Integrity Shelf

Trial version. The list, the wording and the name may still change. About

Topic

online exams

Moving an exam online changes how it can be supervised and how far its results can be trusted. Remote monitoring raises its own questions of privacy and fairness. The papers below take up both sides.

For the monitoring side, a review of AI-based proctoring reports concerns about security, privacy, ethics and trust. An essay on the ethics of online exam supervision argues from principle and suggests what institutions may need to ask to justify using it. A qualitative case study at one South Korean university argues that monitoring harmed trust between students and staff.

On how often students say they cheat in online exams, a review of survey studies reports higher admitted rates during COVID-19, with limited evidence and likely under-reporting. A two-course study reads lower scores under monitoring as a sign of earlier cheating. That is the authors' inference from average scores, not an observation of who cheated.

  1. Philosophy & TechnologyCommentary

    Good Proctor or “Big Brother”? Ethics of Online Exam Supervision Technologies

    Simon Coghlan, Tim Miller, Jeannie Paterson

    Exam supervision software raises questions of fairness, privacy, autonomy and trust. An essay weighs whether watching students this way is ethically defensible and suggests inquiries and review processes institutions may need to justify using it.

    For teaching Sets out ethical questions a department could work through when considering remote exam supervision, drawn from philosophical argument.

    Core reading Free to read

  2. Journal of Academic EthicsReview

    How Common is Cheating in Online Exams and did it Increase During the COVID-19 Pandemic? A Systematic Review

    Philip M. Newton, Keioni Essex

    Across pooled survey studies, the authors report that 44.7% of students admitted cheating in online exams, 29.9% before COVID-19 and 54.7% during it, though the evidence has weaknesses.

    For teaching Opportunity is the reason students most often gave, but weak sampling means the figures need careful reading before anyone acts on them.

    Core reading Free to read

  3. Computers in Human Behavior ReportsExperiment

    Cheating in online courses: Evidence from online proctoring

    Seife Dendir, R. Stockton Maxwell

    When two online courses added webcam proctoring while keeping the same structure, content and assessments, average exam scores fell, the authors report, and they read the drop as evidence of earlier cheating.

    For teaching Offers a before-and-after comparison of exam scores, though lower scores alone do not show who cheated or how.

    Core reading Free to read

  4. Education and Information TechnologiesReview

    A Systematic Review on AI-based Proctoring Systems: Past, Present and Future

    Aditya Nigam, Rhitvik Pasricha, Tarishi Singh and 1 other

    AI-based online proctoring is reviewed through the literature, with the authors pointing to security, privacy, ethical and trust problems.

    For teaching Useful background before choosing or questioning a remote supervision approach, with the caveat that it reviews the literature and does not test any product.

    Free to read

  5. British Journal of Educational TechnologyCase study

    Online exam proctoring technologies: Educational innovation or deterioration?

    Kyungmee Lee, Mik Fanguy

    A qualitative case study at a large South Korean university asks whether online proctoring improved assessment; the authors argue it damaged trust between students and staff and reduced the value of engagement.

    For teaching Raises fairness and trust questions worth weighing before adopting proctoring, though it draws on a single university.

    Free to read

  6. SustainabilityCase study

    Implementation of E-Proctoring in Online Teaching: A Study about Motivational Factors

    Carina S. González-González, Alfonso Infante-Moro, Juan C. Infante-Moro

    What makes institutions willing to adopt remote proctoring? From a bibliographic study and an expert-run causal study, the authors list motivational factors and report that trust in its security and privacy mattered most.

    For teaching Institutions weighing remote proctoring may want to look at trust in its privacy and security, though the evidence comes from a literature study and experts, not exam takers.

    Free to read

  7. Online LearningExperiment

    Examining the Effect of Proctoring on Online Test Scores

    Helaine Mary Alessio, Nancy J. Malay, Karsten Maurer and 2 others

    Proctored online tests drew lower marks in one online course. Comparing them with unproctored tests, the authors report scores 17 points lower on average, and less time used.

    For teaching Score gaps between proctored and unproctored tests may deserve a closer look before conclusions are drawn, on the evidence of one course.

    Free to read

  8. Research and Practice in Technology Enhanced LearningCase study

    Contract cheating: an increasing challenge for global academic community arising from COVID-19

    Guzyal Hill, Jon Mason, Alex Dunn

    The pandemic move to online assessment gave contract cheating more openings, the authors report, from $50 COVID-19 discounts to paid tutors sitting online exams, and they call for action beyond single universities.

    For teaching Points to pandemic-era offers aimed at online exams, as the authors report them, which may be worth knowing when planning remote assessment.

    Free to read

  9. International Journal of Educational ManagementReview

    Digital proctoring in higher education: a systematic literature review

    Shengnan Han, Shahrokh Nikou, Workneh Yilma Ayele

    Digital proctoring in higher education is the subject of this systematic review. Topic modelling of 154 publications yields seven common themes, among them spotting cheating, checking identity, barriers to uptake and exam performance.

    For teaching Gives an overview of the themes in proctoring research for staff weighing up remote exam arrangements.

    Free to read

  10. The Electronic Journal of e-LearningReview

    Examining Online Cheating in Higher Education Using Traditional Classroom Cheating as a Guide

    Kerry Adzima

    Online education brings new questions about cheating. The paper critically reads earlier literature on dishonesty in online courses, using face-to-face findings as a guide, and points to gaps where further research is needed.

    For teaching Useful as background on what is known and unknown about dishonesty in online courses before planning changes to assessment.

    Free to read