scholarly journals Online Remote Proctoring Software in the Neoliberal Institution: Measurement, Accountability, and Testing Culture

in education ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-40
Author(s):  
Cristyne Hébert

As COVID-19 spread in early 2020, a lockdown was implemented across Canadian provinces andterritories, resulting in the shuttering of physical post-secondary campuses. Universities quicklypivoted to remote learning, and faculty members adjusted their instructional and assessmentapproaches to align with virtual environments. Presumably to aid with this process, a number ofinstitutions acquired licenses to remote online proctoring services. This paper examines theresearch around online remote proctoring, examining the justification offered for the adoption ofonline remote proctoring, and contemporary research on assessment practices in higher education.Throughout the paper, I demonstrate a lack of research that speaks to the efficacy of this mode ofassessment while also acknowledging shifts in the testing environment, and an increase in studentanxiety. I argue that online remote proctoring is not only embedded within neoliberalism and auditculture, but supports a continued reliance on testing culture. It concludes with a discussion ofassessment culture, offering some alternative assessment approaches that might disrupt the veryneed for online remote proctoring. Keywords: Online remote proctoring, assessment, testing

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 4755
Author(s):  
Víctor H. Perera ◽  
Anabel Moriña ◽  
Nieves Sánchez-Díaz ◽  
Yolanda Spinola-Elias

Currently, the development of new virtual environments as a complementary tool to face-to-face teaching and the increased presence of students with disabilities at university classrooms are changing the landscape of university teaching. This article analyses the actions of faculty members who carry out inclusive practices in the context of technological platforms. The research was based on the assumptions of the qualitative paradigm, using individual semi-structured interviews with 119 faculty members from 10 Spanish public universities. The results show the reasons for inclusive learning with technological platforms, the use that faculty members make of these platforms in their inclusive educational practices, and the influence of these on the learning of students, especially students with disabilities. The conclusions give a good account of the conditions that determine the pedagogical use that faculty members make of virtual environments to facilitate the inclusion of students.


Pythagoras ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 0 (69) ◽  
Author(s):  
Belinda Huntley ◽  
Johann Engelbrecht ◽  
Ansie Harding

In this study we propose a taxonomy for assessment in mathematics, which we call the assessment component taxonomy, to identify those components of mathematics that can be successfully assessed using alternative assessment formats. Based on the literature on assessment models and taxonomies in mathematics, this taxonomy consists of seven mathematics assessment components, hierarchically ordered by cognitive level, as well as the nature of the mathematical tasks associated with each component. Using a model that we developed earlier for measuring the quality of mathematics test items, we investigate which of the assessment components can be successfully assessed in the provided response question (PRQ) format, in particular multiple choice questions (MCQs), and which can be better assessed in the constructed response question (CRQ) format. The results of this study show that MCQs can be constructed to evaluate higher order levels of thinking and learning. The conclusion is that MCQs can be successfully used as an assessment format in undergraduate mathematics, more so in some assessment components than in others. The inclusion of the PRQ assessment format in all seven assessment components can reduce the large marking loads, associated with continuous assessment practices in undergraduate mathematics, without compromising the validity of the assessment.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e315
Author(s):  
Isabel S. Fitton ◽  
Daniel J. Finnegan ◽  
Michael J. Proulx

Massive Open Online Courses are a dominant force in remote-learning yet suffer from persisting problems stemming from lack of commitment and low completion rates. In this initial study we investigate how the use of immersive virtual environments for Power-Point based informational learning may benefit learners and mimic traditional lectures successfully. We examine the role of embodied agent tutors which are frequently implemented within virtual learning environments. We find similar performance on a bespoke knowledge test and metrics for motivation, satisfaction, and engagement by learners in both real and virtual environments, regardless of embodied agent tutor presence. Our results raise questions regarding the viability of using virtual environments for remote-learning paradigms, and we emphasise the need for further investigation to inform the design of effective remote-learning applications.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 42
Author(s):  
Haris Sugianto

