Online learning and testing environments are changing
The rapid shift to online testing has inherently increased the need for online proctoring to ensure a fair testing environment that protects academic integrity. With the abundance of resources available for students, such as “homework help sites” and internet searches, academic dishonesty is tempting for many students. Even within campus testing centers, academic dishonesty can happen and is a concern that universities and colleges are addressing. .
Online proctoring benefits testing centers
Many campus test taking centers are adopting online proctoring services.
Online proctoring has significant benefits for testing centers; from verifying the student’s identity, to protecting academic integrity and reputation to affordably scaling online testing and understanding how students approach exams, online proctoring is an ongoing strategic advantage for any institution.
What is online proctoring?
Online proctoring monitors tests taken in a remote environment to ensure academic integrity, prevent cheating, and help students successfully complete online exams.
There are four common types of online proctoring software and services which include a range of features that monitor student behavior, prevent cheating, verify student identity, and provide detailed reporting.
Why use online proctoring in testing centers?
Online proctoring protects reputation and academic integrity
When it comes to attracting the right students, reputation is everything and your stakeholders are watching. Prospective students and accrediting bodies need to know that your university’s programs are academically sound. Using proctoring services in your testing centers protects your reputation by preserving the integrity of online tests.
In a recent blog post with the International Center for Academic Integrity, Paula Rodriguez, Director of the University Testing Center at Colorado State University and Honorlock customer wrote, “Students may not realize that if the content of exams cannot be protected, the entire program might suffer in the eyes of future employers. If students continue to cheat, then grades become meaningless, content is not learned/mastered, and the program credibility is compromised.”
If students can share test questions and answers, look up answers on the internet, and use other resources to help complete online tests, how credible are your programs and reputation? Proctored online assessment services are crucial to prevent academic dishonesty, protect online exam integrity, and ensure your reputation remains strong.
Remote proctoring creates an equal testing environment that protect students and faculty
Remote proctoring isn’t just a way to catch cheaters.
It’s a way to establish an equal testing environment for students and allows institutions and faculty to focus on providing a quality education for their students while protecting academic integrity.
In campus test taking centers, students are required to present their picture ID and video is recording them throughout their exam. Adding remote proctoring for online assessment services to testing centers facilitates this process while creating equality in the testing environment.
“Remember that all exams and exam environments were created to be equal…The proctor’s job isn’t to catch students cheating, but to create an equal testing environment that all test-takers would be experiencing during the exam. Proctors exist to be the testers’ advocates…The platform isn’t there to spy on you.” –
Affordably scale online testing with remote proctoring
Institutions face a major obstacle today: affordably scaling online testing and remote learning services without sacrificing academic integrity.
Each instructor and online test is different. As you scale online testing, you need cost-effective remote proctoring that meets the needs of your institution, students, and faculty. Remote proctoring services, such as Honorlock, charge a flat rate per online exam or student to protect your bottom line and help you accurately estimate testing costs.
“In addition to its unmatched technology and ease of use, the option to pay by the student and not by the exam gave us the ability to proctor a large number of students at an affordable cost.” –
Truly understand how students approach your online exams
Online proctoring extends beyond monitoring exams and catching cheaters. It helps instructors truly understand how students approach their online exams. In an on-campus testing center, proctors walk around the room and cameras record what’s going on in the room. But implementing proctored online assessment services takes it to the next level by detailed reports that provide instructors an in-depth look at student test performance through a wealth of information around specific exam activity, violations, and performance.
Different types of online proctoring
Four types of online proctoring are typically used:
- Browser lock: Prevents students from accessing other browsers, websites, or applications during an online exam and restricts certain keyboard shortcuts and functions.
- Automated Proctoring: AI technology monitors the student’s online exam and then someone reviews the recording of their session and prepares a report for the instructor.
- Live Proctoring: Live human proctors watch students take the online test and can intervene if there are any potential issues.
- Blended Online Proctoring: Combines the benefits of automated proctoring and live proctoring. AI software monitors the student’s test session and if any potential issues arise, the AI prompts a live online proctor to “Pop-in” a student’s session to address the issues and help the student get back on track.
Evaluate the benefits of each type of online proctoring and decide which is the best fit to proctor exams at your institution’s testing center.
How does online proctoring work for testing centers?
Online proctoring should be quick to implement and easy to set up to save your faculty time and remove obstacles for test scheduling. The steps below describe what the online proctored testing experience looks like with a blended proctoring solution that uses automated and live remote proctoring.
- Create your online test like normal
Create your online test like you normally would within the LMS. The proctoring solution should seamlessly integrate with your LMS which allows you to create your online test like you normally would. Then, the proctoring technology automatically collects all of the necessary exam information through the LMS integration. - Choose which proctoring features to use
When you’re ready, decide which proctoring features you’d like to use, such as mobile device detection, browser lockdown, or voice detection, to name a few. Proctoring offers many options to ensure the integrity of your remote exams. - Set the online test rules and accommodations
This is where you can set specific test rules such as no talking and no scratch paper and also list specific accommodations for specific students such as bathroom breaks and permitted assistive technology. With proctoring services like Honorlock, exam level settings configured within the LMS and student-specific accommodations are automatically captured. - Verify student identity
Quickly verify student identity to ensure that the student taking the online exam is the same student enrolled in the course. Online proctoring software should capture the student’s ID information and photo to be certain that the student taking the online test is the student getting credit. - The student completes the online proctored exam
It’s important to note that if the student has any issues during the proctored exam, they should be able to get support help without exiting the exam itself. If the AI system detects potential violations or issues during the online test, a live remote proctor can pop in the exam session to stop cheating or help the student get back on track if there was no violation. - Review the proctored exam results
After the exams are complete, the remote proctoring staff reviews the proctored testing sessions and notifies the instructor of any potential violations. The reports are detailed, easy to read, and note any potential incidents. Each incident includes a timestamp for the test session recording so that instructors can quickly review it and determine whether to address it or not.
“Honorlock was more than a tool to guard or block students from using inappropriate information. It was also a means to detect and determine many different ways that students approach the exams. Because of access to the wealth of data/information through Honorlock, I became better able to utilize it.” –
Regardless of whether your institution has used online proctoring services or not, now is the time to see why over 300 higher education institutions chose Honorlock to scale their online testing and testing center efforts while still preserving academic integrity and reputation.
Schedule a demo to see how Honorlock works and view the online testing experience as a student and instructor.