“We realised quite quickly that we needed two components: a policy document and a guidance document providing advice and ideas, since many teachers have questions about how to conduct a remote examination and what to think about when giving a take-home exam,” says Ulrika Svalfors, head of the Unit for Academic Teaching and Learning, a member of the working group that drafted the documents.
The policy document Guidelines for the Remote Delivery of Written Exams at Uppsala University refers to the types of written exams that would normally be given in exam rooms, with a limited time for answering the exam during a single day, but which instead are being delivered remotely, explains Eva Söderman, head of the Student Health Centre, who has led the working group.
One point the members of the working group want to emphasise is the importance of information for students ahead of an exam. The students need clear information about which aids are permitted during the exam – and which aids are not permitted. For example, are examinees permitted to collaborate with coursemates? Normally, no such collaboration is allowed. Both the students and the bodies consulted on the proposal have raised the importance of this information in particular.
“The Disciplinary Board at the University has had to deal with many cases involving cheating and plagiarism this year. These guidelines will facilitate their work,” Söderman thinks. (Link to article: A growing number of students are cheating – clearer instructions are now require) article.
Video invigilation – not allowed
One paragraph in the guidelines document is about invigilation in the case of remote written exams. Invigilation using a video service is not allowed. If a department considers that invigilation is essential for the exam, they should preferably choose to give the exam in an exam room. If that is not feasible, it is possible to obtain an exemption. For this purpose, the University has created a procedure for requesting an Exemption for exam invigilation using a video service. This includes contact with the data protection officer.
“Video invigilation is no guarantee against cheating during an examination, we know that. Many teachers are also aware that it is fairer to hold a normal exam in an exam room, where it is easier to keep track of what students are doing,” says Söderman.
Meets a demand
Like the guidelines, the document Guidance for Remote Examinations meets a demand expressed by teachers and examiners and it is well organised and clearly laid out.
“As it is intended as guidance for those conducting a remote examination for the first time, it does not go into all the details. More in-depth information is available in the Staff Portal, under the Teaching tab, and the document also contains contact details for support for further assistance. The document discusses what to do before, during and after the exam,” says Svalfors.
The document describes several different types of examination:
- Written examination of facts and intended learning outcomes – describe, name, list, etc.
- Written examination of theoretical knowledge other than facts – take-home exam, e.g. tasks requiring reflection, reviews and other types of essays, independent work, etc.
- Oral examination – which can be used to test knowledge and understanding, or judgement and approach.
The general advice in the guidance document is to reformulate questions for remote examinations.
“When constructing a remote exam, our general recommendation is to redesign the questions to make them more essay-like,” says Svalfors. “Think through the questions and their format. How can you formulate questions in a way that will show how well prepared the student is? That’s the trick. Refine the format of the questions to elicit individual answers, in the sense that each individual needs to think about which facts are relevant and how to present the answer.”
How you construct this kind of exam varies from subject to subject. The humanities and social sciences have a good deal of experience of take-home exams, while the other disciplinary domains are more used to exams in exam rooms. In other words, it is quite a big job initially to understand how to prepare an exam in a different way, and it takes time. But when you’ve done it once, that pays off later, Svalfors believes.
Get help from colleagues
The actual correcting of the exam is also more time-consuming, as the answers may be longer.
“One thing you can do is to get your colleagues to help, both in constructing an exam and in correcting it. This is already quite common practice. That way, you can divide up an exam between different teachers and discuss things with one another, particularly if there are borderline cases where you need to decide if a student is going to pass or fail. This makes it a learning process for teachers as well,” says Svalfors.
It makes it easier if there are grading criteria that show what is required for a pass grade, and that the teachers have agreed on together.
The importance of informing the students of the rules for a remote examination comes up repeatedly. No one must be able to miss this information.
The guidance document will be a living document that will be regularly updated.
“Even when the coronavirus pandemic is over, this form of examination will continue to be an alternative to an exam in an exam room. The documents have been produced to remain relevant in the longer term,” says Söderman.