processed and graded by the application. For an individual teacher with a smaller class size, this is a good way to save a bit of time in the grading process. However, the requirement to take individual photos of each exam sheet and then upload them to an online service still takes some time and coordination. The key is to make sure the photos are of sufficient quality or you will find yourself retaking pictures. In addition, most phone apps will allow you to print exam forms with limited ability to customize the forms. Depending on your school district, student data and privacy may also be a concern. Sending protected data to a potentially unvetted app opens many holes. Still, if you are a K-12 teacher and you need to grade 20 student tests, the phone apps are worth investigating. It is quicker than manually grading and some apps will even enter the grades into your gradebook for you.

Remark OMR solutions

Gravic’s Remark Office OMR and Remark Test Grading products are heavily used in higher education, public and private K-12 schools, and for many corporate training assessments. Remark Office OMR is a Windows application that runs on any Windows PC and can be used to process exam answer sheets. It is very flexible and also works for many other types of forms such as surveys, evaluations, and more. Remark Test Grading is a hosted application that is easy to use and very powerful. It is designed for educational purposes, specifically for grading exams. It integrates with many popular gradebooks and learning management systems that are used heavily in education. You can find more information about these applications at remarksoftware.com.

Save yourself time and aggravation. Automate your grading tasks!

Grading student exam answer sheets can be a painful process and is a sad reality of every educator’s life. OMR software is here to help! Based upon your needs there are products that fit your or your school’s budget and ease the time and pain of manually grading exams.

Frequently Asked Questions

The post Answer Sheet Scanner Software Can Ease Your Exam Grading Burden - appeared first on Remark Software.

Please note that there are limitations when using multiple test versions:

• You cannot use learning objectives with multiple test versions.

You can use partial credit, extra credit and different point values on questions if the total point value for all versions is the same.

To create multiple test versions:

Start out in the class in which you would like to create a test and click New Test in the top right corner.

Enter the Test Name and click Save and Design. This directs you to the Test Editor. The default to Design test from scratch is used.

In the Test Editor to create more than one answer key, under Design Settings select the drop down labeled “Number of Test Versions”.

You can choose up to 5 different Versions.

When you select the number of answer keys you would like, click Save Design Settings.

You will notice that your test now has bubbles at the top of the page that correspond with the test version. These are for the student to fill out as identifiers of which test version they are completing.

Construct your test by adding in all the sections you would like to on your test.

Click Finished when you completed designing your test.

This will direct you to the Test page where you can create your individual answer keys.

You can either create your individual answer keys by clicking Create for each version to define or you can print the answer keys with the blank student tests and then bubble in the correct answers.

To Print your tests, click Distribute at the top right of the page and select For Paper (Download and Print).

This directs you to the Print Tests page, where you can select how many blank tests you want (if any), if you want the answer key printed, and which students you would like to print tests for. Once you click Download Tests, you are directed to a PDF of the answer sheets you selected.

At this point, you can print the tests or save them as a PDF to print later.

Once you print, distribute, and receive your completed tests back, you are ready to start scanning and grading your tests as you normally would.

Click Creating a Test with Multiple Versions in Remark Test Grading to view the video.

Remark Product Support can be reached Monday – Friday (except for major holidays) from 9AM – 6PM Eastern time at 610-647-8595 or by email at support@gravic.com

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