Although a large number of studies have put a focus on the enactment of blended learning in English as a foreign language (EFL) classroom, there is a paucity of research into the teacher’s lived experiences of how they enact assessment in the blended learning activities. To fill such a gap, this paper reports on a narrative inquiry of an EFL teacher’s lived experiences of conducting assessment during blended learning in the pandemic era. The finding of the study shed light on the ineffectiveness of the assessment practice during the blended learning enactment, particularly in the context of rural schools. Albeit the participating teacher in this study was fully engaged to conduct assessment from his past experiences, two major problems hinder such a practice: students’ unsubmitted assignments and poor Internet connection. Based on these findings, teachers are encouraged to find an alternative assessment practice during the blended learning, portfolio assessment can be an option. This suggestion is anchored by the fact that the assessment practice was not technically supported during the blended learning activities.


1994 ◽  
Vol 64 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Darling-Hammond

The use of educational testing in the United States has been criticized for its inequitable effects on different populations of students. Many assume that new forms of assessment will lead to more equitable outcomes. Linda Darling-Hammond argues in this article, however, that alternative assessment methods, such as performance-based assessment, are not inherently equitable, and that educators must pay careful attention to the ways that the assessments are used. Some school reform strategies, for example, use assessment reform as a lever for external control of schools. These strategies, Darling-Hammond argues, are unlikely to be successful and the assessments are unlikely to be equitable because they stem from a distrust of teachers and fail to involve teachers in the reform processes. Darling-Hammond argues instead for policies that ensure "top-down support for bottom-up reform," where assessment is used to give teachers practical information on student learning and to provide opportunities for school communities to engage in "a recursive process of self-reflection, self-critique, self-correction, and self-renewal." Ultimately, then, the equitable use of performance assessments depends not only on the design of the assessments themselves, but also on how well the assessment practices are interwoven with the goals of authentic school reform and effective teaching.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 440-458
Author(s):  
Marwan Saeed Saif Moqbel

The present study aimed at investigating alternative assessment (AA) within the Yemeni university EFL classrooms in terms of identifying the challenges of using AA to assess undergraduate EFL students from the perspectives of the faculty. Data were collected, through a questionnaire, from (66) lecturers and professors of different ranks who teach EFL at the collegiate level in two Yemeni public universities and one national university. The results of the study indicated that faculty members of English departments at Yemeni universities face some challenges of using AA to assess undergraduate EFL students. These challenges belong to various factors, including the instructional environment, the students, the management of Yemeni universities, the faculty members, or the nature of AA. Statistically significant differences were found in the mean scores according to years of experience variable between respondents with less than 5 years and those with 5-10 years of experience in favor of those with less than 5 years of experience, but not according to the type of university, gender, and specialization variables. Accordingly, some recommendations were given to address the identified challenges, which might lead to a better implementation of AA in Yemeni university EFL classrooms.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junaid Qadir ◽  
Aamir Shafi ◽  
Ala Al-Fuqaha ◽  
Abd-Elhamid M. Taha ◽  
Kok-Lim Alvin Yau ◽  
...  

In this research paper, we present—as a geographically dispersed set of academics working in nine different countries: namely, Pakistan, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates, United States of America, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Qatar, China, and Malaysia—a global international perspective on Outcome-based Education (OBE) accreditation standards, practices, and attitudes. The OBE paradigm is now the underlying paradigm followed by global accreditation efforts such as the Washington Accord (ratified in 1989). The shift to OBE is so pronounced that some education experts identify the shift to OBE and accreditation as one of the top 5 major changes of the last 100 years. Although OBE is often criticized for straitjacketing education, and resisted by hesitant faculty members suspecting additional burden, studies show that the OBE movement, on the whole, has helped in improving the educational standards and outcomes by ensuring proper planning of curriculum and assessment and their alignment with the program objectives and desired outcomes. OBE is also flexible in the sense that it does not dictate the choice of specific education strategies or teaching methods—it only says what should be the outcome. New OBE schemes have also diversified in response to early misgivings about OBE (related to excessive paperwork, and bean-counting-like auditing) and now admit diverse types of evidence (including qualitative and quantitative, formative and summative, formal and informal assessments). The aim of this work is to present a synthesis of the experiences of an international set of authors and the sharing of the global best practices in the field related to accreditation and assessment. An extensive internal survey was conducted to collect data from these international academics. After processing the data, we have organized our analysis as a discussion on a range of accreditation stages and artifacts including vision/mission statements, program objectives and outcomes, curriculum planning, educational assessment strategies, common pitfalls, and iterative continuous improvement. This paper will be a helpful starting guide for faculty members new to OBE, while also offering a broader perspective to experienced faculty members and administrators.


