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Monitoring your exams

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In this article

In this article you find the following information:

About monitoring exams

In the Monitoring module you can supervise your exam in real time.

You can:

  • see the progress of every participant in the exam.
  • see if participants have internet connection issues.
  • see from which IP address the participant starts a session.
  • report an incident (so it is stored in the session history of the participants involved).
  • see the SEB Quit password to allow users to quit SEB again in case of a problem.
  • export an attendance list, showing all participants who have started the exam. The export is shown in the notification center.
  • view and export the session history to share a detailed log of all exam events with other people. The export is shown in the notification center.

The assessmentQ Monitoring module also offers you the tools to intervene in the session of a participant in case of issues. As a supervisor you can:

  • send a message to participants 
  • add extra time to the session of one or more participants
  • unlock, finish and re-open one or more sessions

Notes:

  • As the connection between the participant's PC and the assessmentQ server is checked every 30 seconds, it may take up to 30 seconds for an action in the monitoring module to have an effect on the participant’s PC.
  • Monitoring is not possible when you use offline packages as monitoring requires an internet connection.

Customising the exams and sessions overview

When opening the Exams monitoring module, you see a list of all exams you have access to. 

When clicking on an exam, you will see an overview of all the sessions of the selected exam. 

As a supervisor, you can customise the overview allowing you to display only the information that is important to you. 

Procedure

To customize the view, click on the table icon  in the upper right corner and (de)select the columns of your choice.

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Filtering exam sessions 

To filter sessions in the Monitoring module, proceed as follows:

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the exam you want to monitor. 
    Result: You see all the sessions of the exam you selected. 
  3. Filter the list by one or more users and/or groups to see only their sessions, or use one of the predefined filters to see e.g. only the ongoing sessions or the sessions with warnings. 

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Monitoring the online status

In the Monitoring module, the supervisor can see if a participant is online or not.

The online status of the participant is displayed with a colored icon:

  • Green - Online 
    The participant’s computer can be reached every 30 seconds.
  • Orange - Interrupted 
    The participant’s computer cannot be reached for more than 30 seconds, but less than 5 minutes.
  • Red - Offline 
    The participant’s computer cannot be reached for more than 5 minutes. 
  • White - Not started or finished 
    The participant has not yet started his session or has finished his session.

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Internet connection in the player

By default, the participant does not notice internet interruptions. He can continue working in his session, answering questions and navigating to the next question. The participant will only see a popup in the player saying he has lost his internet connection when he clicks Finish and wants to submit his exam. 

When the internet connection is restored on the participant's PC,  the popup is hidden automatically and the participant can continue his exam. 

This behavior, however, can be changed in the assignment template. For more information, see Allow navigation without internet.   

Internet connection events and warnings in monitoring

When the internet connection is restored and the "connection lost" popup is hidden automatically, the following events are logged in the session history in the Monitoring module :

  • Internet connection lost 
  • Internet connection restored 

A warning is shown next to the session for which the internet connection popup has been shown to the participant.  

Note: The internet connection events and the warnings are not logged when the participant has restarted or resumed his session on the same or another device.
The event is only logged when the internet connection is restored automatically on the original device. 

Reopening sessions

When a participant clicks Finish in the player, his session is finished or submitted.

When a participant finishes his session by accident, the supervisor can reopen it again, allowing the participant to open his session again and to continue his exam. 

Procedure

To reopen all sessions of an exam, proceed as follows:

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the three dots next to the exam of your choice. Or open the exam and click on the three dots in the upper right corner.
  3. Select Reopen sessions.
    Result: The participants will be able to open their session again. 

To reopen one or more sessions, proceed as follows: 

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the exam for which you want to reopen one or more sessions. 
    Result: You will see all the sessions of the exam you selected. 
  3. Filter on Finished sessions.
    Result: All sessions that are finished are listed.
  4. Filter on the user(s) and/or user group(s) of your choice.
    Result: The sessions of the filtered users and /or user groups are listed.
  5. If you want to reopen the session of one user, click on the three dots next to the session of your choice. 
  6. Select Reopen sessions.
    mceclip0.png
    Result: The participants will be able to open their session again. 

