diff --git a/common/lib/capa/capa/inputtypes.py b/common/lib/capa/capa/inputtypes.py
index 81a65613e95d..45d9e0276567 100644
--- a/common/lib/capa/capa/inputtypes.py
+++ b/common/lib/capa/capa/inputtypes.py
@@ -832,6 +832,8 @@ def _extra_context(self):
             'queue_len': str(self.queue_len),
             'queue_msg': self.queue_msg,
             'button_enabled': self.button_enabled(),
+            'matlab_editor_js': '{static_url}js/vendor/CodeMirror/addons/octave.js'.format(
+                static_url=self.capa_system.STATIC_URL),
         }
         return extra_context
 
diff --git a/common/lib/capa/capa/templates/codeinput.html b/common/lib/capa/capa/templates/codeinput.html
index eb8a83bd1a69..024655b8f6cf 100644
--- a/common/lib/capa/capa/templates/codeinput.html
+++ b/common/lib/capa/capa/templates/codeinput.html
@@ -1,16 +1,21 @@
 <%! from django.utils.translation import ugettext as _ %>
-<section id="textbox_${id}" class="textbox">
+<section id="textbox_${id}" class="capa_inputtype textbox cminput">
   <textarea rows="${rows}" cols="${cols}" name="input_${id}" 
             aria-label="${_("{programming_language} editor").format(programming_language=mode)}" 
             aria-describedby="answer_${id}" 
             id="input_${id}" 
             tabindex="0"
-       % if hidden:
+            data-mode="${mode}"
+            data-tabsize="${tabsize}"
+            % if linenumbers:
+            data-linenums="true"
+            % endif
+            % if hidden:
       	    style="display:none;"
-       % endif
+            % endif
   >${value|h}</textarea>
 
-  <div class="grader-status" tabindex="1">
+  <div class="grader-status" tabindex="-1">
     % if status == 'unsubmitted':
       <span class="unanswered" style="display:inline-block;" id="status_${id}" aria-describedby="input_${id}"><span class="sr">Status: </span>Unanswered</span>
     % elif status == 'correct':
@@ -34,31 +39,4 @@
   <div class="external-grader-message">
     ${msg|n}
   </div>
-
-  <script>
-    // Note: We need to make the area follow the CodeMirror for this to work.
-    $(function(){
-      var cm = CodeMirror.fromTextArea(document.getElementById("input_${id}"), {
-        % if linenumbers == 'true':
-        lineNumbers: true,
-        % endif
-        mode: "${mode}",
-        matchBrackets: true,
-        lineWrapping: true,
-        indentUnit: "${tabsize}",
-        tabSize: "${tabsize}",
-        indentWithTabs: false,
-        extraKeys: {
-            "Esc": function(cm) {
-                $('.grader-status').focus();
-                return false;
-            },
-            "Tab": function(cm) {
-                cm.replaceSelection("${' '*tabsize}", "end");
-            }
-        },
-        smartIndent: false
-      });
-    });
-  </script>
 </section>
diff --git a/common/lib/capa/capa/templates/matlabinput.html b/common/lib/capa/capa/templates/matlabinput.html
index b63e551ae4be..519d208ee90f 100644
--- a/common/lib/capa/capa/templates/matlabinput.html
+++ b/common/lib/capa/capa/templates/matlabinput.html
@@ -1,11 +1,22 @@
-<section id="textbox_${id}" class="textbox">
-  <textarea rows="${rows}" cols="${cols}" name="input_${id}" aria-describedby="answer_${id}" id="input_${id}"
-       % if hidden:
-      	    style="display:none;"
-       % endif
+<section id="textbox_${id}" class="capa_inputtype cminput">
+<div class="script_placeholder" data-src="${matlab_editor_js}"/>
+<textarea 
+  rows="${rows}" 
+  cols="${cols}" 
+  name="input_${id}" 
+  aria-describedby="answer_${id}" 
+  id="input_${id}"
+  data-tabsize="${tabsize}"
+  data-mode="octave"
+  % if linenumbers:
+  data-linenums="true"
+  % endif
+ % if hidden:
+  style="display:none;"
+ % endif
   >${value|h}</textarea>
 
