Pros and cons of an online exam

Last summer, my daughter had written Matura exams – the canton of St.Gallen was one of the few cantons that did not want to do without them. I was surprised that no secondary schools considered the possibilities of an online exam.

Meanwhile, I have taken several exams online in my distance learning program at IUBH. Even though there are some disadvantages, I am convinced that the advantages outweigh them. Both for the schools and universities and for the graduates.

IUBH uses Examity for the online exam. The exam takes place online in the browser. A so-called proctor supervises the exam via webcam and via screen sharing. Each university can set its own examination rules: What aids are allowed? Is a glass of water allowed on the table?

The disadvantages of an online exam

Language barriers

In order to be able to write the exam at any time of the day or night, regardless of location, Examity has proctors from different time zones. Although IUBH is a German university, you have to speak English to write an exam online. This is because the proctors only speak English.

I assume that Examity has minimum requirements for the proctors’ language skills. However, an accent or a bad microphone on the part of the proctor may mean that communication is not as smooth as desired. Now add this to the fact that you might already be a bit nervous in the exam situation.

Lack of knowledge of the proctors

It can also happen that the proctor is not informed enough about the examination rules of your school. When I recently took my exam in “Mathematics Basics”, I assumed according to the exam regulations that a blank scratch paper is allowed. In fact, success or failure in my case depends heavily on it, because it allows me to write down my reasoning, conclusions, and intermediate results.

However, my proctor did not know anything about this permitted aid, so I had to start my exam without the scratch paper. Fortunately, after fifteen minutes, she talked to the support and then informed me that she had made a mistake and that I was allowed to use scratch paper after all.

No designed test

In a face-to-face exam, the teacher puts together an exam and probably also ensures that he or she covers as many different areas of the content relevant to the exam as possible.

For the online exams, teachers compile a set of possible exam questions. Each online exam looks different: Different questions are selected randomly. It can happen that you find two very similar questions in your exam. If you know the answer, you get free points. If you don’t know the answer, you lose the points twice.

The advantages of an online exam

But as I mentioned before: From my point of view, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. For each course, I create a rough schedule and set a target date for when I want to take the exam.

Via Examity it is possible to register for an exam on the same day. This means I can decide spontaneously whether I feel ready or need a little more time. This also helps counter exam nervousness because I don’t have to wait days or weeks for the exam date.

Especially for students like me, who live abroad and are studying at a distance, online exams are a huge step towards true independence of place and time. I’m glad that my school offers this option and hope that it will become a matter of course in the near future.