Note: You cannot reopen a session with linear navigation that was finished by the participant. The session will be closed again immediately. 

Finishing sessions

As a supervisor, you can force participants to stop at a certain moment by finishing the session for them.

When you finish a session, the participant's exam is submitted. The participant will then see a message in the player. He can no longer continue working in the exam or resume the exam.   

Procedure

To finish all sessions of an exam, proceed as follows:

    1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
      Result      : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
    2. Click on the three dots next to the exam of your choice. Or click on the three dots in the upper right corner to finish multiple sessions simultaneously. 
    3. Select Finish sessions.
      mceclip0.png
    4. Optionally enter a comment and click Yes.
      mceclip1.png
      Result: The comment (if any) will be listed in the session history. The participants will see a message in the player. 

Note: If you finish all sessions, you will also finish unstarted sessions (if any).  If you do not want to finish unstarted sessions, it is recommended to filter by ongoing sessions first.  

To finish the sessions for a selection of participants, proceed as follows:

  1. Click on the exam for which you want to finish one or more sessions. 
    Result: You see all the sessions of the exam you selected. 
  2. Filter by Ongoing sessions.
    Result: All sessions that are started and not finished yet are listed.
  3. Filter by the user(s) and/or user group(s) of your choice.
    Result: The sessions of the filtered users and/or user groups are listed.
  4. If you want to finish the session of one user, click on the three dots next to the session of your choice.
  5. Select Finish sessions.
    mceclip0.png
  6. Optionally enter a comment and click Yes.
    mceclip3.png
    Result: The comment (if any) will be listed in the session history. The participants will see a message in the player. 

About locking and unlocking sessions

In case of higly secure high-stakes exams the sessions of the participants can be locked. A session that is locked cannot be resumed or started a second time. 

Sessions can be locked:

  • via the assignment template setting Lock the session 
    mceclip3.png
  • via the assessmentQ API
  • via the Monitoring module

If, however, a participant has a computer or internet problem and has to continue his exam on another PC or restart his own PC, his session has to be unlocked first by the supervisor. If the session is not unlocked, the participant cannot start or resume his session anymore.

Remark: It is recommended to lock sessions via the Monitoring module only when the sessions have been created in advance (via API or via the Access Codes module) or have been mistakenly unlocked by the supervisor. Sessions that are started from the portal must be locked in advance via the assessmentQ API or via the assignment template. 

Locking sessions

To lock all sessions of an exam, proceed as follows: 

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the three dots next to the exam of your choice. Alternatively, open de exam and click on the three dots in the upper right corner. 
  3. Select Lock sessions.
    mceclip0.png
    Result: The participants will no longer be able to resume their sessions or start a session a second time simultaneously.

To lock a selection of sessions, proceed as follows:

    1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
      Result      : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
    2. Click on the exam for which you want to lock sessions. 
      Result: You see all the sessions of the exam you selected. 
    3. Filter by the user(s) and/or group(s) of your choice.
      Result: The sessions of the filtered users and/or groups are listed.
    4. If you want to lock the session of one user, click on the three dots next to the session of your choice and select Lock sessions. 
      Result: The participant will no longer be able to resume his session or start a session a second time simultaneously.
    5. If you want to lock sessions for a selection of users, click on the bulk selection icon mceclip0.png in the top right corner, select the sessions of your choice and click on the Lock session icon at the bottom of the page.
      mceclip0.png
      Result: The participants will no longer be able to resume their sessions or start a session a second time simultaneously.

Unlocking sessions

To unlock all sessions of an exam, proceed as follows: 

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the three dots next to the exam of your choice. Alternatively, open de exam and click on the three dots in the upper right corner. 
  3. Select Unlock sessions. 
    mceclip2.png
    Result: The participants will be able to resume their session. As soon as their session is opened, it will be locked again automatically.   

