# Course Quizzes That Teach: Question Types, Pass Marks, Retakes and Must-Pass Gating > Build course quizzes that help students learn: four question types, pass marks, attempts and retakes, must-pass gating, and assignments with a grading inbox. By Uyi Abraham (Founder and CEO, Vonza). Published 2026-10-28, updated 2026-10-28. Category: Course creation. 4 min read. Canonical: https://vonza.net/blog/online-course-quizzes A quiz in an online course has two jobs: to tell the student what they have understood, and to tell you where the course is unclear. A quiz that only tests misses the second job. The settings in Vonza’s [course quizzes and assignments](https://vonza.net/course-quizzes-and-assignments) are small, but each one changes how a quiz teaches. Here is how to use them. ## Four question types, and what each is for - **Single choice.** One correct answer among several. Best for facts and definitions. Add a wrong answer that reflects a common misunderstanding, so the result tells you something. - **Multiple choice.** Several correct answers; the student ticks every one. Best for "which of these apply" questions, where the skill is judgement rather than recall. - **True / False.** Quick, and good for checking a single rule. Use sparingly; a run of them is guessable. - **Short answer.** The student types a free-text answer and you grade it from the Results tab. Best for "explain in your own words", the question type that shows understanding rather than recognition. Questions and answers can carry images. A diagram with four labelled answers teaches more than the same question in prose. ## Points, pass marks and attempts Each question has points. Weight the questions that matter: a short answer that asks for an explanation can be worth more than a true/false. The **Passing score** is the percentage needed to pass; the default is 50. For a quiz that gates the next module, set it higher, 70 or 80, and let students retake it. For a reflection quiz at the end of a lesson, set it low or make the quiz practice. **Attempts** limits how many times a student may take it, from one upwards, and **Allow retake** lets a student try again after failing, up to that limit. The pairing that teaches best is a high pass mark with two or three attempts: the student sees the result, goes back to the lesson, and passes on the second try having learned the thing. ## Graded or practice A **graded** quiz counts toward the student’s quiz average. An ungraded one is practice: the student gets the result, nothing is recorded against them. Use practice quizzes mid-module to let students check themselves without stakes, and one graded quiz at the end of the module. ## Must-pass gating Three places a quiz can hold the door: 1. **Required before the next lesson.** The student sees "Complete the quiz first" in the player until they pass. 2. **Drip after a quiz is passed.** A whole section unlocks when the student passes the quizzes you choose; see [drip content for online courses](https://vonza.net/blog/drip-content-online-course). 3. **Certificate only when all quizzes are passed.** The [certificate](https://vonza.net/course-certificates) waits until every quiz in the course is passed. Gate where understanding is a prerequisite. Do not gate everything: a student who hits three gates in a row stops. ## Read the results The Results tab shows attempts, the pass rate and the average score, with a filter for passed and failed and a sheet per attempt listing each answer as correct, incorrect or not answered. The number to watch is not the pass rate; it is the question most students get wrong. That question is pointing at the lesson that needs rewriting. ## Assignments: when a quiz is not enough Some skills cannot be checked with a tick. For those, add an assignment. It carries instructions, files for students (a template or an example), a due date with a late flag, and total points if it is graded. Students hand in files by drag-and-drop or from a phone camera, write an answer, or both, and submit once. Every submission from every course lands in one inbox with views for Ungraded, Graded and Late, so grading is a single pass through a list rather than a hunt through courses. Save a grade, move to the next with a keyboard shortcut, and the student sees Graded in their [portal](https://vonza.net/student-portal). ## A pattern that works For each module: a practice quiz mid-way with a low pass mark, a graded quiz at the end with a pass mark of 70 and two attempts, required before the next module. One assignment at the end of the course, graded, with a due date. The certificate issues when every quiz is passed. Students finish knowing they know it, and you finish with a list of the questions to fix. If you created the course from videos or a brief, Vonza AI drafted a quiz per module for you; review the drafted questions in the [AI course creator](https://vonza.net/ai-course-creator) outline and then apply the settings above. ## Frequently asked questions ### What question types can I use in a course quiz? Single choice, multiple choice, true/false and short answer. Questions and answers can carry images, each question has points, and short answers are graded by you from the Results tab. ### What pass mark should I set? The default is 50 percent. Use 70 to 80 percent for a quiz that checks understanding before the next module, and lower for a reflection quiz. Pair a high pass mark with retakes so students can learn from a miss. ### Can a quiz stop a student moving on? Yes. Mark the quiz as required before the next lesson, release drip content after it is passed, or hold the certificate until every quiz in the course is passed.