Author(s):  
Eileen De Courcy ◽  
Tim Loblaw ◽  
Jessica Paterson ◽  
Theresa Southam ◽  
Mary M Wilson

Following collaborative discussion and an initial literature review, a small group of college educators from three Canadian provinces, occupying roles at the micro, meso, and macro levels of their respective institutions, identified the need to develop a tool that considers institutional context in both determining the state of, and preparing for the advancement of, the state of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). Further exploration into both the literature and our own experiences revealed that the state of SoTL within a particular institution seems to rely less on its categorization as a, for example, college, university, or technical institute, and more on the intricate web of factors that constitute the institution’s context. While other researchers have put forth this call to consider institutional context to determine support for SoTL practices and processes, a detailed process or tool for doing so was not apparent. Adopting Bolman and Deal’s (2008) framework for organizational structure, and combining this with data-gathering processes popularized by Smith’s (2005) institutional ethnography, as well as a series of guiding questions, our tool represents an initial step in systematically representing SoTL-enabling and impeding artifacts commonly found in post-secondary institutions. Assuming SoTL leaders modify this tool based on their own entry points, a call is put forward to the Canadian post-secondary SoTL community to field-test the tool in order to facilitate reflection upon how a variety of factors encourage and impede SoTL advancement at our unique institutions, the interconnections between these factors and how we might use these to solve the pedagogical problems we face. Après avoir mené une discussion collaborative et examiné la documentation publiée, un petit groupe d’éducateurs de collèges de trois provinces canadiennes, qui jouent des rôles aux niveaux micro, meso et macro dans leurs établissements respectifs, ont identifié le besoin de développer un outil qui prend en considération le contexte institutionnel à la fois pour déterminer l’état de l’avancement des connaissances en enseignement et en apprentissage (ACEA) et pour se préparer à sa croissance. Un examen plus approfondi à la fois des documents publiés et de nos propres expériences a révélé que l’état de l’ACEA au sein d’un établissement donné semble s’appuyer non pas tant sur sa catégorisation en tant que, par exemple, collège, université ou institut technique, mais plutôt sur le réseau complexe des facteurs qui constituent le contexte de l’établissement. Bien que d’autres chercheurs aient déjà suggéré de prendre en considération le contexte institutionnel afin de déterminer le soutien apporté aux pratiques et aux processus d’ACEA, aucun processus détaillé d’outils permettant d’y arriver n’a été identifié. Notre outil, qui adapte le cadre proposé par Bolman et Deal (2008) pour une structure organisationnelle en le combinant avec des procédés de collection de données popularisés par l’ethnographie institutionnelle de Smith (2005), ainsi qu’une série de questions d’orientation, constitue une étape initiale pour représenter systématiquement les artefacts paralysants et favorables à l’ACEA communément trouvés dans les établissements post-secondaires. À supposer que les leaders de l’ACEA modifient cet outil selon leur point d’entrée, un appel est lancé à la communauté de l’ACEA des établissements d’enseignement supérieur canadiens pour tester l’outil sur le terrain afin de faciliter la réflexion sur la manière dont une variété de facteurs encouragent et entravent la croissance de l’ACEA dans nos établissements uniques, sur les inter-connexions entre ces facteurs et sur la manière dont nous pourrions les utiliser pour résoudre le problème pédagogique auquel nous sommes confrontés.


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