How to Create an Interactive Quiz in a PDF

To help your students test their knowledge, supplement your instructional materials with interactive quizzes you can distribute by email. Creating an interactive quiz in a Portable Document Format (developed by Adobe Systems) file involves creating your quiz in a document, printing it to PDF and then and adding the form elements. Generating your quiz includes writing questions, options and feedback for correct and incorrect answers. Using Adobe Acrobat, you can add interactive navigation to your documents.

Open a new document to create your quiz. For example, using Microsoft Word, open a new document and type your first question and then create a list of options below it. For example, using Microsoft Word, you can format a list by entering four lines of text, selecting them, right-mouse clicking and then clicking on the "Numbering" button in the "Paragraph" section. From the "Insert" tab, click the "Page Break" option. On the new page, type feedback for the correct answer. From the "Insert" tab, click the "Page Break" option. On the new page, type feedback for an incorrect answer. If appropriate, create new pages for each incorrect option's feedback message by clicking the "Page Break" option from the "Insert" tab and typing incorrect feedback text. Click the "Microsoft Office" button and then click the "Save" option to save your file. To create your PDF file, click the "Microsoft Office" button, and then click the "Print" option. Select the "Adobe PDF" printer option. Click the "OK" button.

Double-click on your PDF file to open it in Adobe Acrobat to add the form elements that enable your student to choose an answer and see the feedback. To add the interactivity, for example, from the "Forms" menu, select the "Add or Edit Fields..." option. On the "Currently there are no form fields in this PDF. Do you want Acrobat to detect form fields for you?" dialog box, click the "Yes" button. Click the "OK" button when none are found. From the "Forms" menu, select the "Forms Tools" option and then the "Check box" option. Position it to the left of your correct answer on "Page 1" of your document. Click the "Show all Properties" link. Click the "Actions" tab and select the "Go to a page view" from the "Select Action" menu. Click the "Add" button. Click the "Page 2" of your document, which contains the feedback to your correct answer. Then, click the "Set Link" button. Click the "Close" button. Next, add the feedback for the incorrect answers. For each answer, from the "Forms" menu, select the "Forms Tools" option and then the "Check box" option. Position it to the left of an incorrect answer on "Page 1" of your document. Click the "Show all Properties" link. Click the "Actions" tab and select the "Go to a page view" from the "Select Action" menu. Click the "Add" button. Click the "Page 3" of your document, which contains the feedback to your incorrect answer. Then, click the "Set Link" button. Click the "Close" button.

Test your file by clicking the "Preview" button. Click the "Distribute Form" button and then click the "Save" button. Enter a file name and click the "Save" button. Click the "Next" button. Enter your Adobe ID and password and then click the "Sign In" button. Enter email addresses to send your file. Click the "Send" button. When your recipients receive the file, they will click their answers and then click the "Submit" button to return their completed quiz to you!