To unlock a selection of sessions, proceed as follows:

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the exam for which you want to unlock sessions. 
    Result: You see all the sessions of the exam you selected. 
  3. Filter by the user(s) and/or group(s) of your choice.
    Result: The sessions of the filtered users and/or groups are listed.
  4. If you want to unlock the session of one user, click on the three dots next to the session of your choice and select Unlock sessions. 
    Result: The participant will be able to resume his session. As soon as his session is opened, it will be locked again automatically.  
  5. If you want to unlock sessions for a selection of users, click on the bulk selection icon mceclip0.png in the top right corner, select the sessions of your choice and click on the Unlock session icon at the bottom of the page.
    mceclip1.png
    Result: The participants will be able to resume their sessions. As soon as their session is opened, it will be locked again automatically. 

Sending a message to participants

To send a message to all participants of an exam, proceed as follows:

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the three dots next to the exam of your choice or open the exam and click on the three dots in the top right corner.
  3. Select Send a message.
  4. Enter your message and click Send.

To send a message to a selection of participants, proceed as follows:

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the exam for which you want to send a message to the participants. 
    Result: You see all the sessions of the exam you selected. 
  3. Filter by Ongoing sessions.
    Result: All sessions that are started and not finished yet are listed.
  4. Filter by the user(s) and/or user group(s) of your choice.
    Result: The sessions of the filtered users and/or user groups are listed.
  5. If you want to send a message to one participant, click on the three dots next to the session of your choice and select Send a message.
    mceclip0.png
  6. If you want to send a message to a selection of participants, click on the bulk selection icon mceclip2.png in the upper right corner, select the sessions of your choice and click on the Send message icon at the bottom of the page.
    mceclip1.png

  7. Enter your message and click Send.
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Reporting an incident and/or requesting a screenshot

If you organize (high-stakes) exams, it is important to have good reporting and traceability of incidents. 

As a supervisor, you can:

  • report an incident, and/or
  • ask the participant to share a screenshot of his screen.

The description of the incident and/or the screenshot is saved in the participant's session history.  

Note: Taking a screenshot is not supported on mobile devices (iOs, Android) and in SEB (Safe Exam Browser).

Procedure

To report an incident for all sessions of an exam, proceed as follows:

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the three dots next to the exam of your choice.
  3. Select Report an incident.
    mceclip0.png
    Result: The Report incident dialogue window appears. 
  4. In the Report incident dialog window:
    • Enter a description of the incident, and/or
    • Select Ask the participants to take a screenshot.
    • Click Save.
    Result: The incident icon  mceclip2.pngis added to the session overview. The description of the incident is saved in the session history. The participants do not notice that an incident has been reported unless, of course, you asked them to take a screenshot.  For more info about taking a screenshot, see below.  

To report an incident for a selection of sessions, proceed as follows:

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the exam for which you want to report an incident. 
    Result: You see all the sessions of the exam you selected. 
  3. Optionally, filter by Ongoing sessions.
    Result: All sessions that are started and not finished yet are listed.
  4. Filter by the user(s) and/or user group(s) of your choice.
    Result: The sessions of the filtered users and/or user groups are listed.
  5. If you want to report an incident for one user, click on the three dots next to the session of your choice. Else, click on the three dots in the upper right corner to report an incident for multiple sessions simultaneously. 
  6. Select Report an incident.
    Result: The Report incident dialog window appears. 
  7. In the Report incident dialog window:
    • Enter a description of the incident.
    • Optionally, select Ask the participants to take a screenshot.
    • Click Save.
    Result: The incident icon mceclip2.pngis added to each session overview. The description of the incident is saved in the session history. The participants do not notice that an incident has been reported unless, of course, you asked them to take a screenshot. In case a screenshot is taken, it is stored in the session history. For more info about taking a screenshot, see below.  

 Participant taking a screenshot

If you asked the participant to share a screenshot of his screen, the participant will see a popup with a message requesting to take a screenshot.

