Virtual proctoring: the final hurdle in legitimising online education

Any system of education is incomplete and invalid without proper means of testing learners. That’s because these tests and their results determine the efficacy of teaching methods as well as the learning capabilities of individual learners. The same applies to online education. Although video lectures over Zoom and other online means may have become standard practice now, testing still remains a challenging task to perform through online means.

Conducting a traditional test at an examination center is challenging enough for institutes already. Exam supervisors need to be vigilant to avoid cheating and other malpractices by candidates during the test. Considering this, conducting online tests with virtual proctoring poses far sterner challenges for teachers and institutions. However, if online education is to gain validity, virtual testing — and more specifically, virtual proctoring — must be made more effective and uncomplicated. And how do you achieve that?

Preventing exam malpractices

Virtual proctoring tools’ primary function should be to ensure that students don’t engage in cheating. This function can be performed effectively by AI-based proctoring solutions like uLearn. uLearn uses AI to monitor the movements of the candidates to look out for signs indicative of malpractice. Students who are taking the test receive a warning if the system detects any attempts to cheat during the exam. Human proctors can communicate instructions to the candidates during the test. After the exam, the system generates a proctoring report for individual candidates.

Securing user data

Virtual proctoring solutions should be aware of concerns regarding the security of students’ personal information. To keep students at ease during the test-taking process, virtual proctoring systems should not request users to download and install unnecessary applications on their computers. They should not store any student information after the conclusion of an examination.

Maintaining user privacy

The topic of user privacy is a sensitive one for everyone. There are several articles on the internet about the privacy risks associated with taking examinations online. To prevent any such worries, online proctoring services should not request candidates to show their personal environment before or during an online test. While the main priority is to conduct examinations without the involvement of unethical practices on the students’ part, it is equally critical to ensure student privacy. To do so, virtual proctoring services should make sure that proctors do not intrude on test takers’ personal space or their computers.

Simplifying virtual proctoring

Virtual proctoring software should be easily compatible with several web browsers across various platforms. The user interface should be easy to navigate for the examination candidates as well as those conducting the exams.

We at uLearn continuously make efforts to eliminate the niggles that come with conducting examinations and lectures over the internet through our virtual proctoring solution. You can contact us to know more about our tools and services, and how they make online education easier yet more effective for everyone.

To know more about uLearn: https://ulearn.io/