Moving to remote teaching means pen-and-paper testing is no longer available. Although Chapman University initially looked into making online webcam-based proctoring available*, due to the fact that it causes issues with equity (not all students have webcams and up-to-date computers) and an increased load on tech support, along with the larger discussions on the integrity of the platforms for our mission, there will not be a campus-wide webcam-based solution at this time. Respondus LockDown Browser is available in both Canvas and Blackboard, but this browser simply locks one computer and do not guarantee complete academic integrity.

In light of this, we recommend the following alternatives to a proctored test:

  • Create tests with test pools on your your LMS (Canvas or Blackboard) so not all questions on all tests are exactly the same.
  • Randomize questions and/or answers in your online multiple choice exams so it’s not easy for students to give each other a quick set of answers.
  • Create an online open-book test that requires thoughtful responses that require higher-level thinking skills.
  • Consider doing some aspect of the test differently, such as creating thoughtful projects or writing assignments. Assignments, discussion boards, and even groups are available on your LMS (Canvas or Blackboard).
  • Limit the timeframe in which students can take the test. For instance, only allow the normally allotted class time, or only allow students 60 minutes from when they start an online test. This can deter too much conferring with other students.
  • Ask students to “show their work,” and perhaps even take pictures of their work/handwriting to verify it’s from the student.
  • Write questions that Google can’t answer. These might be questions relevant to students’ lives or opinion pieces.
  • Ask students to sign or somehow indicate that they will uphold strong standards of academic integrity as they do an assessment.
  • Check out various Classroom Assessment Techniques (Angelo and Cross) that could be reformatted for online learning.

*This information has been updated as of 3/20/2020