Table of Contents
What do we mean by the workspace?How can you show your workspace?Why is this important?Help and Support
What do we mean by the workspace?
The area in front of you between yourself and your computer.
Including:
- Your hands, tabletop, computer, and your sitting area.
- External materials that your professor will be allowing you to use on the exam.
- Including items such as paper, writing tools, whiteboards, calculators, or notes if they are allowed.
Do This:
- Provide 3 to 4 feet between you and your computer's webcam to enable a larger view space
- Put your workspace and computer on the same flat surface.
- Try out different setups ahead of time to ensure you are comfortable with your seating and the placement of your workspace.
- Before starting your exam, check your webcam feed to keep track of how well your workspace is displayed.
- All work done in the workspace should be fully visible in your webcam's feed during the test. (Examples: Crunching numbers on the calculator, writing out formulas, or looking over notes if allowed during the exam.)
Don't place any item to the side or out of the view of the webcam and your instructor at any time!
Room scans:
- Must clearly show your workspace, desk or tabletop, and the general surrounding area.
- Must clearly show any scratch paper front and back. Be sure to show each side for at least 10 seconds.
- Must clearly show any objects that are allowed during the exam, including whiteboards and calculators, front and back. Verify what is allowed by checking the exam instructions, syllabus, or reach out directly to your professor before beginning your exam.
- Your professor needs a good picture of this entire area and all items within your reach.
- Stand up and put some distance between you and the workspace.
- Hold the camera still on your workspace for at least 10 seconds, then continue scanning the entire room.
- Always move your camera slowly around your room. Blurry room scans are not acceptable!
Table of Contents
How can you show your workspace?
FSW requires an external side-facing webcam for all proctored exams. You can purchase a webcam on your own or request a free webcam from the IT Help Desk by filling out the Student Technology Check-Out Request form. Limit one webcam per student.
During your exam, you will need to make sure that your face, your hands, your desk, your computer, and any allowed objects are visible at the same time. To achieve this, we recommend placing your webcam 3-4 feet away from you and at a high elevation to capture a wide-angle view.
As seen in the above picture, this distance will help ensure that your webcam has a broader view of yourself and your workspace.
We recommend that your workspace and your computer be on the same flat surface for the best results. The distance between yourself and the computer will also ensure that you have enough space to keep any allowed objects in the webcam's view at all times during the exam.
Do not place any items out of the webcam's view at any time, as your professor will want to be able to see them throughout the test.
Make sure to try out different setups ahead of time to ensure you are comfortable with your seating and the placement of your workspace. Abiding by your exam requirements does not mean you have to be uncomfortable!
Remember that before starting your exam and throughout, you will be able to see your webcam feed, allowing you to keep track of how well your workspace is being displayed. You may also have a Practice Quiz in your course, and we encourage you to use it as an opportunity to test and fine-tune your setup.
Table of Contents
Why is this important?
Proctored exams are proctored for a reason - your professor wishes to test your understanding and learning in the course. The requirements and expectations they set for your proctored exams help them to assess your exam performance better and ensure that you are using permitted materials. It is your responsibility to demonstrate to your professor that you are following the requirements and standards of your proctored exam.
Table of Contents
Help and Support
Remember, if you ever need assistance taking your proctored exam, help is only a click away! You can live chat with a proctoring technician from any proctoring service at any time during your exam.
The FSW IT Helpdesk is available in person, by phone, and by email. You can reach us by calling 239-489-9202, emailing helpdesk@fsw.edu, or visiting in person on the Lee, Charlotte, and Collier campuses.
You also have access to our on-site proctoring labs on the Lee, Charlotte, Collier, and Hendry campuses. For locations and hours, please visit: Online Exam Proctoring Locations. No appointment needed.
We hope this guide has helped you with fulfilling your requirements for your proctored exam!
Table of Contents