eExams: Strength in Diversity

Abstract

This study examined the growing number of emerging eExam systems that allow students to demonstrate academic achievement using computers in schools and universities. Using a mixed-methods case study approach, the research gathered data from a desk audit, followed by field observations and interviews in selected countries. Thematic investigation of the data revealed commonalities and differences in the eExam systems. The findings show the main systems under development are divided into two groups. The first are alternative booting systems that make an entire, identical operating system and application suite available to each candidate. The second comprises a variety of secure web-browser solutions. Both approaches permit the use of software applications, but it is not yet clear whether this affordance can transform curricula. It is clear there is tension between administrative convenience that saves staff time, and the transformational potential of computers in education that would alter what students learn as well as how they learn. This tension is epitomised by the different proportions of undergraduate examinations conducted using computers, ranging from 1% to 40% in some institutions. What was also clear from the data were the intentions of some countries and institutions to raise this to 100% in a five year span.

Transforming exams

“…While TTTT due to pedagogically narrow paper-based testing can limit the curriculum taught in the classroom, TTTT can equally be used to prompt positive reform if the characteristics of the test align with desired curriculum change (Anderson 2007). By designing a technological facility that serves to greatly expand the 'pedagogical landscape' in the exam room, we have elsewhere argued (Fluck & Hillier 2014 that such innovative, technology enhanced forms of high stakes assessment have the potential to 'unblock' and encourage curriculum transformation through a form positive of washback. In other words by expanding the 'pedagogical landscape' in the exam room through the provision of additional technological affordances the formative and summative parts of the course could be bought into better alignment with each other and the needs to contemporary twenty first century education and society.…”

“…The contrary is the case. We have argued over the past couple of years a rationale for using a 'whole computer' approach in the exam room (Hillier & Fluck 2013, Fluck & Hillier 2014. A sophisticated e-exam platform needs to offer contemporary text processing (such as office suites), rich media, discipline relevant software applications and interactive virtual environments (Llamas-Nistal, Fernandez-Iglesias, Gonzalez-Tato, & Mikic-Fonte, 2013).…”

e-Examinations: The Impact of Technology Problems on Student Experience

“…The results of previous studies are available [2][3][4][5]. The Australian-based work is in company with a number of similar projects underway in other countries [6][7][8]. This study aimed to explore the viability of re-purposing biology teaching laboratories for use as an examination (exam) space for students undertaking STEM courses.…”

“…This study aimed to explore the viability of re-purposing biology teaching laboratories for use as an examination (exam) space for students undertaking STEM courses. As a result of this circumstance, the definition of an e-exam in this study was simplified in a pragmatic manner over that espoused in previous studies in the series where the focus was previously on the development of authentic assessment capabilities [9,10] in the exam room [3,11,12]. The previous studies explored ideas of authentic tasks in exams and the use of bringyour-own-device (BYOD) [3,12].…”

Student Experiences with a Bring Your Own Laptop e-Exam System in Pre-university College

“…In this study, we characterise an e-Examination (e-Exam or e-exam) as a "timed, supervised, summative assessment conducted using each candidate's own computer running a standardised operating system" [1]. We would add that the use of authentic software applications as part of the examination environment is an important element of our approach.…”