Non-CSE Lab Exams

These are invigilated exams run using Moodle/Inspera or even paper. Usually these exams were run by the Uni but they will not handle class sizes over 600 - apparently due to restrictions on wifi capacity.

Rooms

These are booked by teachadmin. Preferably large lecture theatres or larger CATS rooms located together.

Room used successfully in the past include -

For smaller class sizes, the CSE labs may be available if there are no lab exams requiring the space. This is more likely to possible for supplementary exams.

ELS

This does not include ELS room requirements. Group rooms (up to 20 people), small rooms (up to 5 people) or individual rooms may be required. K17 113 seminar room and K17 consultation rooms are usually booked for this purpose.

Other ELS requirements to consider include extra time (eg +15mins/hr) or AM or PM only provisions.

Room Layout

The recommended seating plan is to use every second desk and leave every third row free. (thus using only 1/3 the normal capacity of the room). This allows space for student and access for course staff and invigilators.

Invigilators

Invigilators are casual professional staff hire each term from the pool of casual academics and tutors. CSG Exams has a list of invigilators with current contracts. Course admins and tutors can also assist with the supervision and running of the exams but they would be paid through CASTLE out of course funds.

Slack

During the exam, the invigilators and course staff can silently keep in touch to report issues using the slack app. This channel will be set up by CSG Exams before the exam.

BYOD

These exams require the students to bring their own devices to run the exam on the Safe Exam Browser (SEB). Students would be required to ensure that SEB is already installed and that their devices are fully charged before the exam. Power is not available in every room.

Room Allocation

Depending on the size of your course you could just direct people to seats and rooms on the day, or you could choose to allocated certain students to specific rooms beforehand based on capacity. eg A-F - room1, G-I - room2, etc.

If you choose to seat students on the day, be careful to note friendship groups sitting together and split them up to minimise opportunities for cheating or disruption.

Paper Exam Organisation in Note form

from Sebastian Sequoiah-Grayson

• Seb Kandis booked the relevant lecture theatres for the exam itself.

• I wrote the exam in Overleaf and attached the cover sheet to it as pdf

• I printed out 500 copies of the exam on the printer next to Admin, and then stappled them together in my office the night before the exam. (There is a stapler and staples in the photocopy room outside Admin)

• On the day of the exam I wheeled them to CLB in boxes with a trolly that I got from Admin.

• The tutors/invigilators and I handed them out to the students with answer booklets.

• After the exam the students handed them in as they left the rooms.

• I put them all back into the boxes and wheeled them back to my office for the night.

• The next day the tutors started marking them in the basement boardroom.

• Shiling booked the basement boardroom I think.

Exam Booklets

Exam booklets can be printed in 4 pages, 6 pages or 12 pages. Make sure to order the correct number of booklets well before the exam.

Rolls

There needs to be a method of checking ID and marking rolls. If there are more than 50 people in a room there needs to be more than one copy of the roll. Eg Keith Burrows holds 146 and therefore needs 3 copies of the roll so that 3 invigilators can work simultaneously.

Sample Pre-exam shouting script

Good afternoon! Welcome to the COMP9020 mid-term exam. From this moment, you are under exam conditions. You may not communicate with anyone outside the exam, and must be accompanied by an invigilator if you need to go anywhere.

Please ensure all your electronic devices - including mobile phones, laptops, and any form of wrist watch - are switched off and stowed in your bag. Not just on silent, not just on flight mode, but switched off.

As you may know, UNSW has a "Fit-to-Sit" rule: if you sit this exam, you are declaring yourself well enough to do so, you will be unable to apply for special consideration afterwards. If you feel unwell during an exam, let an invigilator know as soon as possible.

Before you enter the labs, you should have with you:
- pens or pencils,
- your student ID card.
You may optionally have with you:
- one A4 page cheatsheet
- a UNSW approved calculator
- a clear, unmarked water bottle; and
- a language-to-English dictionary.

When you enter the rooms, leave your bag at the front of the room, and take a seat spaced 1 seat apart from another student, or as instructed by an invigilator.

Please, now confirm you have no electronic devices on you. If you have any questions, or feel unwell at any point during the exam, please let an invigilator know. Are there any questions?

Sample invigilator instructions (written by Rani)

Hi everyone! Roaming invigilators will be shouting at 4:25pm. You may let students into your rooms after they've done so.

Ask students to leave their bags at the front and take a seat spaced at least 1 seat away from another student. Move them if they are too close or students are sitting next to each other. 

Walk around the room and check the following:
- All calculators are UNSW Approved (sticker)
- Students only have one A4 page of notes/cheatsheet
- No additional contraband e.g. electronic adjacent devices

After students all seated and checked, you can distribute the exam paper. Students should NOT touch the paper or start reading until you say so.

After all papers are distributed, you can start reading time. The exam is:
- 10 mins of reading time
- 2 hours of writing time
- Warnings: 1 hour left, 30 mins left, 10 mins left, 1 min left.

You may check the roll (and ids) after 30 minutes into writing time. Students can arrive 30 minutes late after reading time, and leave early (except in the first and last 30 minutes of the exam).

Any questions - please post on this slack channel!