Resources for Online Assessments

The following tips were prepared by CEL, CTE, and the OAI. This information is available in PDF format.

Set your students up for success

• Talk to your students about the importance of honesty and academic integrity – this is the most effective way of preventing academic misconduct.
• Consider including the Academic Integrity Agreement on all online exams and discuss the importance of upholding academic integrity in your discipline.
• Give clear directions about your expectations for writing assignments, group work, and online exams.
• Vary your assessment strategies and use a number of lower stake or scaffolded assignments to evaluate your students.
• Increase your online social presence and hold online office hours so students can connect with you and see you as being a real person. Student-to-instructor interaction is important to students’ learning and when students feel a connection with their instructor they are less likely to cheat.
• Point to resources that students can access should they need help such as emailing their academic advisors, online tutorials or workshops, library references etc.
• Watch the webinar Academic Integrity in Online Course: Adapting During Covid 19 (YouTube, 1:26:40).
• Keep your focus on learning, not on avoiding cheating.

Don’t assume that all, or even most, students will cheat on online exams. Know what the research shows.

• Research shows that compared with assessments written in person, online assessments do not necessarily lead to increased cheating.  The frequency of cheating in online assessments depends on several factors related to the design and parameters of the assessment.
• In any assessment environment (online or in person) academic misconduct is more likely:
  • When students are in high stakes situations.
  • When there is an increased opportunity for misconduct. When instructors have not taken steps to uphold academic integrity, the opportunity for misconduct is increased.

Avoid creating high stakes situations where students are more likely to feel desperate

• Avoid giving high stakes assessments (i.e., those that are worth 30% or more).
• Keep the duration of the assessment (i.e., the amount of time for actually interacting with the assessment questions or tasks) reasonable.
• Remember to add extra time for each student who requires that accommodation, as per their accommodations plan from AccessAbility Services so that students with disabilities do not face increased obstacles.

Design exams that uphold academic integrity and decrease the opportunity for academic misconduct

• Avoid re-using the same assessment questions from term to term.  Making even slight changes to the questions and the response options improves academic integrity.  
• Explicitly state that the assessment is open-book.
• For multiple choice assessments, consider incorporating at least some written response questions, if possible.
• Avoid using open test bank questions where answers can be found online.
• Create large banks of questions for online quizzes and have each student get a random sample of these questions.
• Scramble the response options on multiple choice questions. This works well as long as long as there is no choice for the questions that is “all of the above”.
• For calculation-based questions, consider using an algorithmic question generator to create questions that have different parameters and numbers in the questions and in the answers.
• When creating a new assessment, prepare multiple versions of the assessment in order to reduce future workload.

Use timed exams appropriately and only when learning outcomes warrant timed assessment

• Recognize that many students are writing assessments in sub-optimal conditions that might involve interruptions from ill family members, unreliable Internet connections, etc.
• Consider what you want to assess by timing the assessment, and whether or not that fits with your learning outcomes.
• For low stakes quizzes that are intended to assess students' recall of information, keep the window of time short, so the test doesn't end up assessing students' ability to look up the answers.
• When using application questions (for which the answers cannot simply be looked up) timing is typically less crucial.
• Recognize that timed exams are generally considered stressful (especially if students see the countdown clock during the exam).

Consider that students are writing exams in various time zones, during a pandemic

• Set a time parameters of at least 24 hours so that students in multiple time zones have the opportunity to access the exam during daytime hours.
• Recognize that a pandemic increases the likelihood of students becoming ill during the term. Provide the opportunity for a make-up exam rather than re-weighting missed midterm grades to the final exam.
• Provide flexibility by offering multiple quizzes with the lowest one being dropped.

Use exam delivery settings that encourage academic integrity

• Show only one question per screen (vs. displaying all exam questions on one screen) to reduce the likelihood that students will make use of “screen print” to copy the exam questions.
• Do not show grades until all students in the class (including all sections of the course) have written the exam.

Instructors can ask students to sign the following academic integrity agreements when completing assignments and tests:

• Academic Integrity Honesty Statement from Keep Learning (for examinations)
• Academic Integrity Checklist from the Office of Academic Integrity (for assignments or tests)

Implementing the use of a signed form can help reduce academic misconduct (Ely, Henderson & Wachsman, 2014; Konhheim-Kalkstein, 2006). In particular, research demonstrates that signing an academic integrity form in a non-proctored environment can decrease instances of cheating (Ely, Henderson & Wachsman, 2014). Instructors should introduce the form to be signed by students and discuss the intent behind its use.

