Practice mode versus test mode
Show instant feedback decides when you see right or wrong. Here is how to choose a mode and set the timer to match your goal for the session.
Last updated: September 30, 2026
Two ways to run the same session
The practice detail dialog has a Show instant feedback toggle. The app does not call them modes, but this toggle is what changes how you work through a session:
- On (practice mode): once every question in a package is answered, press Check. Right and wrong for that package appear straight away, with an explanation under each question, and you can ask questions through Ask Dio. The package's answers lock after Check, and Continue moves you to the next package. Good while you are still building a feel for a question type.
- Off (test mode): there is no Check. You move between packages with Continue and can go back with Back, and all marking is held until you press Finish on the last package. You see everything at once in the report. Good for measuring where you actually stand.
In both modes, Check or Continue only becomes available once every question in the package is answered. The toggle is on by default, and your browser remembers your choice for the next session.
The order that usually works
Stay in practice mode until you can explain why your answer is right, then switch to test mode to check whether that understanding survives time pressure.
Dio in each mode
In practice mode you can ask Dio while the session runs. In test mode Dio is not available until you submit, and then you can ask on the review screen. The details are in Asking Dio, the AI tutor.
The timer
The timer belongs to test mode. Turning the timer on switches instant feedback off, and turning instant feedback on switches the timer off. A countdown is about exam conditions, and stopping after every answer to read the explanation does not fit inside one.
Show timer is off by default. When you switch it on, a Duration setting in minutes appears. If you have never changed it, the duration is 8 minutes per question package, and you can raise or lower it one minute at a time with the minus and plus buttons. The countdown shows in the top right of the player. If time runs out, the session submits automatically with the answers you have.
With Show timer off, there is no clock on screen at all.
Assessments are not configurable
Pretests and posttests (labelled Assessment) always run like test mode, with the timer always shown and a fixed question set (Full test). Neither the feedback nor the timer option appears in their dialog, and the button reads Start Test.