OMR Software: Perfect Student Assessment Software

"OMR Software? Never heard of it..."

OMR, or Optical Mark Recognition, is a process by which the responses on bubble-sheet questionnaires are analysed efficiently and quickly. In short, it's a little like OCR, or Optical Character Recognition, but makes use of a different recognition system to record the position of the hand-written marks. These marks, after the completed document has been scanned, are then compared to a template to determine the answers supplied, allowing for further analysis.

The difference between OMR software and its hardware counterpart, is that the software supplies you with greater installation flexibility, and increased ease of use. OMR Scanners (hardware) generally require the use of transoptic paper, measuring the amount of light that passes through the paper, while OMR software will allow you to create your documents using a word processor. Take note that not all OMR software packages allow for the same measure of flexibility - some may be platform dependant and require the use of specific proprietary software while others do not.

"A Type of Assessment Software?"

OMR Software generally requires three things to ensure assessment efficacy:

1. An ID Bar code: Specifies the form being used and who the form belongs to. OMR packages specifically designed as assessment software will link the bar code to the student number for easy analysis.

2. Segments containing 'bubbles' or check-boxes. These are where students fill in their answers which are later interpreted by the assessment software.

3. A TVR (Template Variable Replacement) field. Quite simply, this allows the personalization of each form by using information from the database. An OMR ID can also be used to allow for the random distribution of printed or copied forms. The applicable student ID is read from a grid marked by the student and linked to the record in the database.

All three these aspects of an form intended for use in OMR interpretation will allow you to not only mark the forms more accurately and display the results in an easily-readable format, but, depending on the OMR software being used, allow you to integrate an external system for further analysis.

So yes, using OMR as assessment software is not only a viable idea, but one that could save time, improve data capturing accuracy and therefore help to preserve your budget.

Bonus: Improving Your Student's Marks

The real benefit of OMR software, that also makes it excellent assessment software, is that you'll be able to improve your questionnaire strategy. In other words, you'll be able to use different types of questions, either individually or in blocks, to determine the progress level of each student. Some OMR software packages will also allow for different marking strategies, including mark aggregation to arm you with the information you need to guide your students to the top. After all, knowledge is power – not only for your students but for you, too.

Lynn Moffat is the Content Developer of FormReturn, a leading OMR Assessment Software solution.