-  <div class="grader-status">
+  <div class="grader-status" tabindex="-1">
     % if status == 'unsubmitted':
       <span class="unanswered" style="display:inline-block;" id="status_${id}"><span class="sr">Status: </span>Unanswered</span>
     % elif status == 'correct':
@@ -40,28 +51,7 @@
   %endif
 
   <script>
-    // Note: We need to make the area follow the CodeMirror for this to work.
     $(function(){
-      var cm = CodeMirror.fromTextArea(document.getElementById("input_${id}"), {
-        % if linenumbers == 'true':
-        lineNumbers: true,
-        % endif
-        mode: "matlab",
-        matchBrackets: true,
-        lineWrapping: true,
-        indentUnit: "${tabsize}",
-        tabSize: "${tabsize}",
-        indentWithTabs: false,
-        extraKeys: {
-            "Tab": function(cm) {
-                cm.replaceSelection("${' '*tabsize}", "end");
-            }
-        },
-        smartIndent: false
-      });
-
-      $("#textbox_${id}").find('.CodeMirror-scroll').height(${int(13.5*eval(rows))});
-
       var gentle_alert = function (parent_elt, msg) {
           if($(parent_elt).find('.capa_alert').length) {
               $(parent_elt).find('.capa_alert').remove();
@@ -80,8 +70,13 @@
           input_id = "${id}";
 
           // save the codemirror text to the textarea
-          cm.save();
+          // since there could be multiple codemirror instances on the page,
+          // save all of them.
+          $('.CodeMirror').each(function(i, el){
+            el.CodeMirror.save();
+          });
           var input = $("#input_${id}");
+
           // pull out the coded text
           submission = input.val();
 
diff --git a/common/lib/capa/capa/tests/test_inputtypes.py b/common/lib/capa/capa/tests/test_inputtypes.py
index c52b9763f9e3..ec20156727e6 100644
--- a/common/lib/capa/capa/tests/test_inputtypes.py
+++ b/common/lib/capa/capa/tests/test_inputtypes.py
@@ -435,6 +435,7 @@ def test_rendering(self):
             'tabsize': int(self.tabsize),
             'button_enabled': True,
             'queue_len': '3',
+            'matlab_editor_js': '/dummy-static/js/vendor/CodeMirror/addons/octave.js',
         }
 
         self.assertEqual(context, expected)
@@ -465,6 +466,7 @@ def test_rendering_with_state(self):
             'tabsize': int(self.tabsize),
             'button_enabled': True,
             'queue_len': '3',
+            'matlab_editor_js': '/dummy-static/js/vendor/CodeMirror/addons/octave.js',
         }
 
         self.assertEqual(context, expected)
@@ -495,6 +497,7 @@ def test_rendering_when_completed(self):
                 'tabsize': int(self.tabsize),
                 'button_enabled': False,
                 'queue_len': '0',
+                'matlab_editor_js': '/dummy-static/js/vendor/CodeMirror/addons/octave.js',
             }
 
             self.assertEqual(context, expected)
@@ -524,6 +527,7 @@ def test_rendering_while_queued(self):
             'tabsize': int(self.tabsize),
             'button_enabled': True,
             'queue_len': '1',
+            'matlab_editor_js': '/dummy-static/js/vendor/CodeMirror/addons/octave.js',
         }
 
         self.assertEqual(context, expected)
@@ -589,11 +593,7 @@ def test_get_html(self):
         output = self.the_input.get_html()
         self.assertEqual(
             etree.tostring(output),
-            """<div>{\'status\': \'queued\', \'button_enabled\': True, \'rows\': \'10\', \'queue_len\': \'3\'\
-, \'mode\': \'\', \'cols\': \'80\', \'STATIC_URL\': \'/dummy-static/\', \'linenumbers\': \'true\'\
-, \'queue_msg\': \'\', \'value\': \'print "good evening"\', \'msg\': u\'Submitted\
-. As soon as a response is returned, this message will be replaced by that feedback.\', \'hidden\': \'\'\
-, \'id\': \'prob_1_2\', \'tabsize\': 4}</div>"""
+            """<div>{\'status\': \'queued\', \'button_enabled\': True, \'rows\': \'10\', \'queue_len\': \'3\', \'mode\': \'\', \'cols\': \'80\', \'STATIC_URL\': \'/dummy-static/\', \'linenumbers\': \'true\', \'queue_msg\': \'\', \'value\': \'print "good evening"\', \'msg\': u\'Submitted. As soon as a response is returned, this message will be replaced by that feedback.\', \'matlab_editor_js\': \'/dummy-static/js/vendor/CodeMirror/addons/octave.js\', \'hidden\': \'\', \'id\': \'prob_1_2\', \'tabsize\': 4}</div>"""
         )
 
