What Is A Proctored Exam? Learn More Here!

Proctored exams are used because they provide a higher level of security for students.

They also allow teachers to check if the student has cheated during the exam.

If you are taking a proctored exam, you should always bring a pen and paper to write down your answers.

If you forget to bring these items, you could get into trouble.

You will be given an envelope with all of your questions in it before the test begins.

You must open this envelope at the beginning of the exam.

The teacher can see what is inside but cannot read any information on the outside of the envelope.

This way, no one else knows how many questions there are or which ones have been answered correctly.

How does a proctored exam work?

When you take a proctored exam:

1) You will receive an envelope containing all of your question papers.

2) The envelope contains instructions about where to put each piece of paper after answering them.

3) After completing the exam, you return the completed pieces of paper to the instructor who then checks that everything was done properly.

4) If anything goes wrong, the professor may ask you to repeat some parts of the exam.

5) Once the tests are complete, the results are sent back to the school.

6) Your score report is available within 2-3 weeks from when the testing period ends.

In addition, you will need to pay extra fees for the proctoring service.

These costs vary depending on the type of institution.

Proctored vs non-proctored exams

There are two types of exams:

1.) Non-proctored exams 

These exams do not require anyone other than the student to witness his/her progress through the examination process.

A person called a “screener” watches over the student while he/she takes the unsupervised exam.

Screens are usually employed by schools to ensure that cheating occurs less frequently.

However, screeners are often unable to detect whether someone has copied their answer sheet.

Therefore, most educational institutions prefer to use proctors instead.

2.) Proctored exams

In contrast to non-proctored examinations, proctored exams involve more people watching over the student as he/she completes the exam.

Usually, only the student’s parents, friends, and instructors are allowed to watch him/her throughout the entire procedure.

Some universities even hire professional proctors to help monitoring options for exam integrity.

It is important to note that proctoring is expensive.

As such, most colleges choose to charge additional money for this service.

Students who fail to pay for proctored exam session risk being expelled from college.

So, make sure that you know exactly how much the proctoring fee is going to cost before signing up!

Also, remember that proctored exam meaning is harder to cheat on.

That means they’re better suited for students who want to pass their classes without getting caught.

On the other hand, non-proctored tests are easier to fake because nobody except the student himself needs to verify his answers.

For example, if a friend asks you to copy her answer sheet, she doesn’t need to worry about getting caught since she won’t be present during the actual exam.

Furthermore, non-proctored tests are cheaper so they tend to attract those who don’t care too much about passing their courses.

Types of Remote proctoring

We’ve all heard of remote proctoring, usually it’s used for students on digital learning courses.

But, on the other side of the coin is the remote location proctoring of tutors to pupils, helping them by taking their place.

There are several types of remote proctoring software out there. Some are free, 

Remote proctoring can be divided into three categories based on the method used to conduct it:

1.) Webcam remote proctoring

This form of remote proctoring involves using webcams or video chat software to allow the proctor to view the student’s computer screen sharing function in real time.

The advantage of webcam remote proctoring is its low cost compared with traditional methods.

However, there are also disadvantages associated with this approach.

One drawback is that it requires high bandwidth strong internet connection which might not always be readily accessible at home.

Another issue is that the quality of images displayed via webcams tends to degrade after prolonged usage.

Finally, webcam remote proctoring cannot provide any feedback regarding the student’s performance.

2.) Audio remote proctoring

Audio remote proctoring uses audio technological devices to transmit information between the proctor and the student.

In particular, an instructor will speak instructions to the student while simultaneously recording them.

Then, when the test ends, the recorded voice file is played back to the proctor.

By listening carefully to what was said, the proctor can determine whether the student answered correctly or incorrectly.

3.) Video remote proctoring

Video remote proctoring allows both parties to see each other’s screens.

Therefore, unlike audio remote proctoring, it provides instant visual confirmation of the student’s responses.

Nevertheless, video remote proctoring has some drawbacks.

First, it requires higher bandwidth than audio remote proctoring.

Second, it may cause privacy issues due to the fact that the two participants have to share one PC.

Furthermore, video remote proctoring requires special equipment like cameras and microphones.

If your school does not already own these additional devices, then you’ll probably have to buy them yourself.

Pros and Cons of Remote Proctoring

Proctors play a crucial role in ensuring academic integrity.

They help ensure that cheating isn’t rampant among students.

Moreover, they make sure that no unfair advantages are given to certain groups of people.

As such, we should welcome every opportunity to use remote proctoring as a tool to improve our educational system.

Nonetheless, before deciding to adopt remote proctoring, let’s consider the pros and cons of doing so.

PROS:

• It saves money

Since most schools don’t need to hire fulltime teachers just to take tests,

remote proctoring could save significant amounts of cash.

For example, if a teacher takes 10 hours per week to grade exams,

then he/she would only need to spend 1 hour per online exam grading remotely.

That means that instead of spending $10,000 annually on hiring a proctor,

the same amount could be saved by adopting remote proctoring.

• Students get more attention from their instructors

When taking a class online learning, students usually feel isolated because they’re unable to interact directly with their professors.

On the contrary, since remote proctoring enables instructors to observe all interactions between themselves and their students,

they tend to pay closer attention to those who seem to struggle during classes.

Thus, remote proctoring helps increase the chances for success among struggling students.

CONS:

• The quality of education suffers

Remote proctoring doesn’t guarantee 100% accuracy.

This is especially true when dealing with high-stake exams where there might be room for error.

However, even though this drawback exists, I still believe that remote proctoring is worth considering.

• Students must trust their proctor.

Remote proctoring relies heavily upon the honesty of those who administer the test.

After all, if someone were to cheat during a test,

it wouldn’t matter how many times they’re caught because they’d still get away with it.

It’s therefore important for students to know that their proctor won’t try to give them answers.

Instead, they should focus solely on answering questions accurately.

• The proctor might miss something.

While there are common ways students to prevent this from happening,

there’s always a chance that the proctor misses something.

This could lead to incorrect results being reported.

However, since the proctor doesn’t actually witness anything,

he/she shouldn’t affect the outcome of the test too much.

How To Prevent Cheating During Tests With Remote Proctoring?

There are several things that can be done to reduce the possibility of online cheating while using remote proctoring. 

•  First off, it’s best to avoid giving out any hints or tips about what will appear on an upcoming test.

In other words, do everything possible to keep information regarding future tests secret until after the fact.

•  Second, it’s also advisable to ask each student to sign a contract stating that they understand that they cannot share any information regarding the test.

• Thirdly, make sure that you have enough time to prepare the safest way students for the online test.

If you fail to provide adequate preparation, then you’ll end up having to deal with angry online students who didn’t perform well in the past.

• Lastly, it’s crucial to ensure that every single question has been answered correctly.

Otherwise, you risk getting into trouble later down the road.

Growth & future of remote proctoring

The growth of remote proctoring seems inevitable as long as technology continues to advance at its current pace.

As such, we can expect to see more professional institutions adopt this method of testing over traditional methods.

Furthermore, given the convenience offered by remote proctoring,

I’m confident that most universities will eventually offer it as part of their curriculum.

So far, only a few schools around the world have adopted this approach but I predict that number to grow significantly within the next decade.

Its future is very promising as it will be more widely used in the future.

Summary

The proctoring process is not difficult, but it is important to understand why it is necessary.

By checking identification, preventing cheating through the use of an online proctoring service, checking for prohibited extra devices, and ensuring that thousands of students are not multitasking on tablets or laptops, tutors can ensure that type of exam is fair.

Students will only improve if they feel that the charge of exam evaluation on which they are graded are fair, and that is what proctoring makes possible.