Bptools Question Authoring

Overview

Use this skill to author regular bptools-based Python generators in biology-problems. Follow the repo's shared generator patterns and verify output with small local runs.

Workflow

1. Identify scope and load references

• Confirm the target script(s), question type(s), and output format(s).
• Read references/repos.md and references/docs.md first.
• Read bptools.py and docs/QUESTION_FUNCTION_INDEX.md for the shared helper API surface.
• Load optional domain guides only when the task touches that domain.

2. Start from known patterns

• Reuse the nearest template in references/templates.md.
• Keep a script structure with parse_arguments(), write_question(), and main().
• Use shared parser helpers from bptools for consistent CLI flags.

3. Implement with bptools primitives

• Build prompts/choices as plain strings and lists.
• Format questions with the relevant bptools.formatBB_* function.
• Use bptools.collect_and_write_questions(...) and bptools.make_outfile(...).
• Respect anti-cheat defaults and only override intentionally.

4. Validate behavior

• Run the modified generator with a small count (for example -d 1).
• Check produced BBQ text for formatting and expected answer keys.
• Run relevant tests for edited code paths.

5. Finish cleanly

• Update docs/CHANGELOG.md in biology-problems for code or doc changes.
• Keep generated artifacts out of git (bbq-*.txt, qti*.zip, selftest-*.html).

Core Rules

• Treat docs/QUESTION_AUTHORING_GUIDE.md as the primary authoring reference.
• Maintain Python style required by this repo: tabs for indentation, ASCII comments, main() entrypoint.
• Keep randomness well mixed for student-facing content; avoid predictable round-robin selection unless explicitly requested for reproducibility/debugging.
• Keep Blackboard sanitizer compatibility patterns (split comments in JS function declarations) when present in existing generators.
• If output behavior is unclear, inspect both bptools.py and the corresponding qti_package_maker writer/validator paths before changing format logic.

Reference Files

• Read references/docs.md for required and optional biology-problems guides.
• Read references/repos.md for local repo paths and high-value files.
• Read references/api_surface.md for common bptools and qti_package_maker touchpoints.
• Read references/templates.md for starter template locations.

Notes

• Prefer minimal, targeted changes over broad refactors.
• Reuse existing helper utilities instead of copying formatting logic into each script.
• When the request includes new question families (matching sets, MC statements, pedigrees, phylogenetic trees, PubChem), load the matching optional guide before editing.