         # test html, that is correct HTML5 html, but is not parsable by XML parser.
diff --git a/common/lib/xmodule/xmodule/css/capa/display.scss b/common/lib/xmodule/xmodule/css/capa/display.scss
index 2c92ef02de40..5524e84e4ca1 100644
--- a/common/lib/xmodule/xmodule/css/capa/display.scss
+++ b/common/lib/xmodule/xmodule/css/capa/display.scss
@@ -514,7 +514,7 @@ div.problem {
     border: 1px solid black;
     font-size: 14px;
     line-height: 18px;
-    resize: both;
+    resize: none;
 
     .cm-tab {
         background: url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAADAAAAAMCAYAAAAkuj5RAAAAAXNSR0IArs4c6QAAAGFJREFUSMft1LsRQFAQheHPowAKoACx3IgEKtaEHujDjORSgWTH/ZOdnZOcM/sgk/kFFWY0qV8foQwS4MKBCS3qR6ixBJvElOobYAtivseIE120FaowJPN75GMu8j/LfMwNjh4HUpwg4LUAAAAASUVORK5CYII=);
diff --git a/common/lib/xmodule/xmodule/js/src/capa/display.coffee b/common/lib/xmodule/xmodule/js/src/capa/display.coffee
index b00ee26cd79c..ece63e7f7d61 100644
--- a/common/lib/xmodule/xmodule/js/src/capa/display.coffee
+++ b/common/lib/xmodule/xmodule/js/src/capa/display.coffee
@@ -484,6 +484,31 @@ class @Problem
 
