Samigo Working Group
Meeting Information
Day/Time:  Biweekly, Tuesdays 11am PT / Noon MT / 2-3 ET / 18:00 UCT
Phone number: (317) 278-7008Â Access Code: 484896#
Sign In:
- Lynn Ward, Indiana University
- Andrea Schmidt, Indiana University
- Chris Kretler, University of Michigan
- Neal Caidin, Sakai Foundation, CLE Community Coordinator
- Joni Miller, Seminole State College of Florida
- Ying Wang, Indiana University
- Luke Fernandez, Weber State U.
Agenda:
- Taking a Secure Test w/ Outside Sites (Student Perspective)
Meeting Notes
- NEH funded; originally applied for a NEH grant a year ago;Â
- Elevator pitch: subscribes to Educause listserv; post to listserv about technical solutions to prevent students from being dstracted. CIO responses were averse to doing that sort of thing; CIO saw mission as providing more connectivity, not less; that was the end of the discussion on the CIO listserv; 150 yearsago Thoreau was able to move off the grid and onto Walden pond where he could think; building a cabin where students can think; decided to look for a digital solution--think of testing centers as concentration labs. Give students no access during tests or exercises or give limited access. Project ended last spring and they are writing up the results.
- the tool worked effectively in terms of helping students to reflect
- not all students liked going to the lab to do their work
- a catalyst to get students to think about the problem of digital distractions
- still using the browser now
- helps to standardize the tools made available through the testing centerÂ
- In conversations that Luke has had with Keli, it seems that users are looking for ways to do more secure testing
- Keli: even though the original focus was helping students concentrate, this application has potential for secure testing.
- Ken Romeo: gives a writing test where they do want to lock down the browser; nothing to prevent student from opening another browser; any system that doesn't save the data to the desktop is subject to network errors.
- GSB has just starting to think about Online testing; trying to catch up and to see what others are doing
- GSB: one of their biggest concerns is performance; have there been some bugs with the locked down browser; mostly have been resolved. Mitigated most problems by caching the data locally.
- If you hit CTRL-ALT-Delete, you get the control panel where you can access another app; secure browser just helps to facilitate secure test taking.
- Respondus Lockdown Browser locks you out of all other apps. You can define a whitelist (apps that can run while the Respondus LDB is running). They make a custom exe file for your institution.
- At GSB, exams are proctorless and students use their own computers. At Weber State, they are using proctors. Proctors are probably needed with the Concentration Browser.
- Another approach would be setting up a testing center. Still a proctor would be useful.
- Keli liked the idea of being able to whitelist sites for specifc tests.
- JIm: Respondus does allow you to include links in a test, and user can go to that one site or page.