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The UCL lockdown browser pilot
The document summarizes UCL's pilot of using a lockdown browser for digital assessments. It describes the rationale for using a lockdown browser, details four pilot programs conducted or planned at UCL involving different locations, devices and numbers of students, and key areas of interest being evaluated including device type, online management and invigilation, and student and staff perspectives. The goal is to assess the viability and scalability of using lockdown browsers to help ensure academic integrity for digital assessments conducted in-person.
The UCL lockdown browser pilot
- 1. The UCL lockdown browserpilot UCL Education Conference 2023 Marieke Guy, Head of Digital Assessment m.guy@ucl.ac.uk
- 2. What is alockdown browser? • A lockdown browser provides the necessary tools for a student to complete their exam but restricts the device from accessing unauthorised material during the assessment duration • Supports supervised closed-book and open-book assessment • Available as part of AssessmentUCL / Wiseflow • Can either be: 1. FlowLock – a written assessment conducted in the browser (text-editor) 2. FlowMulti (with lock) – an MCQ conducted in the browser • Includes an appendix manager that supports drawing, taking images, latex, uploading files.
- 3. Rationale for a lockdownbrowser • Digital assessments offer benefits e.g. allowing students to type which also supports online marking • Combining digital assessments with in- person invigilation helps ensure academic integrity • Requirement from departments for in- person digital assessments • Meetings with Brunel (BYOD) • Multiple pilots scoped to considering the cost and feasibility for implementing a particular model scale at UCL
- 4. UCL pilots Pilot Number of students LocationDevice type Date 1.BYOD mini-pilot 10 Students’ own device August 2022 2. BYOD pilot with Pharmacy 14 Maplethorpe lecture theatre Students’ own device Dec 2022 – Jan 2023 3. iPad pilot in Medicine 300+ Royal Free and other locations iPads owned by Medicine 2022 - 2023 4. TeamCo pilot 600+ ExCeL Laptops hired from TeamCo May 2023
- 5. Areas of interestfor pilot •Location • Appropriate rooms • Room booking • Room set including spacing • Furniture •Device • Standardised equipment • Laptop loan • App download • Laptop requirements • Set up on UCL computers FlowLock assessment • Guidance & support • Functionality and appendix manager • Whitelisted sites • Messaging • Departmental needs e.g. languages Online management and invigilation • Buffer window time for login • Passwords • Attendance recording and participation logs • Offline access Mitigation and risk management • Risk register • Regulations • Dealing with issues Staff and student perspectives • Managing expectations • Support and guidance • Feedback collection
- 6. 1. Lockdown browser BYODmini-pilot • Pharmacy research students – paid for time • Low-stakes assessment • Guidance prior to assessment • Focus group session • 2 physical invigilators, 1 online invigilator, 1 manager • Tasks to use appendix manager • 1 staff played student, went offline
- 7. Downloading the Lockdown browser •From AssessmentUCL • Name > Edit profile > System requirements • Download appropriate version • Also options to verify the version of the browser and try out the browser John
- 8. 2. BYOD pilotwith Pharmacy • Live and mock – PHAY0024 • 12th December mock, 12th January live (in Maplethorpe lecture theatre) • 2 presentations given to students • Practice assessment and guidance • CAT invigilation support • Feeding back into regulations • Laptop loan use around 1/3rd • Buffer set at 45 minutes •
- 9. Practice assessment • Studentsadded to practice assessments for FlowLock and for FlowMulti (with lock) • Explains the layout of the browser and shows all the functionality available including use of appendix manager: uploading images, drawing etc. • Receive a message from AssessmentUCL as notification • Shared and tested with Central assessment Team, Digital Assessment Team, accessibility team and TeamCo for feedback
- 10. 3. iPad pilotin Medicine • Run by Taylor Bennie and UCL Medical school • iPads are managed by UCL but student owned • Taken place in Royal Free Campus, Bloomsbury and Whittington, 3 District General hospitals and Royal Horticulture halls • Some wifi issues and app set up issues • Learnosity issues when using Jamf
- 11. 4. TeamCo pilot •12 modules including languages • Staff Q&A session, student Q&A session • Master machine to image and then the creation of different profiles • Passwords • Each laptop will have the lockdown browser already installed • Each workstation will have: 1 x laptop (15.6” screen) 1 x keyboard 1 x mouse / mat 1 x ear plugs
