| | April - 20239integrity. Collectively creating a culture of academic honesty that builds trust can empower learners to perform optimally when learning is being assessed in an online proctored setting. Below are five actions to promote a supportive assessment experience within digital learning environments.Authentic assessments are designed to demonstrate the attainment of learning outcomes with the real-world, career-ready application. Instructors can design assessments where students have the opportunity to share their work beyond an audience of one, referring to the one person who grades their work. When students are able to connect the assessment to how their knowledge, skills and abilities will be applied beyond the course generates positive emotions of pride, competence, and self-confidence.Regular and substantive interactions initiated by the instructor through personalized feedback on formative assessments build learners' assurance and awareness of their strengths and specific areas that need additional focus. Learners who receive individualized, constructive feedback throughout the digital learning experience approach summative assessments to feel supported and connected to their instructor.General well-being resources offered by the institution, such as academic support services for test-taking strategies focused on online proctored exam settings and virtual counselling services to provide strategies to decrease symptoms of test anxiety, should be available to support learners. Institutional efforts to address student mental health create a culture of well-being that promotes emotional well-being.Creating a culture of academic honesty by providing professional development that empowers educators to have proactive conversations about academic integrity with learners supports a culture of academic honesty. Establish clear expectations for learner behaviors during assessments. Having ongoing discussions with learners provides an opportunity to explain why exam parameters are in place and how the assessment design enhances the learners' application of the competency being assessed.Provide proctor services that blend AI with human interactions with live proctors who are trained to identify and mitigate signs of test anxiety. Train proctors to implement culturally responsive approaches by providing supportive services that presume honesty and integrity. Intentionally avoid creating the perceived expectation of catching dishonest behavior. The proctoring service industry is continually evolving to support a wider variety of assessments, such as virtual demonstrations and presentations, in addition to multiple choice and written exams. Blended forms of online proctoring can support educators who provide learners with multiple means of expression through the Universal Design for Learning framework.Digital learning will continue to advance, with evolving AI improving the options for multiple types of assessments to be proctored remotely. Yet it is important to humanize the digital assessment environment by creating a supportive test-taking experience that promotes brain activity that is primed to promote optimal task performance during the proctored exam experience. Acknowledging the pivotal role of emotions and stress in students' cognitive efficiency and, ultimately, their exam performance in the digital learning environment can decrease the discomfort of perceived intrusiveness associated with online proctored exams. Creating a culture of academic honesty, supporting students with academic support resources, and personalized formative feedback can help to mitigate the uncomfortable emotional responses and heightened test anxiety that can be associated with online proctored exams. Acknowledging the pivotal role of emotions and stress in students' cognitive efficiency and, ultimately, their exam performance in the digital learning environment can decrease the discomfort of perceived intrusiveness associated with online proctored exams
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