Answer tolerance and decimal handling

Summary

Explain how student answers are evaluated in numerical questions, including how decimal values are handled and how tolerance (error margin) is applied.

How answer comparison works

When a student submits a numerical answer, Learning Lemur compares it to the expected correct value. The evaluation depends on:

• Whether decimal numbers are allowed
• The configured error margin

Allow decimal numbers

This option determines whether answers can include decimal values.

• Enabled: Students can submit decimal answers (e.g. 2.5, 3.14)
• Disabled: Only integer values are accepted (e.g. 2, 10)

If decimal numbers are not allowed, any non-integer answer is considered incorrect.

Error margin (tolerance)

The error margin defines how close a student's answer must be to the correct value to be accepted.

Percent error

The student's answer has an n% error margin with respect to the correct answer. An answer will be marked as correct if the student's answer falls within the defined tolerance interval around the correct answer.

For instance, if the correct answer is 12.345

Percent error	Interval of acceptance
10	[11.1105,13.5795]
1	[12.22155,12.46845]
0.1	[12.332655,12.357345]
0.01	[12.3437655,12.3462345]

Absolute error

The student's answer has a margin of error of n. An answer will be marked as correct if the student's answer falls within the defined tolerance interval around the correct answer.

For instance, if the correct answer is 12.345

Absolute error	Interval of acceptance
1	[11.345,13.345]
0.1	[12.245,12.445]
0.01	[12.335,12.355]
0.001	[12.344,12.346]

Notes

• Learning Lemur currently supports only absolute and relative tolerance (error margin).
• Advanced options, such as significant figures or decimal-place constraints, are not available.

Related resources

• Evaluation options
• Create a randomized right-triangle hypotenuse question with tolerance