Using Respondus Lockdown Browser for Online Tests? Worth it?

[downer]

I just came across this useful site for cheaters
https://www.executiveacademics.com/single-post/2016/1/5/Beating-Cheating-and-Defeating-Online-Proctoring
and there was this from IHE
https://www.insidehighered.com/digital-learning/views/2017/09/20/creative-ways-students-try-cheat-online-exams

For the proctoring with webcams.
Who is viewing the student webcams? Do the protoring sites view each student the whole time? Or do they just record it, and then if the faculty member thinks there is a chance of cheating, they can view the video? Who would have time to view it?

It looks like one of my schools wants to use the monitoring service. I thought of writing to the dean to give my opinion, but I think it is easier just to ignore it all.

[the_geneticist]

Our school is trying some sort of "home-brew" proctoring that would require all of our students to have access to reliable internet, a quiet space, and a computer with a web camera.  I can absolutely guarantee that most of our students DO NOT have these things.  And they want the TAs to monitor the students in real time over Zoom.  That's 40-100 students per TA (depending on the classes).  So not worth bothering for any large enrollment classes.  But, you know, someone made a pretty graphic chart of how this would work in a perfect world so it must be a great idea!

[Anon1787]

Our school is trying some sort of "home-brew" proctoring that would require all of our students to have access to reliable internet, a quiet space, and a computer with a web camera.  I can absolutely guarantee that most of our students DO NOT have these things.  And they want the TAs to monitor the students in real time over Zoom.  That's 40-100 students per TA (depending on the classes).  So not worth bothering for any large enrollment classes.  But, you know, someone made a pretty graphic chart of how this would work in a perfect world so it must be a great idea!

Yes, and the determined cheaters will claim that they do not have access to the required items regardless.

[Aster]

It is really not advised for universities to be forcing respondus-type hardware requirements onto emergency remote classrooms, and the students in those emergency remote classes. Especially for classes that are medium to large-sized and weren't already web-cam enabled.

Professors might find it simpler and better in just making one-time, throw-away exams for this term. That's what I've been doing, and advising my colleagues to do. I'm using old exam questions, rewriting new ones, and dropping the total number of questions by half. I'm still activating the standard online anti-cheating suites built into the CMS, but I'm not concerned about the exams getting leaked onto the internet.

[mythbuster]

I'm using the Respondus Lockdown browser without the web cam function for my exams. I surveyed my students and over 25% did not have a web cam. Given this I needed to find a different set up.
     So I'm using the browser with an exam with a time limit. I've designed the multiple choice questions to have 10 or more answer options.  If you don't just know the answer you likely will waste precious time searching for it.  And my free response questions are for hypothetical situations that have no google accessible answers. The exams are open note.
   I gave my first exam this way last week.while there were more As than usual,there was a full distribution down to Ds. The lowest score clearly ran out of time, indicating that they had not properly prepared and those huge answer banks likely got them.
   Ultimately, you do the best you can. I figure that over two thirds of my students grades were determined before the Pandemic, so that will limit the impact of this shift.

[the_geneticist]

It is really not advised for universities to be forcing respondus-type hardware requirements onto emergency remote classrooms, and the students in those emergency remote classes. Especially for classes that are medium to large-sized and weren't already web-cam enabled.

Professors might find it simpler and better in just making one-time, throw-away exams for this term. That's what I've been doing, and advising my colleagues to do. I'm using old exam questions, rewriting new ones, and dropping the total number of questions by half. I'm still activating the standard online anti-cheating suites built into the CMS, but I'm not concerned about the exams getting leaked onto the internet.

This is what I'm pushing, but upper admin wants some sort of high tech, yet free, solution.

[dr_codex]

It is really not advised for universities to be forcing respondus-type hardware requirements onto emergency remote classrooms, and the students in those emergency remote classes. Especially for classes that are medium to large-sized and weren't already web-cam enabled.

Professors might find it simpler and better in just making one-time, throw-away exams for this term. That's what I've been doing, and advising my colleagues to do. I'm using old exam questions, rewriting new ones, and dropping the total number of questions by half. I'm still activating the standard online anti-cheating suites built into the CMS, but I'm not concerned about the exams getting leaked onto the internet.

This is what I'm pushing, but upper admin wants some sort of high tech, yet free, solution.

Same here. In a not-so-surprising turn of events, not all students have devices with webcams. This is a version of our endless debate about requiring students to have minimum technology, without making any effort to source it, maintain it, or accommodate crises. For a technical college, we can be pretty ham-fisted.

[Aster]

I've designed the multiple choice questions to have 10 or more answer options.  If you don't just know the answer you likely will waste precious time searching for it.  And my free response questions are for hypothetical situations that have no google accessible answers. The exams are open note.

Holy. Cow. 10+ option multiple-choice?? That is seriously hardcore. How much time do you put into digitizing that exam?

I've been getting hand cramps for a month now, just digitizing everything into default, 4-option multiple choice questions.

You Sir, deserve a pedagogy statue for awesome sauce. Or perhaps a carpal tunnel glove would be more welcome. Gods, I need to order one of those...

[biop_grad]

I've designed the multiple choice questions to have 10 or more answer options.  If you don't just know the answer you likely will waste precious time searching for it.  And my free response questions are for hypothetical situations that have no google accessible answers. The exams are open note.

Holy. Cow. 10+ option multiple-choice?? That is seriously hardcore. How much time do you put into digitizing that exam?

I've been getting hand cramps for a month now, just digitizing everything into default, 4-option multiple choice questions.

You Sir, deserve a pedagogy statue for awesome sauce. Or perhaps a carpal tunnel glove would be more welcome. Gods, I need to order one of those...

I'd use short answer, but I could see why you don't.

It is really not advised for universities to be forcing respondus-type hardware requirements onto emergency remote classrooms, and the students in those emergency remote classes. Especially for classes that are medium to large-sized and weren't already web-cam enabled.

Professors might find it simpler and better in just making one-time, throw-away exams for this term. That's what I've been doing, and advising my colleagues to do. I'm using old exam questions, rewriting new ones, and dropping the total number of questions by half. I'm still activating the standard online anti-cheating suites built into the CMS, but I'm not concerned about the exams getting leaked onto the internet.

Considered it for a while.  This is what I've decided after quite a bit of thinking.