e-Exam - Security Control and Cheating

New security measures have been developed for all grade 10, 11 and 12 e-Exams. Starting in January 2009, all schools are encouraged to install the new e-Exam Security Control and ensure each work station adheres to the Computer and Browser Requirements. Every effort is made to ensure that the security controls are updated and available for new operating systems and browsers, however there is often a time lag between when operating systems and browsers are released and when a new control is available.

Security Control Details

The e-Exam security control is unique for PC and MAC. The control disables access to all applicable shortcut keys on keyboards, eliminates the ability for the user to navigate outside the e-Exam without closing the browser window (thereby logging the user out of the e-Exam) and removes the operating system menu bars such as 'Start' for Windows XP and the Dashboard for MAC OSX.

Technicians will need to ensure that all workstations used for administering e-Exams have the e-Exam Security control permanently installed. This may include adding it to any ghosting or workstation management software as an accepted program. Please also check the technical tips and browser settings required to ensure a smooth e-Exam administration.

Workstations which do not meet the computer and browser requirements are not supported and therefore students may be able to access other computer programs and/or the internet.

Cheating

If an invigilator suspects or is confident that a student is breaching exam rules during either a paper or an e-Exam administration, the student should be monitored for the remainder of the exam session and be allowed to continue writing.

Any attempt by a student to navigate outside the e-Exam, including accessing the internet, should be considered a potential cheating incident. In addition, any response identified in either the local or central marking process (eg: using content from the internet, two identical exam papers, and plagiarized essays) will also be reviewed as a potential cheating incident.