       return display
 
+    cminput: (container) =>
+      element = $(container).find("textarea")
+      tabsize = element.data("tabsize")
+      mode = element.data("mode")
+      linenumbers = element.data("linenums")
+      spaces = Array(parseInt(tabsize) + 1).join(" ")
+      CodeMirror.fromTextArea element[0], {
+          lineNumbers: linenumbers
+          indentUnit: tabsize
+          tabSize: tabsize
+          mode: mode
+          matchBrackets: true
+          lineWrapping: true
+          indentWithTabs: false
+          smartIndent: false
+          extraKeys: {
+            "Esc": (cm) ->
+              $(".grader-status").focus()
+              return false
+            "Tab": (cm) ->
+              cm.replaceSelection(spaces, "end")
+              return false
+          }
+        }
+
   inputtypeShowAnswerMethods:
     choicegroup: (element, display, answers) =>
       element = $(element)
diff --git a/common/static/js/vendor/CodeMirror/addons/octave.js b/common/static/js/vendor/CodeMirror/addons/octave.js
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..23cd2fe222e3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/common/static/js/vendor/CodeMirror/addons/octave.js
@@ -0,0 +1,118 @@
+CodeMirror.defineMode("octave", function() {
+  function wordRegexp(words) {
+    return new RegExp("^((" + words.join(")|(") + "))\\b");
+  }
+
+  var singleOperators = new RegExp("^[\\+\\-\\*/&|\\^~<>!@'\\\\]");
+  var singleDelimiters = new RegExp('^[\\(\\[\\{\\},:=;]');
+  var doubleOperators = new RegExp("^((==)|(~=)|(<=)|(>=)|(<<)|(>>)|(\\.[\\+\\-\\*/\\^\\\\]))");
+  var doubleDelimiters = new RegExp("^((!=)|(\\+=)|(\\-=)|(\\*=)|(/=)|(&=)|(\\|=)|(\\^=))");
+  var tripleDelimiters = new RegExp("^((>>=)|(<<=))");
+  var expressionEnd = new RegExp("^[\\]\\)]");
+  var identifiers = new RegExp("^[_A-Za-z][_A-Za-z0-9]*");
+
+  var builtins = wordRegexp([
+    'error', 'eval', 'function', 'abs', 'acos', 'atan', 'asin', 'cos',
+    'cosh', 'exp', 'log', 'prod', 'log10', 'max', 'min', 'sign', 'sin', 'sinh',
+    'sqrt', 'tan', 'reshape', 'break', 'zeros', 'default', 'margin', 'round', 'ones',
+    'rand', 'syn', 'ceil', 'floor', 'size', 'clear', 'zeros', 'eye', 'mean', 'std', 'cov',
+    'det', 'eig', 'inv', 'norm', 'rank', 'trace', 'expm', 'logm', 'sqrtm', 'linspace', 'plot',
+    'title', 'xlabel', 'ylabel', 'legend', 'text', 'meshgrid', 'mesh', 'num2str'
+  ]);
+
+  var keywords = wordRegexp([
+    'return', 'case', 'switch', 'else', 'elseif', 'end', 'endif', 'endfunction',
+    'if', 'otherwise', 'do', 'for', 'while', 'try', 'catch', 'classdef', 'properties', 'events',
+    'methods', 'global', 'persistent', 'endfor', 'endwhile', 'printf', 'disp', 'until', 'continue'
+  ]);
+
+
+  // tokenizers
+  function tokenTranspose(stream, state) {
+    if (!stream.sol() && stream.peek() === '\'') {
+      stream.next();
+      state.tokenize = tokenBase;
+      return 'operator';
+    }
+    state.tokenize = tokenBase;
+    return tokenBase(stream, state);
+  }
+
+
+  function tokenComment(stream, state) {
+    if (stream.match(/^.*%}/)) {
+      state.tokenize = tokenBase;
+      return 'comment';
+    };
+    stream.skipToEnd();
+    return 'comment';
+  }
+
+  function tokenBase(stream, state) {
+    // whitespaces
+    if (stream.eatSpace()) return null;
+
+    // Handle one line Comments
+    if (stream.match('%{')){
+      state.tokenize = tokenComment;
+      stream.skipToEnd();
+      return 'comment';
+    }
+
+    if (stream.match(/^(%)|(\.\.\.)/)){
+      stream.skipToEnd();
+      return 'comment';
+    }
+
+    // Handle Number Literals
+    if (stream.match(/^[0-9\.+-]/, false)) {
+      if (stream.match(/^[+-]?0x[0-9a-fA-F]+[ij]?/)) {
+        stream.tokenize = tokenBase;
+        return 'number'; };
+      if (stream.match(/^[+-]?\d*\.\d+([EeDd][+-]?\d+)?[ij]?/)) { return 'number'; };
+      if (stream.match(/^[+-]?\d+([EeDd][+-]?\d+)?[ij]?/)) { return 'number'; };
+    }
+    if (stream.match(wordRegexp(['nan','NaN','inf','Inf']))) { return 'number'; };
+
+    // Handle Strings
+    if (stream.match(/^"([^"]|(""))*"/)) { return 'string'; } ;
+    if (stream.match(/^'([^']|(''))*'/)) { return 'string'; } ;
+
+    // Handle words
+    if (stream.match(keywords)) { return 'keyword'; } ;
+    if (stream.match(builtins)) { return 'builtin'; } ;
+    if (stream.match(identifiers)) { return 'variable'; } ;
+
+    if (stream.match(singleOperators) || stream.match(doubleOperators)) { return 'operator'; };
+    if (stream.match(singleDelimiters) || stream.match(doubleDelimiters) || stream.match(tripleDelimiters)) { return null; };
+
+    if (stream.match(expressionEnd)) {
+      state.tokenize = tokenTranspose;
+      return null;
+    };
+
+
+    // Handle non-detected items
+    stream.next();
+    return 'error';
+  };
+
+
+  return {
+    startState: function() {
+      return {
+        tokenize: tokenBase
+      };
+    },
+
+    token: function(stream, state) {
+      var style = state.tokenize(stream, state);
+      if (style === 'number' || style === 'variable'){
+        state.tokenize = tokenTranspose;
+      }
+      return style;
+    }
+  };
+});
+
+CodeMirror.defineMIME("text/x-octave", "octave");