Quizzes: Using Respondus LockDown Browser
You can require students to take your Carmen quizzes with the Respondus LockDown Browser to create a more secure testing environment. The LockDown Browser is not intended to replace other browsers for regular Carmen use; versions are available for Mac and PC, but not Linux.
Although LockDown Browser does provide enhanced security for quizzes and tests (especially when delivered in labs), there are still many ways students can cheat. Please consider carefully whether the benefits are worth the burden to students.
When students take your Carmen quizzes and exams with the LockDown Browser, they will be unable to:
- print,
- copy,
- take screenshots of your questions,
- type in another URL (web address), or
- access other applications (such as Instant Messenger, another browser).
The LockDown Browser can be used in a proctored lab situation or by students working on their own computers. Both Windows and Mac versions of the LockDown browser are available for downloading. The LockDown Browser is available in many university labs.
We recommend informing students ahead of time that the LockDown Browser will be required and that installing this browser won't modify their current version browsers in any way.
Using the LockDown Browser: Instructor Perspective
Create and preview your quiz as you normally would. Before making the quiz Active, enable the LockDown Browser requirement.
1. Within the Edit Quiz area, click on the Restrictions tab.
2. Add a checkmark in the box requiring the use of the LockDown Browser. You can add a second checkmark to require students to use the LockDown Browser to review results/answers as well. Remember to click Save Quiz.
If you preview the quiz after you enable the LockDown Browser, you will need to download and use the LockDown Browser yourself.
Using the LockDown Browser: Student Perspective
When students access a quiz with the LockDown Browser enabled, the instructions screen will inform them that the LockDown Browser is required. If they are not already using this browser, they will be given a link to the Respondus site to download it for free.
Students using Windows must use some version of Internet Explorer when they follow the link to download the LockDown Browser. The automatic download process will not work with any other browser. Students will need to accept an ActiveX control to enable the downloading and installation process.
Once they have downloaded and installed the LockDown Browser, students should launch the browser; this will take them directly to the Carmen login page. From there, they can login, navigate to your course, and take the quiz. Once the quiz is started, they will be unable to access any resources on that computer until they submit the exam.
Additional Information
- The LockDown Browser automatically opens to the login page for Carmen. Users cannot enter other URLs.
- Quizzes are displayed full screen and cannot be minimized.
- Quizzes cannot be exited until submitted by students for grading.
- Copying and pasting anything to and from a quiz is prohibited.
- Right-click menu options are disabled. Browser menu and toolbar options are disabled, except for Back, Forward, Refresh and Stop. Function keys are disabled.
- Source code for the HTML page cannot be viewed.
- More than 250 screen capture, messaging, screen-sharing, and network monitoring applications are blocked from running.
- External sites may be included in your quiz without compromising the “locked” testing environment.
- There is a button within the Browser that allows the insertion of special characters.These characters will be of most use to foreign language courses, though there are a few mathematical characters.
Read more about the Respondus LockDown Browser at http://www.respondus.com/.
