Effective Online Testing Without Surveillance Software √ §

Online tests can be a convenient, informative way to assess student learning. But how do we maintain academic integrity online without relying on the use of intrusive surveillance software? In this session, two UMBC chemistry professors who teach the largest course on campus (800+ students), will share their methods for setting up online tests in Blackboard that both respond to students’ needs and provide strategies for preventing academic dishonesty. Their approach includes the use of an honor pledge, grouped questions with backtracking, staggered exam starting points, and use of question pools. Their question pools are original, authentic questions that are similar in rigor and concept, but vary in question prompt details and related “correct” answers. Blackboard can then be set to draw random questions from each pool, generating distinct exams for each student. A screencast video demo of their approach -- referenced in a 10/26/20 Washington Post article -- can be seen at https://doit.umbc.edu/news/?id=97023.

During this joint FDC & DoIT workshop, Sarah Bass & Tara Carpenter will discuss their approach, describing effort required, lessons learned, and next steps. We'll also use their experience as context for a discussion about online testing in the time of COVID.