- 12. Invigilator training • Trainingfor all of Central Assessment Team and TeamCo invigilators • Coverage of problem areas for students during assessments • Support model for the day (physical invigilation and online invigilation)
- 13. What we needfrom you… 1. Details about your assessment content • If you require any whitelisted sites (optional) • Physical resources • Changes to appendix manager (default = drawing feature + Webcam) 2. Details about your marking • Section-based marking is problematic • Same interface as PDF marking, but advised that instructions for students is clear re: around labelling question responses John Team site (AssessmentUCL User Group > Lockdown Browser pilot)
- 14. Areas for consideration •Room availability and set up, timetabling • Devices • Naming • Regulations – online, in-person or a third way? • Upload time • Late arrivals • Preparation and issues during an assessment • Set up
- 15. Intended outputs • Assessviability • Develop formal regulations • Scalability • Costs • Suitability • Present back to UCL to determine trajectory of travel for in-person assessments
Editor's Notes
- #2 Hi I’m
- #3 As it explains here A lockdown browser provides the necessary tools for a student to complete their exam but restricts the device from accessing unauthorised material during the assessment duration. It does this through an app that is installed on a device. This app closes down all other services on the machine and prohibits access to files. You then complete the assessment in a browser window In wiseflow (the platform also known as AssessmentUCL) the lockdown browser used in the respondus browser and is known by Wiseflow as FlowLock
- #4 So why are we piloting this browser. Obviously during Covid we were restricted to online assessments, but now that Covid is no longer so prevalent there has been considerable interest in moving back to in-person assessments to ensure academic integrity. While we are spending time looking at assessment design and how it can encourage student engagement and reduce instances of collusion and misconduct we are also exploring other technical measures. Digital assessments offer benefits e.g. allowing students to type which also supports online marking Combining digital assessments with in-person invigilation helps ensure academic integrity The pilot itself was driven by conversatiosn with Pharmacy
- #7 In order to run a mini-pilot testing the browser on a low stakes assessment we utilised a small group of postgraduate Pharmacy students who were carrying out research activities over the summer and therefore available on site. The students were invited along to a session in which they would complete an exam that had been already used earlier in the year and then participate in a focus group asking for their feedback on the experience. The students were paid for their time. Preparation Prior to the pilot the students were provided with guidance on how to download the lockdown browser is available from the WISEflow support page. The students were asked to ensure that their laptop was fully charged and had all the latest updates installed for the Operating System and any anti-virus software required. We also asked them to ensure they could connect to Eduroam (on campus) and that their password did not require updating. Those without a suitable laptop were asked to contact us in advance. On the day, once students had arrived and were seated at the desk with their name we gave a short briefing introducing ourselves and outlining how the pilot would run. Participant password on main screen This covered: a quick overview of the FLOWlock browser and the login process timings for the session an explanation of the participant password (used to start the exam) and invigilator password (used to submit the exam and for technical issues) requirements for the exam – what we wanted the students to test out (e.g. the drawing and appendix features, permitted/whitelisted sites) general examination regulations (e.g. remaining silent, turning off phones) – while this wasn’t a real exam we wanted to replicate the exam environment as much as possible without causing too much stress how to get help if there were any issues
- #15 Are they in-person online assessments? Or in-person digital assessments? Or even digital invigilated assessments? There is already information in the regulations on laptop preparation as part of the technical failures policy. It will be important to reiterate the need for a fully charged laptop, good Eduroam connection, that the Flowlock app is downloaded, that the latest updates (laptop and Flowlock browser) have been carried out, that a laptop loan has been expressly asked for. Brunel say "Laptops will not be available for those arriving for a WISEflow exam without a suitably prepared device. " It is also important that students are aware of their password and checked that they are logged in as themselves.