Holon Quiz Import
Complete Product Manual — Instructor Edition
Version 1.1 · June 2026 · Canvas LTI Tool
1. Overview
Holon Quiz Import turns Word documents, PDFs, and text files into fully-configured Canvas quizzes in minutes — no manual question entry required.
The tool reads your existing exam files, detects questions and answer choices automatically, and creates the quiz directly in your Canvas course using a simple 3-step wizard.
Key Capabilities
- Import from Word (.docx), PDF, and plain text (.txt)
- Bulk import — upload a ZIP of multiple exam files, configure each separately, create all at once
- Import from QTI 1.2 — re-import any quiz exported from Canvas, Blackboard, or Respondus
- Auto-detect all 6 question types: multiple choice, multiple select, true/false, fill-in-blank, essay, matching
- Correct answers detected by * marker, bold formatting, or separate answer key section
- Publisher format support — separate Answer Key section at end of document
- Full quiz settings: points, time limit, attempts, shuffle, due dates, modules, assignment groups
- Score policy: Keep highest, latest, or average
- Download as QTI zip for portability and backup
- Import history with direct Canvas links
2. Navigation
| Menu Item | Description |
|---|
| Holon Hub | Return to the Holon Hub tool launcher |
| Dashboard | Overview of quizzes in your current course |
| Import Quiz | 3-step wizard to import a single Word, PDF, or text file as a Canvas quiz |
| Bulk Import | Upload a ZIP of multiple exam files — configure each individually, create all at once |
| Import from QTI | Import a QTI 1.2 package from Canvas, Blackboard, Respondus, or any compatible tool |
| Imports | History of all quizzes you have imported with Canvas links |
| QTI Files | Download QTI backup files generated from each import |
| Product Manual | This document |
3. Dashboard
The Dashboard shows an overview of quizzes in your current Canvas course.
Quizzes in Course
Total number of quizzes in the current Canvas course, including ones created outside of Holon.
Made in Holon
Quizzes that were created using Holon Quiz Import.
Published
Number of published quizzes visible to students.
The Recent quizzes section lists all quizzes in the course with question count, points, engine type, and a direct link to open in Canvas.
4. Step 1 — Upload File
The first step of the Import Quiz wizard. Upload your exam file to have questions detected automatically.
- Click Import Quiz in the sidebar.
- Drag and drop your file onto the upload zone, or click it to browse.
- Supported formats: .docx, .pdf, .txt
- The tool parses the file and automatically advances to Step 2.
Tip: The tool detects questions numbered like "1." or "1)" and answer choices labelled A-E. Correct answers should be marked with an asterisk (*) before the choice or formatted in bold.
Word (.docx)
Best results. Questions should be numbered (1., 2., etc.) with answer choices on separate lines labelled A through E. Mark correct answers with * at the start of the line or by bolding the answer text.
PDF
Text-based PDFs only — scanned image PDFs are not supported. Use * before the letter (*B. Paris) or after the text (B. Paris*) to mark correct answers. Bold formatting is not detectable in PDFs — always use * markers in PDF files.
Plain Text (.txt)
Simple numbered questions with lettered choices. One question and its choices per block, separated by a blank line.
Note: Scanned PDFs (images) cannot be read. Use a text-based PDF or convert to Word first.
Example Format
1. What is the capital of France?
A. London
*B. Paris
C. Berlin
D. Madrid
6. Step 2 — Review Questions
After uploading, review and edit the detected questions before creating the quiz.
- Each detected question is shown with its type, choices, and correct answer highlighted
- Click any question to edit the text, choices, or correct answer
- Change the question type (Multiple Choice, True/False, Matching, Short Answer) using the dropdown
- Delete unwanted questions with the × button
- Add new blank questions with + Add Question
- Drag questions to reorder them
When satisfied, click Next: Quiz Settings → to proceed to Step 3.
Always review questions before creating — OCR and parsing aren't perfect. Check that correct answers are marked correctly (green highlight).
7. Step 3 — Settings & Create
Configure your quiz settings and create it in Canvas.
| Setting | Description |
|---|
| Course | The Canvas course to create the quiz in |
| Quiz Name | The name that appears in Canvas. Auto-filled from filename. |
| Points / Question | Default point value per question |
| Time Limit | Minutes allowed. Leave blank for no limit. |
| Attempts | Number of allowed attempts |
| Score to Keep | Highest, Latest, or Average score across attempts |
| Questions to Use | Randomly select N questions from the full set |
| Due / Available dates | Standard Canvas assignment availability dates |
| Add to Module | Adds the quiz to a course module automatically |
| Assignment Group | Which gradebook group to assign points to |
| One question at a time | Students see one question per page |
| Can't go back | Prevents returning to previous questions |
| Shuffle answers | Randomizes answer choice order |
| Shuffle questions | Randomizes question order |
| Show correct answers after | Shows correct answers to students after submission |
| Publish immediately | Makes the quiz visible to students right away |
Important: After the quiz is created, open it in Canvas and click Save to finalize question points. Canvas requires this step when quizzes are created via API.
