Setting Up Secure Assessments

Securing your assessment is part of a multi-layered approach to promoting and ensuring academic integrity, even though no approach is perfect. But, if you find yourself investing all your effort into security, you are likely missing opportunities related to this issue. 

For help striking a higher impact balance, contact the USask Academic Integrity Strategist, Susan Bens.

It is important to recognize that assessments that need security often require more planning (e.g., technical configuration, physical materials, and space) and time restrictions. Conditions for assessment like these will likely also mean more AES accommodations.

• Raise students’ confidence overall that the assessment will be fair, including by reducing uncertainty about what will be assessed and how students should be preparing.
• Do not re-use assessment questions from year to year, if the advance knowledge of what you will be asking decreases validity.
• Monitor relevant websites or platforms where unpermitted posting or sharing of assessments may be occurring. Learn more about so called “homework help sites” here.

• Space:
  • Set up the room and remind students of expectations.
  • Book an additional or better room in advance, if needed.
  • Arrange for additional and appropriate invigilators, if needed.
  • Reinforce that unpermitted resources and devices are to be out of reach, if that is the expectation.
  • Confirm Wi-Fi capacity and electrical outlets if the assessment is to be completed using Canvas or other digital tools.
• Challenges with handwritten work:
  • You may not be able to ask as many short answer or essay questions in the time span; few students today are accustomed to physically writing by hand.
  • You should not expect the same quality of work; few students today are accustomed to composing without real time revision options of word processing, including spelling and grammar checks.  This especially affects students studying in English as an additional language.
  • Have some pens, pencils, erasers, and scrap paper on hand for those who forget items.
• Allowing some specific resources, where it makes sense:
  • Formula sheets, calculators, software.
  • Single page of notes meeting specific criteria.
  • Textbooks, other course materials.
• Reviewing protocols for exam administration and situations of academic misconduct here.

• What is reasonable to limit within a non-proctored environment.
• Features of Canvas quizzes and whether they help your security needs.
• Where required for accreditation, the capabilities and limitations of online proctoring software.
  • Learn about functionality and EDI concerns associated with USask-licensed software called Proctorio.
  • Some Colleges have licenses for other proctoring software; check with your College or academic unit.

• Reinforce both the rules and skills you want students to have, as you make expectations clear.
• Express your commitment to ethical teaching and learning (avoid “because students can’t be trusted” framing).
• Show that you want to deter ‘cheating’ and your intention is there will be no academic misconduct to detect (avoid “I will catch you” emphasis).
• Invite suggestions that would improve the approach to security, such as through an anonymous survey. Most students don’t look for ways to cheat but do notice where the opportunities are, and some would be willing to give you advice.

^{Title image credit: F1 Digitals from Pixabay}

This resource is shared by the Gwenna Moss Centre for Teaching and Learning (GMCTL), University of Saskatchewan, under a CC BY-NC-SA license. The image was shared by the Province of British Columbia via Flickr with a CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 license.