Live proctoring establishes a real-time connection between students and proctors through video conferencing during online exams. During live proctoring, a group of students is monitored by a single proctor who has the capability to actively engage with the student and intervene if they notice any sign of misconduct or cheating during the exam, such as the student looking away or checking their phones. This ensures a secure and controlled testing environment for online assessments.
What is proctoring?
In traditional settings, a proctor oversees the test in person, making sure everyone follows the guidelines. Similarly, online proctoring allows educational institutions to conduct secure exams, be it from a distance or in a computer room. Furthermore, digital proctoring goes beyond online exams, extending its utility to traditional assessment settings like physical classrooms. This is especially relevant in situations involving a large number of students, public tests, or when supervisors/evaluators are unfamiliar with all examinees. By seamlessly blending digital proctoring with conventional testing settings, educational institutions uphold academic integrity while embracing the precision and effectiveness of technology.Live proctoring establishes a real-time connection between students and proctors through video conferencing during online exams. During live proctoring, a group of students is monitored by a single proctor who has the capability to actively engage with the student and intervene if they notice any sign of misconduct or cheating during the exam, such as the student looking away or checking their phones. This ensures a secure and controlled testing environment for online assessments.
Automated proctoring enhances security and accuracy in monitoring learner performance through advanced algorithms, employing facial recognition and audio analysis during online exams. It efficiently identifies and notifies proctors of any irregularities, enabling prompt intervention. Supervisors receive alerts for inappropriate activities, such as noise in the room, ensuring effective oversight without continuous human monitoring.
Unlike live proctoring, recorded proctoring, is fully automated, capturing the complete exam session, including the student’s screen, audio, and webcam feed. Instead of needing hours of review, the system prompts reviewers to check specific spots or timestamps where unusual activity may occur. Although effective in alerting supervisors of dishonest actions, recorded proctoring lacks real-time interaction or immediate intervention during the exam.
How can proctoring software prevent cheating?
Continuous identity verification
Employs an identification and verification process, ensuring the consistent validation of users’ identities throughout the entire test. This proactive approach minimises the risk of impersonation and reinforces the integrity of the examination process.
Real-time compliance monitoring
Engages in real-time compliance monitoring. Utilising webcam and audio technology, it actively observes test-taker behaviour, guaranteeing strict adherence to established rules throughout the examination. Immediate alerts are triggered for any detected deviations, allowing for prompt intervention by proctors.
Detailed post-test reporting
Generates comprehensive post-exam reports detailing the monitoring process. These reports encompass identity verification checkpoints and instances of potential or verified non-compliance, providing educators with valuable insights for informed decision-making and maintaining transparency in the assessment process.
Integration with existing online exam software
Offers seamless integration with existing online exam software, enhancing compatibility and facilitating the incorporation of anti-cheating measures into the assessment infrastructure.
Robust automation with minimal manual intervention
Minimises the need for manual intervention. This feature enhances efficiency and reliability by automating monitoring processes, reducing the likelihood of human error, and creating a secure online testing environment resistant to cheating.
SMOWL: Online proctoring solution
Moodle Certified Integration SMOWL is a trusted solution for secure digital assessments that ensures a fair, cheat-free environment compliant with privacy protocols, GDPR, and FERPA. Users can simplify the management of digital exams in Moodle, easily configuring and overseeing assessments without the need for multiple tools or platforms. The integration provides access to a variety of features, including continuous monitoring and detection of unauthorised actions, use of AI and circumvention attempts via the use of a virtual machine, thus guaranteeing the integrity of digital exams.
Safe Exam Browser
Safe Exam Browser (SEB) is an open-source lockdown browser that enables teachers to limit students’ access to external websites, system functions, and other applications during online assessments. To utilise this functionality, students are required to download and install the SEB application on their devices before attempting a quiz. SEB is seamlessly integrated into Moodle Quiz by default, simplifying the process for teachers to establish a controlled testing environment. This integration enhances the overall security and integrity of online assessments within the Moodle platform, offering a user-friendly solution for educators seeking a reliable means of monitoring and controlling the testing environment.
Other Moodle proctoring plugins
Moodle plugins play a crucial role in supporting proctoring by incorporating advanced features to enhance assessment integrity. These plugins include the capability to capture a user’s picture via webcam during a Moodle Quiz, facilitating the identification of the test-taker. The plugins also leverage face and emotion recognition technology, enabling the analysis of users’ behaviour throughout the test to detect any anomalies. This proves instrumental in verifying a candidate’s identity and issuing warnings for unfair participation.
