Strategies for Controlled Delivery of Proctored Online Exams in Anatomical Sciences

The Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy (CBA) hosts the anatomy and histology courses for the medical and dental first year students at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). Over the last few years, the faculty has integrated educational technology in the teaching of these courses by using a course management system (CMS) called WebCT to allow students to access web-based resources and to effectively communicate with the students. This CMS has also been used to deliver formative and summative exams in these courses. A rigorous protocol has evolved over the years to take advantage of the powerful capabilities of this CMS but to also ensure that the exams are taken in a controlled environment that promotes the respect of the MUSC Code of Honor and protect the intellectual property copyrights of the exam questions written by faculty. During this presentation, the essential features of the exam module of the CMS used will be presented. The strategies that are used before, during and after the de...