UPDATE (12/2022): In case you missed it, the video recording feature has been restored. Room scanning remains disabled. Proctorio was able to separate the two features.
Miami University announced to faculty, instructional staff, and TAs last week about remote proctoring:
U.S. district court for the Northern District of Ohio issued a decision last week that Room Scans, used during remote proctoring, violate a student’s constitutional rights against unlawful search and seizure. As a result, we are, as a community, taking the following actions:
Miami University will no longer include the room scan as a selectable option within our remote proctoring software. This change has already been universally applied by our online proctoring provider and room scans are no longer available for use.
How does this affect remotely proctored quizzes and exams?
When you go into your Canvas quiz’s Proctorio Settings, you’ll notice that the room scan option has been disabled. When you hover over the selection, the text will read “locked by admin.” The video option is now restored.
Is there still value in remote proctoring if it isn’t recording surroundings?
Yes. Depending on the settings you’ve chosen for your exam, Proctorio can still record audio and video, record the student’s screen, and lock the student’s browser. These features ensure that students don’t engage in conversation or navigate other websites during the exam. Proctorio will continue to flag unusual behavior.
Do I need to update any of my exams?
If you’ve already set up and published a quiz or exam and students haven’t started taking it, you should disable Proctorio, save the exam, and then re-enable Proctorio. Some quizzes created before the change still asked students to scan their surroundings.
Where can I learn more about Proctorio?
For frequently asked questions like “How do I find and manage Proctorio settings?” and “Can I disable Proctorio for a particular student?” visit our Proctorio page.
Where can I get Proctorio support?
If you have a test in progress, please contact IT Help at 513-529-7900, and the help desk will direct a ticket to someone who can help you.
Can I expect the room scan policy to change?
It is unlikely that the room scan policy will change now that the video recording option has been restored. In the event the policy does change, we will alert all faculty and instructional staff.
Other Options for High-Stakes Assessments
Remote proctoring is valuable for upholding academic integrity for high-stakes assessments, but other options are available to you as an instructor. Consider the following:
Open Book Exams
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln offers the following tips:
- Use formula-based questions, for which an algorithm can generate unique versions of the question for each student;
- Use application-based questions that require more than simply looking up an answer;
- Avoid using publisher materials, since students can easily locate answers to these questions online;
- Create a large test bank, with a subset of questions chosen at random and in random order, so that no two students receive the same exam.
Written or Essay Exams
Essay exams “can reveal if students understand the theory behind course material or how different concepts and theories relate to each other,” writes the University of Minnesota Center for Educational Innovation. If you create your essay exam as a Canvas assignment, you can enable plagiarism detection via Turnitin. Note that the submission type(s) must be text entry or file upload.
Faculty Focus offers a guide to crafting good questions for better essay prompts (and papers). Northern Illinois University’s Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning also offers this student resource on preparing for essay exams.
Oral Exams or Presentations
Consider having students use tools like VoiceThread to conduct thorough interactive presentations. Instructors and, if desired, other students can annotate with audio, video, or text comments. Depending on your class’s enrollment size, another option is to administer oral exams through Webex or Zoom.
Scaffolding Assignments
Work backward from a large, capstone-like project, and break the assessment down into smaller assignments throughout the semester. The Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning at Harvard University details intentionally scaffolding and sequencing assignments.
Consider the Howe Writing Center for Excellence’s resource on scaffolding writing assignments.
Further Reading
- Fourteen Simple Strategies to Reduce Cheating on Online Examinations (Faculty Focus)
- Online Proctoring Tools: Balancing Academic Integrity with Student Access and Privacy (University of Vermont Center for Teaching and Learning)
Consult Miami Resources
Consider reaching out to Miami Online, the Center for Teaching Excellence, and the Howe Center for Writing Excellence for additional resources or consultations as you consider the most suitable assessment for your course(s). Be sure to review Miami Online’s toolkit for more information on technologies that can aid your chosen assessment technique(s).