Notes: 

  • In case a time limit is set in the exam, the timer will stop as soon as the popup appears. The timer will resume when the screenshot has been taken or has been refused by the participant. 
  • The text that is shown to the participant can be defined in the assignment template, see Text related to events in a live assignment in the tab Messages and warnings. More info.
  • If the Share button is disabled for the participant they need to contact their administrator. The button can be disabled because of multiple reasons:
    • Windows / Mac OS: screen sharing can be disabled by the administrator
    • Chome OS: screen sharing can be disabled in the settings
    • Chrome OS (guest): disabled by default

When the participant clicks OK, he will see a popup from the browser (in the browser's language) asking him to share his screen. 

The participant needs to select the contents he wants to share and click Share.
Result: The pop-up is closed and a screenshot is taken and stored in the participant's session history. 

Notes: 

  • When the participant clicks Cancel, the popup is closed and this action is logged in the participants's session history as a refusal to take a screenshot. 
  • When the browser or OS does not support taking a screenshot, the message The browser or operating system does not support taking a screenshot is saved in the participant's session history.

Adding or substracting time from a live exam 

To add or subtract time to/from all participants of an exam, proceed as follows:

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the three dots next to the exam of your choice.
  3. Select Add or subtract time.
  4. In the Add or subtract time popup:
    • Enter the extra time you want to add/subtract.
    • Optionally add a comment.
    • Click Save.
      Result: The added/subtracted time is added to the session overview and is also saved in the session history. The participants will see a message in the player and the time is added /subtracted in the part of the assignment they are working on. When this current part does not have a time limit, no time will be added or subtracted. 
      mceclip0.png 

To add or subtract time to/from a selection of participants, proceed as follows:

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the exam of your choice. 
    Result: You see all the sessions of the exam you selected. 
  3. Filter on Ongoing sessions.
    Result: All sessions that are started and not finished yet are listed.
  4. Filter on the user(s) and/or user group(s) of your choice.
    Result: The sessions of the selected users and/or user groups are listed.
  5. If you want to add or subtract time to/from one user, click on the three dots next to the session of your choice. 
  6. If you want to add or subtract time to/from a selection of participants, click on the bulk selection iconmceclip0.pngin the top right corner, select the sessions of your choice and click on the Add or Subtract Time icon at the bottom of the page.mceclip2.png
  7. In the Add or subtract time popup:
    • Enter the time you want to add/subtract.
    • Optionally add a comment.
    • Click Save.

    mceclip1.png
    Result: The time is added to / subtracted from the session overview and is also saved in the session history. The participants will see a message in the player and the time is added/subtracted in the part of the assignment they are working on. When this current part does not have a time limit, no time will be added.  

Viewing and exporting the session history

As a supervisor, you can view and / or export a participant's session history:

  • By default, the session history shows a chronological overview of the most important session events, such as session start and finish time, interventions of the supervisor such as locking, unlocking, and re-opening sessions, etc. 
  • If you have access to the extended assessmentQ session logging, the session history also shows detailed information about the participant's navigation behavior, the use of assessmentQ supporting tools, and answer behavior to multiple-choice questions.

    Notes:

    • Extended session logging is available for exam sessions only, not for exercises.
    • Logging of answer behavior is available for multiple-choice questions only. 
    • You need appropriate rights to have access to the extended assessmentQ session logging. If you are interested in the extended session logging, please contact Televic Education via support@televic-education.com.

Procedure

To view and export the session history of a participant, proceed as follows:

  1. Go to Monitoring > Exams.
    Result    : By default you will see the list of exams that started today. 
  2. Click on the exam of your choice. 
    Result: You see all the sessions of the exam you selected. 
  3. Search for the user of your choice.
    Result: The session of your user is shown.
  4. Click on the session.
    Result: The session details are shown. 
  5. Click View history at the bottom of the page. 
    mceclip2.png
    Result: The session history is shown listing all session events.
  6. Click Export session history to save the session history in an Excel file. You'll be able to download the file from the notification center whenever the export is ready.
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