Affordances offered by e-assessment tools > Capabilities of e-assessment

Question 37
How can e-assessment support take-home open-book examinations?

What motivates this question?

Many instititions have moved to home/remote exams due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and some may (for some courses) wish to continue with such assessments longer term. How can e-assessment help to deliver appropriate assessments and overcome some of the difficulties remote exams bring? What are the advantages and disadvantages? What to students think of these assessments?

More broadly than the pandemic, flexibility over when and where a test is taken is often reported as an advantage of e-assessment, which can increase accessibility and inclusion and reduce student stress. This flexibility can make e-assessment well-suited to part-time or distance study.

Some assessors feel summative e-assessments need to be invigilated even though randomisation may offer the opportunity for e-assessments to be taken uninvigilated (Pollock, 2002; Broughton, Robinson & Hernandez-Martinez, 2013, 2017; Brouwer et al., 2017), including that e-assessment does not address impersonation and collusion. It may be easier to cheat in e-assessment, since only the answer is provided and no working (Rowe, 2004; Rønning, 2017). Rønning (2017) says that “the variations in the problems from one student to another are such that it is possible to produce a general solution that can be copied”, and that “it can be seen that this happens to a rather large extent”. There are also standard computer security issues, such as students using hacking software to gain access to systems (Rowe, 2004).

What might an answer look like?

Research could consider various ways in which e-assessment might form all or part of a remote exam, perhaps by gathering a collection of case studies. Relevant features to address include:

  • What elements can be automatically marked and which elements might need solutions uploaded for human marking?
  • Would randomisation of CAA questions sufficiently address concerns of plagarism?
  • Is the performance of students affected by taking such an exam?

References

Broughton, S.J., Hernandez-Martinez, P. & Robinson, C.L. (2013). A definition for effective assessment and implications on computer-aided assessment practice. In A.M. Lindmeier & A. Heinze (Eds.), 37th Conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education, Kiel, Germany, vol. 2 (pp. 113-120). Berlin: The International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education.

Broughton, S.J., Hernandez-Martinez, P. & Robinson, C.L. (2017). The effectiveness of computer-aided assessment for purposes of a mathematical sciences lecturer. In M. Ramirez-Montoya (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Driving STEM Learning with Educational Technologies (pp. 427-443). Hershey, PA: IGI Global.

Brouwer, N., Heck, A. & Smit, G. (2017). Proctoring to improve teaching practice. MSOR Connections, 15(2), 25-33. https://doi.org/10.21100/msor.v15i2.414

Pollock, M.J. (2002). Introduction of CAA into a mathematics course for technology students to address a change in curriculum requirements. International Journal of Technology and Design Education, 12(3), 249-270. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020229330655

Rønning, F. (2017). Influence of computer-aided assessment on ways of working with mathematics. Teaching Mathematics and its Applications, 36(2), 94-107. https://doi.org/10.1093/teamat/hrx001

Rowe, N.C. (2004). Cheating in Online Student Assessment: Beyond Plagiarism. Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration, 7(4). Retrieved from http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/summer72/rowe72.html