The 21st century saw a wave of digitalization across almost all major industries and the topic of sharing and imparting knowledge across geographical distance has been one of the forefront issues in the last decade. Many premier academics have been setting up online oriented infrastructure to cater to the needs of the phenomenon known as e-learning. E- learning today has come miles since its inception and has risen to the heights of becoming a $100-billion-dollar industry. This has greatly facilitated the manner in which e-learning has integrated into educational and professional spaces, and there has been huge strides in the creation of support technologies that assist in creating and expanding digital infrastructure to facilitate various aspects of e-learning. Interactions amongst candidates and instructors are now more streamlined than ever and course material is often provided as per the convenience of the candidate. As such, the act of virtual proctoring has become hugely popular in many parts of the world.
For those who have heard the term just now, “Proctoring or a Proctored Test is defined as a mechanical process to ensure the authenticity of the test taker and prevent him/her from cheating via a proctor is present during the duration of the test.” A proctor is a verified individual with the necessary qualifications to undertake the process of student authentication to ensure that they do not use any illegal means for cheating. This process has been around for over two decades in the industry in one form or another, and this has even led to the rise of multiple approaches to exam proctoring services. The most common variation of the online test is an objective test which examines a candidate based on their subject knowledge or to comprehend their learning ability and/or behavioral profile. As such, here are the main factors that have facilitated the rise of online proctoring in recent years:-
- Huge increase in demands due to the growth and outreach of e-learning services across the globe.
- Eliminating the need to invest in expensive proctoring assessment centers, and makes the process much more streamlined.
- Save’s learner’s time and money, offering great utility and scope of diversity.
- Lack of infrastructure to administer exam like conditions.
- Increasing focus on work-based apprenticeships and the alignment of learning and assessments to actual organizational needs
Proctoring maybe done in a few different ways as well, depending upon the nature of the test itself. The first is Live Online Proctoring where the candidate and their invigilator utilize audio-video and screen share feeds which are shown in real time. These setups are usually done in groups with proctors monitoring up to 32 candidates. Secondly, there is recorded proctoring where the audio-video and screen sharing feeds are recorded and sent over for examination as opposed to being observed in real time. While this eliminates time and schedule limitations, it also furthers the need to be an exceptional reviewer and analysis expert. The third method, advanced automated proctoring is the most sophisticated form of proctoring. Here again, the audio-video and screen share feeds of the test candidates are recorded during the test. And, along with the recording, the software also reviews the feeds for any suspicious activity using advanced video analytics tools.