The positive potential impacts of the Test Tool are streamlined exam preparation and administering. The Test Tool will save instructors considerable amounts of time when forming test questions and preparing exams. The Test Tool will also streamline exam grading by automatically grading most or all questions.
In addition to saving time, the Test Tool has the potential of saving large amounts of paper and reducing printing costs. The Test Tool has the ability to let the instructor administer an exam electronically. The exam distribution and collection process is very fast and efficient. After exams are collected, they are automatically graded and the scores are made instantly available, thus saving more time.
Potential problems arise when administering an exam electronically over a LAN. There are always potential problems with computers. A student may encounter problems with their computer: other programs or processes running on a student's computer may interfere with and compromise the test-taking process. There is always the risk of storing data on a computer without having a hard-copy. Some sort of system failure during a test-taking process would cause considerable problems. Such problems don't arise in traditional, paper-based exams.
Though similar, taking a test on computer is still not the same as taking a test on paper. Inputting data is fairly limited to text from the keyboard or clicks from the mouse. One situation that would be difficult on computer is inputting some sort of drawing or non-text-based input. Paper tests give the student much more freedom to draw than a computer does. Also, students with typing skills may have an advantage over those who don't. Paper tests leave all students to writing by hand, where such advantages or disadvantages are virtually nonexistent.
Security issues may be a potential problem as well. Storing a database of exam questions (with answers) on a server represents a problem when desperate Computer Science student hackers are lurking about. Keeping passwords safe is always an issue in security. With one security breech by a student, all the questions with answers will be loose. The entire database of questions would probably need to be redone. The security of individual tests (with or without answer keys) should also be considered in the same light. The system should not allow a student to access a test before the specified time nor, of course, allow them to view the answer key.
Cheating has always been an issue in test-taking. A computer-based test does not
eliminate this problem, but instead can add to it. The availability of other
resources on the testing computer may be an issue. If the student has access to the
Internet, he/she may be able to scour for answers there. Other forms of
communication, including communication with other students, outside the testing
application may be a problem. It may be difficult to enable the testing application
to block out or restrict such programs or processes on the testing computer.
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