Quizzes and LockDown Browser in Canvas

I recently attended a CITI session developed and delivered by my peer CITI Faculty Fellows, Chinyu Wu and Cecile Yancu. The focus of this session was to explore the quiz feature in Canvas. In the majority of cases, quizzes in Canvas offer a formidable alternative to paper and pencil examinations, and Canvas guides offer great step-by-step explanations on how to setup and administer a quiz. View the quiz guide. 

During the session there were great questions that came up from faculty across campus. I have highlighted some of them below and emphasized major considerations.

Can I copy quizzes from one semester (or class) to another?

Simple answer: Yes!

Canvas allows the user to move select content from one course to another. How do I select specific content as part of a course import?

What is a Quiz Bank and how do I make one?

It may be functional to explore the Quiz Bank feature of the Canvas Quiz. Quiz banks allow more versatility with quiz construction. For example, you could create a quiz bank by Chapter (i.e. Chapter 1 – 5 questions, Chapter 2 – 4 questions, etc.).

Want to move a quiz bank from one course to another? This requires similar steps to moving content from one course to another, as explained in the article, "How do I import a question bank from one Canvas course to another?"

What kinds of statistics/analytics does a Canvas quiz offer?

Canvas quizzes give a variety of statistics, including average score, score range, standard deviation, and average time on exams. Additional statistics can be obtained with in-depth item analysis.

Guide Examples

Canvas Quiz Item Analysis  - a more in-depth description

What is a LockDown Browser and what can it do?

LockDown Browser is a program that helps prevent cheating with the use of online exams. Students are unable to copy, print, access other applications, or visit other website during an online exam. Learn more about LockDown Browser.

Can students use the LockDown Browser on their one computers/devices?

Yes! The LockDown Browser is free for students and can be downloaded directly from Canvas.

Here is the list of Lockdown Brower system requirements:

Operating Systems

• Windows: 10, 8, 7
• Mac: MacOS 10.14 to 10.12, OS X 10.11, OSX 10.10
• iOS: 7.0+ (iPad only). Must have a compatible LMS integration.
• Chromebook: (K-12 only)

Memory

• Windows: 75 MB permanent space on the hard drive
• Mac: 120 MB permanent space on the hard drive

LockDown Browser is a client application that is installed to a local computer. Both the Windows edition and the Mac edition of the browser are based on Chromium, Google’s open source framework. Students do NOT need Google’s Chrome browser installed; nor will this version affect a Chrome browser that’s already installed.

Learning Management SystemsLockDown Browser integrates with the following learning management systems:

• Blackboard Learn 9.1 or higher
• Blackboard Ultra
• Brightspace 10.x
• Canvas
• Moodle 3.x
• Schoology Enterprise
• Sakai 2.7.1+

Before you implement a Canvas quiz, I suggest you give a trial quiz in your course to make sure everything works and the students are able to use their own devices.

You can always defer to scheduling a computer lab on campus as the LockDown Browser should be on each desktop. Please check to make sure the browser is present before attempting an exam. A trial run, whether it be in a computer lab or on a student’s personal device, may save you a lot of trouble in the long run!

Enjoy your transition to becoming less paper dependent!!