Proctoring

What are proctored exams, and how do they work?

Miss Ai
11 Jun, 2024

What are proctored exams, and how do they work?

Proctored exams are now a reality as learning remotely has spread. It is no longer something exclusive to just a few, as anyone with interest in continuing training has access to it.

And if more and more people take distance learning courses, there will be fewer and fewer inconveniences with this type of education.

One of the drawbacks that existed until recently was the difficulty of evaluating this type of education. But then, online proctored exams changed the education sector forever.

But, what does proctored exam mean?

Online proctored exams are a type of remote test supervision where a student’s computer (where is taking the examination) is monitored by proctoring software.

The student is identified through biometrics thanks to artificial intelligence to start this process. This allows the software to check throughout the process that the test takers are the same Who registered at the beginning.

The proctored online examination software can monitor a student’s desktop, audio, and webcam (it records video and audio). It can also determine which applications the user has opened, which text has been copy-pasted, or which devices have been plugged in or disconnected during the process.

How it prevents cheating

The proctoring software itself will contain a section for results management where you can find all the necessary information for good auditing and decision-making.

Many proctoring tools block the user in real-time if there is any indication that they may be committing a violation in their examination. This disqualifies the student from further testing.

Other remote exam proctoring tools, such as SMOWL, give the possibility to customize it so the system allows the student to finish the exam and then report violations to the examiner with a color-coded report. If the system detects anything suspicious, it will notify the examiner with a red warning, preventing cheating.

This allows the teacher to determine the severity of the infraction and whether it invalidates the student’s examination. In any case, it’s not the proctoring tool that makes the decision.