The form is a reminder that academic integrity is important, and that each student is personally committing, by their signature, to uphold the values of integrity and honestly demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of the topic at hand. Being explicit and specific about prohibited behavior makes it easier for students to understand and avoid (Whitley & Keith-Speigel, 2001).

Instructors can use infographic icons on assessments to clearly indicate to students the level of collaboration acceptable, authorized aids, and unauthorized aids. Download and use the templates and icons (PPT).

Instructors can watch the July, 2020 webinars hosted by James Skidmore, CTE, and CEL "Reducing Cheating Online: Tips and Examples" and "Fostering Student Engagement Online".

The OAI, in collaboration with a number of campus partners, hosted the June 30, 2020 webinar "Navigating Academic Integrity Issues in Online Teaching and Learning". Instructors can view the slides here the slides (PDF) and read a summary of the panel below:

Introduction

Students only take academic integrity as seriously as their instructors and the rest of the campus. Young et al. (2018) found that, “positive peer pressure as well as positive role modeling by faculty lead students to engage in and maintain a sense of academic integrity” (pg. 12). Furthermore, Morris (2018), states “a recurring theme in the current literature is the importance, in teaching and learning environments, of building relationships with students and holding discussions with them about academic integrity issues (Bretag et al., 2018; Ellis et al., 2018; Rogerson, 2017; Rowland et al., 2018)” (pg. 9). Therefore, it’s important to regularly converse about academic integrity and the importance of maintaining it.

More importantly, research has evidenced that there are long term repercussions of letting academic misconduct slide – in particular, students who are not corrected for academic misconduct (intentional or unintentional) are more likely to engage in other misconduct later in their careers (Guerrero-Dib  et al., 2020; Nonis & Smith, 2001; Scrimpshire et al., 2019; Sims, 1993; Stone et al., 2011).

The values of integrity need to be systemic and thread throughout everything we do in higher education (Bretag and Harper, 2017; Morris, 2018; Stephens, 2016). Building a culture of academic integrity is the best way to discourage academic misconduct (Khan, et al., 2020).

Panel

How do you create a culture of integrity while remote teaching?

Linda Carson (former Continuing Lecturer, Stratford School) shares a short video at the beginning of the semester on academic integrity. The video does not focus on cheating and misconduct, but on what trust means in scholarship. 

Linda also used Turnitin as an educational tool for students. She allowed them to submit drafts to Turnitin early so that they can identify citation issues within their paper before submitting their final assignment and gives them a bonus mark for using proper citations. Giving them the opportunity to practice citations, as well as assessing their citations, ensures students know properly crediting their sources is important component of good scholarship.

Linda also used regular, low-stakes quizzes that are open book to keep students on track. She used a humorous practice quiz in the first week of class so that they become familiar with the Learn quizzes and are less stressed completing them. Linda used pools of questions so that the questions students get are randomized. In addition, she had some larger written assignments that students can customize to their topic of interest to ensure all answers are unique.

Brian Forrest (Professor, Pure Math) has a discussion with his students on focusing on the learning opportunities by completing his assignments, instead of focusing on the grades. He encourages collaboration while completing assignments, but asks them to cite those they are collaborating with. Brian also designs his assignments and tests so that at least 60% of the assessment can be done by engaging with basic course material so they have a sense of achievable success.

Krishian Camarago (Undergraduate Student, AHS) thinks Academic Integrity Honesty Statements or Group Submission Forms are an excellent way to remind students of their academic integrity responsibilities before completing and submitting assessments. The intent behind these forms should be introduced to students by instructors.

What academic integrity concerns do students have in the online environment?

Krishian believes that that student’s perspectives of what their peers are doing has a big influence on their own actions. If students think their classmates are cheating, they may feel the pressure to cheat as well so their grades are competitive. Students want to hear what their instructors are doing to address academic integrity issues in the classroom, and want to know that those who are cheating are being held accountable. Krishian also says there are a lot of gray areas in academic integrity, and she wants her instructors to be very explicit about their expectations (e.g., what can or can’t be collaborated on).

Megan Town (VP Educations, WUSA) believes it is important that students feel as though they do not always need to succeed, and that missteps are part of the learning experience. Students should be assessed mainly on their process and critical thinking, and not necessarily on whether they get the right answer at the end.

How do instructors balance the recommendation for low-stakes assessments with the stress caused by a large number of assessments across a student’s program?