8. Quiz Engine
Classic Quizzes
Holon Quiz Import creates Classic Quizzes. Questions are stored in a named question bank that can be reused across courses. Full Canvas API support — questions, correct answers, and all settings are configured automatically.
New Quizzes users: Import with Holon (Classic), then use Canvas's built-in Migrate option (⋮ menu on the quiz) to convert to New Quizzes. Canvas handles the conversion natively.
9. Imports Page
The Imports page shows a history of all quizzes you have imported using Holon Quiz Import.
Each row shows the quiz name, question count, import date, engine type, and a direct Open in Canvas ↗ link. You can delete a record from history using the × button — this only removes it from Holon's history, it does not delete the quiz from Canvas.
10. QTI Files
Every quiz you import automatically generates a QTI 1.2 zip file — your portable backup of every question.
What is a QTI file?
QTI (Question & Test Interoperability) is the universal standard for quiz portability, supported by Canvas, Blackboard, Moodle, D2L, and virtually every other LMS. Your QTI file contains all questions, answers, and correct answer markers in a format any platform can read.
Why it matters
- Backup — if Canvas is unavailable or a quiz is accidentally deleted, your QTI file is a complete restore point
- Portability — if your institution ever switches LMS platforms, your quizzes move with you
- Re-import — re-import any quiz into Canvas or another course at any time
- Compliance — some institutions require faculty to maintain local copies of assessments
Accessing QTI Files
Click QTI Files in the sidebar. Every quiz imported through Holon Quiz Import has a QTI file generated automatically — no extra steps required. Click ⬇ Download next to any quiz to save the zip file locally.
QTI Zip button in Step 3
You can also download a QTI zip directly from Step 3 of the Import wizard using the ⬇ QTI Zip button before or instead of creating the quiz in Canvas. This is useful when you want to import manually or use another LMS.
Recommendation: Download and store your QTI files in OneDrive, Google Drive, or a department shared folder after every import.
11. Bulk Import
Bulk Import lets you upload a ZIP file containing multiple exam files and create all quizzes in Canvas in a single operation — ideal for end-of-semester course setup or publisher content packages.
How to use Bulk Import
- Create a ZIP file containing your exam files (Word, PDF, or text — one file per quiz).
- Click Bulk Import in the sidebar and upload the ZIP.
- Each file is parsed automatically. Review the list — each row shows the filename, question count, and ready status.
- Click 📋 Questions on any row to review and edit questions for that exam.
- Click ⚙ Settings on any row to configure individual settings (engine, points, time limit, attempts, due date, etc.).
- Select the target course and click Create All Quizzes in Canvas.
Tip: Use Apply Defaults to All to set common settings across all quizzes, then override individually as needed.
12. Import from QTI
Import from QTI lets you take any QTI 1.2 package — exported from Canvas, Blackboard, Respondus, or any IMS-compatible tool — and re-import it into Canvas through Holon's clean interface.
Why use this instead of Canvas native import?
- Review and edit all questions before the quiz is created
- Change question types, fix answer markers, and reorder questions
- Configure all quiz settings in one place before creating
- No confusing multi-step Canvas import wizard
How to use Import from QTI
- Export a quiz from Canvas (Quiz → Edit → Export) or any other QTI-compatible platform.
- Click Import from QTI in the sidebar.
- Upload the QTI ZIP or raw XML file.
- Review and edit questions in Step 2 — correct answers are auto-detected from the QTI file.
- Configure quiz settings in Step 3 and click Create Quiz in Canvas.
Supported formats
- QTI ZIP — Standard IMS QTI 1.2 package (imsmanifest.xml + quiz XML)
- QTI XML — Raw QTI 1.2 XML file
Note: QTI 2.x is not currently supported. Canvas exports use QTI 1.2 which is fully supported.
13. FAQ & Troubleshooting
My quiz shows 0 points after importing
This is a Canvas API limitation. Open the quiz in Canvas and click Save — Canvas recalculates points after a manual save. A reminder link appears automatically after each import.
No questions were detected
Make sure your file uses standard numbered question format (1., 2., etc.) with lettered choices (A., B., etc.). Scanned PDFs and image-based files cannot be parsed.
Correct answers aren't highlighted
Mark correct answers with an asterisk (*) at the start of the choice line, or bold the correct answer text in Word. The tool looks for these markers to identify correct answers.
The quiz was created in the wrong course
In Step 3, make sure the correct course is selected in the Course dropdown before clicking Create Quiz in Canvas.
Can I re-import and overwrite an existing quiz?
No — each import creates a new quiz. Delete the old quiz in Canvas manually if you want to replace it.