What is AI Essay? #

AI Essay is an automated grading feature in Algobash that evaluates essay modules answered in paragraph format. This feature uses advanced artificial intelligence to assess participant responses based on relevance, quality, and alignment with your questions, providing consistent and objective scoring for written assessments.

How do I create an AI Essay module? #

Follow these step-by-step instructions to set up an AI Essay module:

Step 1: Access Modules #

Navigate to the Modules section in your Algobash dashboard.

Step 2: Create New Module #

Click “+ New Module” and select “Essay and Whiteboard” from the available options.

Step 3: Add Module Details #

Enter your module title that clearly describes the assessment topic.

Step 4: Set Duration #

Fill in the module duration – the time limit you want to give participants to complete the essay.

Step 5: Choose Language (CRITICAL!) #

⚠️ IMPORTANT: Select your expected language carefully. Our AI system will specifically process and evaluate answers based on the chosen language. If you select English but the question or participant answers are in another language, the AI grading will fail to work properly.

Step 6: Add Questions #

Write your questions according to the language you selected in Step 5. If you choose multiple languages, make sure to add questions in the corresponding languages for each selection.

Step 7: Select Answer Format #

Choose “Answer in paragraph format” – this is mandatory to activate AI grading. Other formats will not trigger AI evaluation.

Step 8: Configure AI Scoring #

Select your preferred AI scoring method from the following options:

What are the AI Scoring options? #

1. None #

• Function: Manual grading or no AI involvement
• Use case: When you prefer human evaluation or don’t want to use AI credits

2. Default #

• Function: Gives the AI full control of the scoring process
• Scoring method: Correlation score between answers and questions on a scale of 0-100
• Use case: Standard assessment where you want AI to evaluate overall answer quality and relevance

3. Hints #

• Function: Binary scoring based on predefined hints
• Scoring logic: “If the answer is similar to one of the hints, then return 100, otherwise return 0.”
• Use case: When you have specific key points or concepts that must be mentioned for full credit

4. Custom Prompt #

• Function: Uses your custom-designed prompt for evaluation
• Scoring method: “Score the correlation between the answer and the question on a scale of 0-100 based on the suggested prompt.”
• Use case: When you need specialized evaluation criteria or want to focus on specific aspects of the answer
• Tip: For creating effective AI prompts, refer to our AI prompt reference article

Why is language selection so important? #

The AI system is trained to understand and evaluate content in specific languages. When you select a language:

• The AI expects questions to be written in that language
• Participant answers should be in the same language
• The evaluation criteria and context understanding are optimized for that language
• Mismatched languages will result in failed or inaccurate grading

Always ensure consistency between your selected language, question language, and expected answer language.

Which AI Scoring option should I choose? #

Choose Default when:

• You want a general assessment of answer quality and relevance
• You need consistent scoring across many participants
• The question allows for various acceptable approaches or answers

Choose Hints when:

• You have specific key points that must be covered
• You want all-or-nothing scoring (100 or 0)
• The question has definitive right/wrong elements

Choose Custom Prompt when:

• You need specialized evaluation criteria
• You want to focus on specific skills (e.g., creativity, technical accuracy, critical thinking)
• Standard scoring doesn’t match your assessment goals
• You have expertise in prompt engineering

Choose None when:

• You prefer manual human evaluation
• You want to conserve AI credits
• The content requires nuanced human judgment

What to expect from AI Essay results #

The AI Essay grading system will return a numerical score between 0-100 for each question.

• Each question receives its score
• Scores are calculated independently for each participant
• The scoring scale remains consistent across all AI scoring methods (Default, Hints, Custom Prompt)

How does AI Essay consume credits? #

AI Essay uses 1 AI credit per question that gets processed. Credits are only consumed when:

• AI scoring is enabled (Default, Hints, or Custom Prompt)
• A participant submits an answer
• The AI successfully processes the response

No credits are consumed if you select “None” or if processing fails due to language mismatches.

What happens if participants answer in the wrong language? #

If participants answer in a language different from your selected language:

• AI grading will likely fail or produce inaccurate results
• You may still be charged credits for failed processing attempts
• You’ll need to manually grade those responses
• Prevention: Clearly communicate the expected language to participants in your instructions

Can I change the language after creating the module? #

While you can edit module settings, changing the language after participants have started answering may cause inconsistencies in AI grading. It’s best to:

• Double-check language settings before publishing
• Create separate modules for different languages if needed
• Test with sample answers before launching to participants

How can I improve my Custom Prompt effectiveness? #

For Custom Prompt scoring:

• Be specific about evaluation criteria
• Include examples of what constitutes different score ranges
• Specify the skills or knowledge you’re testing
• Use clear, unambiguous language
• Test your prompt with sample answers before deployment
• Refer to our AI prompt reference article for best practices

What if AI grading produces unexpected results? #

If you notice inconsistent or unexpected AI scores:

1. Check that the language settings match your content
2. Review your Custom Prompt for clarity (if using Custom Prompt scoring)
3. Verify that questions are clearly written
4. Use the recalculate option: You have 1 chance to recalculate the AI grading after making adjustments
5. If issues persist after recalculation: Contact our support team with specific examples for assistance

Important: The recalculate feature gives you one opportunity to reprocess the AI grading after you’ve made corrections to language settings, prompts, or question clarity. Use this carefully as it’s limited to one attempt per assessment.

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For additional technical support or questions about AI Essay setup, please contact the Algobash support team through your account dashboard.