LearnWorlds provides different assessment and certification options for evaluating learner knowledge, collecting responses, providing feedback, and recognizing course completion or achievement.
Depending on your learning goals, you can use graded exams, graded SCORM packages, self-assessments, certificates of completion, or certificates of knowledge. Each option serves a different purpose and supports different grading, feedback, and completion requirements.
In this article, you’ll learn how each assessment and certificate type works, when to use it, and the key features available for each option, so you can choose the approach that best fits your course and learners.
Assessments in LearnWorlds
Assessments can serve different purposes throughout a course. You may want to formally evaluate a learner's knowledge, provide an opportunity to practice without a grade, or use an externally created SCORM activity to measure performance.
LearnWorlds supports three main options for these scenarios: Exams (Graded Assessments), Graded SCORM packages, and Self-Assessments.
Exam (Graded assessment)
Exams are graded assessments used to evaluate a learner's knowledge or understanding of a subject. Learners receive a grade after their responses have been evaluated.
Questions that can be graded automatically contribute to the learner's result immediately. If an exam contains open-ended questions, such as Text, File, Video, or Audio assignments, the final grade cannot be calculated automatically.
Instead, the exam enters a Pending state until an admin or instructor manually evaluates and grades the learner's responses. Once grading is completed, the learner is notified and can view their final grade.
Available question types include:
- Multiple Choice: Text choice, Image choice, Video options, True/False, Dropdown, Custom.
- Multiple Answers: Text Answers, Image Answers, Video Answers, Custom.
- Match & Ordering: Match, Ordering
- Short Text, Fill in the blanks
- Text Assignment
- File Assignment: This option is not available for free courses or free sections in a paid course (available in the Pro Trainer plans or higher)
- Record Video/Audio (available in the Learning Center plans or higher)
Key features:
- Supports different question types.
- Supports automated and manual grading.
- Can include time limits for structured testing.
- Supports multiple attempts.
- Lets you control which passing grade is recorded.
- Provides performance tracking through the Gradebook.
Graded SCORM Package
Graded SCORM packages (Pro Trainer or higher) provides another way to assess learner performance. Unlike a regular SCORM activity that focuses on content delivery, a Graded SCORM package includes assessment functionality. This allows learner scores and completion or pass/fail information from the SCORM activity to be tracked in LearnWorlds.
When a learner completes the activity, LearnWorlds collects the final score and pass/fail status according to the configuration of the SCORM file. These results appear in the Gradebook, where you can review learner performance and time spent.
Key Features & Benefits:
- Automated Grading: Collects scores directly from the SCORM file or applies custom pass/fail rules
- Performance Tracking: View learner results and time spent inside the SCORM activity
- Supports SCORM 1.2 and SCORM 2004 standards
Self Assessment (Non-Graded Assessment)
Not every assessment needs to result in a grade. Self-Assessments allow learners to check their knowledge, practice, or reflect on what they have learned without receiving a formal grade.
A Self-Assessment can combine exam questions and form questions, allowing you to create an activity that includes both knowledge checks and reflective or informational questions.
- Exam questions provide instant feedback and appear in the Responses tab. Open-ended, file or video responses are sent to the Review Center for instructor comments (no grading).
- Form questions collect user data without right/wrong answers. Responses are also listed in the Responses tab, and enabling Manual Feedback sends them to the Review Center.
For example, you could create a Self-Assessment with 10 multiple-choice knowledge questions followed by an open-ended reflection question. Learners can check their understanding through the knowledge questions and then reflect on what they have learned without receiving a formal grade for the activity.
The important distinction is that Exam questions can have correct and incorrect answers, while Form questions are used to collect information or responses without grading.
Key Benefits
- Does not issue a formal grade.
- Can provide instant feedback.
- Supports knowledge checks and practice.
- Can combine exam and form questions.
- Supports instructor feedback for applicable responses.
For survey purposes, you can use our forms feature (Pro Trainer plan or higher).Certificates in LearnWorlds
Assessments help you evaluate learner performance, while certificates allow you to recognize an achievement.
LearnWorlds provides two main certificate types: Certificates of Completion and Certificates of Knowledge. The main difference is what the learner needs to achieve before receiving the certificate.
- Certificates of completion is awarded when a learner completes a course according to its configured completion requirements.
This certificate is used when you want to recognize course completion rather than require the learner to pass the type of graded assessment used for a Certificate of Knowledge.
For example, you may use a Certificate of Completion when learners need to complete the required course activities before receiving their certificate. - Certificates of Knowledge is used when receiving the certificate depends on the learner successfully passing a graded assessment.
Unlike a Certificate of Completion, which is connected to course completion requirements, a Certificate of Knowledge evaluates whether the learner has met the configured passing criteria.
Key Features & Benefits:
- Requires learners to meet the configured passing criteria.
- Supports graded assessment questions.
- Supports multiple attempts.
- Lets you determine which passing grade is recorded.
- Custom certificate designs
Use an Exam when you want to formally assess knowledge and record a grade. A Graded SCORM package is suitable when the assessment is delivered through SCORM content and you want to track its score or pass/fail result. A Self-Assessment is better suited to practice, reflection, and knowledge checks where a formal grade is not required.Certificates serve a different purpose. A Certificate of Completion recognizes that the learner has completed the course according to its completion requirements, while a Certificate of Knowledge requires the learner to successfully pass a graded assessment.