Brian Forrest says there may be a tendency to overload students with more assessments in the online environment. He uses small weekly assignments to help guide students through the content, but they are structured so students can complete the assignments by simply engaging with the course content. In addition, Brian has 3 more substantial assignments due throughout the term, but students are able to work on them when they have time. Their time management is the primary issue, but if you give them some flexibility, they are more likely to complete the task as best they can.

Mary Power (CTE) says the assessments should be very regular, and instructors should ensure that students know the due dates well ahead of time. Additionally, allowing students to drop their lowest one or two assessments (e.g., a weekly quiz), and having some flexibility in the deadlines, will reduce student stress.

David Harmsworth (Assistant Dean of Students, Math) sees difficulty with deadlines and time management as a common theme among student complaints during appeals and grievances. While students need to understand the importance of deadlines, instructors should offer as much flexibility as possible without compromising the integrity of the course. For example, instructors can allow a one-day late submission with a very minor grade penalty. It may be helpful to communicate the motivation behind deadlines (e.g., you need to release feedback or solutions to the rest of the class and cannot do so with late submissions past the grace period).

Marlee Spafford (Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies, Science) gives students a one ‘slip day’ in her course that allows students to submit one assignment late without penalty. 

Erin Jobidon (SSO) says it is helpful to point students to time management resources (e.g., Assignment Planner), particularly for programs who are switching from larger, less frequent assessments, to more regular low-stake assessments. Instructors can also recommend students track how long their weekly assignments are taking, so they can set aside an accurate amount of time in the future for those assignments. 

How can the academic integrity strategies discussed be scaled up to large classes?

Mary says quizzes can be set-up so that they are auto-graded, and feedback is automatically given to the students. Further, having group assignments can reduce the number of projects instructors need to mark. Requiring peer review before final submission and having a rubric with clear, detailed expectations can make assignments easier and quicker to mark. 

References:

Bretag, T., Harper, R. (2017). Addressing contract cheating: local and global responses. Project on Contract Cheating and Assessment Design: Exploring the Connection PowerPoint presentation. In Morris, E. J. (2018). Academic integrity matters: five considerations for addressing contract cheating. International Journal for Educational Integrity, 14(1), 15. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40979-018-0038-5

Khan, Z.R., Hemnani, P., Raheja, S. et al. Raising Awareness on Contract Cheating –Lessons Learned from Running Campus-Wide Campaigns. J Acad Ethics 18, 175–191 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10805-020-09365-2

Guerrero-Dib, J.G., Portales, L. & Heredia-Escorza, Y. Impact of academic integrity on workplace ethical behaviour. Int J Educ Integr 16, 2 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40979-020-0051-3

Morris, E. J. (2018). Academic integrity matters: five considerations for addressing contract cheating. International Journal for Educational Integrity, 14(1), 15. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40979-018-0038-5

Nonis, S., & Swift, C. O. (2001). An examination of the relationship between academic dishonesty and workplace dishonesty: a multi-campus investigation. Journal of Education for Business, 77(2), 69–77.

Scrimpshire, A., Stone, T.H., Kisamore, J.L. et al. Do Birds of a Feather Cheat Together? How Personality and Relationships Affect Student Cheating. J Acad Ethics 15, 1–22 (2017). https://doi-org.proxy.lib.uwaterloo.ca/10.1007/s10805-016-9267-5

Sims, R. L. (1993). The relationship between academic dishonesty and unethical business practices. Journal of Education for Business, 68(4), 207–211.

Stephens, J.M. (2016). Creating Cultures of Integrity: A Multilevel Intervention Model for Promoting Academic Honesty in T. Bretag (ed.), Handbook of Academic Integrity, pp. 995-1007. DOI:10.1007/978-981-287-098-8_13

Stone, T. H., Jawahar, I. M., & Kisamore, J. L. (2011). Predicting workplace misconduct using personality and academic behaviors. In R. J. Burke, E. C. Tomlinson, & C. L. Cooper (Eds.), Crime and corruption in organizations – why it occurs and what to do about it. Surrey: Gower Publishing Limited.

Ryan L. Young1 & Graham N. S. Miller 1 & Cassie L. Barnhardt (2018).  From Policies to Principles: The Effects of Campus Climate on Academic Integrity, a Mixed Methods Study. Journal of Academic Ethics, 16:1–17 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10805-017-9297-7

Continuing Lecturer, Stratford School) shares a short video at the beginning of the semester on academic integrity. The video does not focus on cheating and misconduct, but on what trust means in scholarship.