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Zoom - Zoom online proctoring
A guide to using Zoom for Online Proctoring
Zoom online proctoring SharePoint Page
Steps for Setting up and running a Zoom online proctoring session:
- Account settings for Zoom online proctoring
- Scheduling Meeting with correct settings
- Sharing the link and expectations
- Preparing the meeting once inside
- Proctoring the Exam
- Recorded Proctor-less Option
- Reviewing the recording
Account settings for Zoom online proctoring
Before getting started, you will need to go to login to your Zoom account through the web portal at https://wisconsin-edu.zoom.us and change the following settings. You will need to change these settings through the web portal at https://wisconsin-edu.zoom.us as the Zoom Canvas LTI does not offer some of the required settings.
Focus Mode: Focus mode is what allows students to only see the host’s video and screen sharing. All other attendees will show a black screen with their name only, even if their web camera is on. Hosts will still see everyone as normal.
Permission to unmute: You will need to enable this setting so that you can turn it on when scheduling a meeting. This will prompt the students when they join the meeting to allow you to unmute them. Once they accept, it will allow the proctor to unmute the students at anytime, such as if they have a question, or if they suspect some unacceptable conversation is going on.
Cloud Recordings: In order to get a cloud recording of everything going on during the meeting, it is recommended that you make sure the following options are selected at minimum:
- Record active speaker, gallery view, and shared screen separately
- Active speaker
- Gallery view
- Shared screen
- Save chat messages from the meeting / webinar
- Add a time stamp to the recording
- Display participants’ names in the recording
- Create audio transcript
If you have other options selected as well, that is alright, you will just end up with more recording files than you may need for proctoring purposes, but may require for your other meetings. If you do not change these settings after you are done running your proctoring session, your other meeting recordings may have additional files.
Scheduling your proctoring session
When scheduling your proctoring session, you will need to schedule it through the web portal at https://wisconsin-edu.zoom.us as the Zoom Canvas LTI does not offer some of the required settings. Once scheduled, you will be able to share the link inside of Canvas shortly ahead of the proctored exam time. The following settings are recommended:
- Mute participants upon entry
- Request permission to unmute participants
- Automatically record meeting > select “In the cloud”
- Enable focus mode when meeting starts
- Optional: Waiting room - You will need to change the default settings for waiting room if you do not want "uwplatt.edu" users to automatically be let in. Please see this Waiting Room KB
- Optional: Require authentication to Join > ensure UW-Platteville domain is selected.
Note: Once you have made your first meeting, you can save the template and apply it to later meetings quicker. If you click on the meeting that you already created, at the bottom of the screen you will see a “Save as template” option. Click on the button and name the template. When scheduling future Zoom Proctoring sessions, under the “Template” menu, you can select it from the drop down list and it will apply all of the saved settings except Name, Time, and alternative host options as the previous meeting.
Sharing the Link and Expectations
You will need to share the link with your students inside of Canvas. This can be done by placing the link into an announcement prior to the proctoring session. At this time, the Canvas / Zoom LTI doesn't allow the required settings to be selected for a proctoring session, so scheduling cannot be done directly through Canvas.
It is recommended that you do a test proctoring session with your students prior to using it for an exam. This is to let students know what to expect and to ensure that they are properly prepared for joining the session on exam day. Depending on the option you choose, your students may be required to have additional equipment, such as a USB web camera, which is something that you will want to include in your syllabus.
It is at this time that you would also set the expectations for the proctoring session with your students. You should share which option you plan on using, make sure that they are aware of the equipment that they might need, and any other expectations that you are setting. Please refer to the image below for the options.
Set up option | Option 1 - Webcam showing headshot | Option 2 - Webcam showing workspace | Option 3 – Webcam showing headshot/workspace + screen sharing |
---|---|---|---|
Deterrence level | BASIC | INTERMEDIATE | HIGHER |
Exam view | ![]() |
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Number of students | It is recommended to not exceed 24 students for every 1 proctor, resulting in 25 webcam thumbnails on the proctor's screen. This will make it so that all participants can be viewed on 1 screen, albeit quite small in size. However, the cloud recording will capture only the 25 screen thumbnail displayed in the “gallery view” at any given time. | This option will work only for 1-on-1 proctoring solutions as the exam taker would be required to share their compute screen during the exam | |
Student equipment required | Computer Microphone USB or built-in webcam |
Computer Microphone USB movable webcam |
Computer Microphone USB movable webcam |
Recommended exam type | Online, open book | Handwritten | Online or handwritten |
Preparing the meeting once inside
Once you have opened the scheduled meeting to begin proctoring, there are a few settings that you will want to ensure are correct prior to actually having students begin taking the exam. These settings can only be set once you are inside of the meeting, so you will need to make sure to do this every time .
Security: Under the "Security" button, you will want to make sure that you uncheck that participants can:
- Share Screen
- Rename Themselves
- Unmute Themselves
Chat: Under the "Chat" tab, you will want to make sure that participants can only chat with hosts and co-hosts. This can be found under the "..." menu in the "Chat" tab.
Proctoring the Exam
You are now ready to begin proctoring and allowing your students to start the exam. Depending on which option you selected, you will want to make sure that your students maintain their camera in the proper position throughout the exam. Please be aware that that none of these options provide any level of automation when it comes to deterrence detection. It is the responsibility of the exam proctor to notice and act upon any indications of improper behavior during the exam. Also, Zoom does not offer any sort of browser lock down capabilities . While the students may be sharing their screen, you do not have the ability to prevent them from using a browser on another monitor.
If during the exam students have questions, they can use the "Raise hand" feature in Zoom, or send a chat directly to you as the host. If the student needs to speak, you can unmute that specific student, but be aware that all students will be able to hear the conversation that is happening. If it is something that shouldn't be broadcast to the entire group, you should stick to using direct chat.
If you are having the students take an online exam Canvas exam or requiring them to submit their test through the drop box, you may want to confirm that they have submitted it before leaving the proctoring session. Having students direct message you when they have submitted it, and you confirming through chat is a way of making sure that they don't submit it after they have left the proctoring session.
Recorded Proctor-less Option
If you want student to take a proctored exam but are unable to attend, you can have them join a Zoom Proctoring session set to automatically record. Students follow the same steps as if you were present for the exam. When they are done, they would follow any additional directions you provide and then leave the meeting. You get the recording sent to your Zoom Cloud Recordings and can review it later.
While there is no automation when it comes to deterrence detection, it would provide a recording of what was happening during the exam based upon the above method that you choose.
Review the Recording
If you need to review the recording, you can find it inside of your Zoom account from the web portal at https://wisconsin-edu.zoom.us . If you used the settings above, you should have a few different recordings, including the Gallery view which shows the students as you saw them during the meeting. The chat log can also be found here.
If you have any questions regarding using the Zoom online proctoring solution, please feel free to reach out to the TTC at ttchelp@uwplatt.edu .