ATP's Journal of Applied Testing Technology (JATT)

Publishes Special Issue on Remote Proctoring

The famous writer Mark Twain once said, "supposing is good, but finding out is better." And nothing could be truer about The Journal of Applied Testing Technology's most recent special edition focusing on remote proctoring. 

According to the introductory abstract for the special edition Online Remote Proctored Delivery of High Stakes Tests: Issues and Research, edited by John Weiner, Chief Science Officer, PSI Services LLC and Dianne Henderson,Vice President, Research, ACT, and published by JATT in March, "Online administration of high stakes tests has been an increasing trend since the turn of the millennium, as assessment design and delivery have been undergoing a digital transformation. In 2020, the pandemic heightened the need for safe and socially distanced practices in education, work, and life activities. As a result, online Live Remote Proctored (LRP) testing rapidly became a necessary practice to enable credentialing to continue for professionals in essential occupations, and has continued as testing organizations adopt mixed modes of delivery for assessments in all markets. And while limited published research has been promising in support of LRP, there remain unanswered questions and a need for additional research.

"This is an important issue for JATT and for the industry," remarked ATP CEO William G. Harris. "At no point in the past 20 years have we seen such exponential changes as we have within the realm of remote proctoring during the pandemic. And as our members have pivoted to address rapid changes, it's our job as an Association to make sure they have the tools, the data, and the research to insure the quality products and services that their customers and clients have come to expect."

The introductory abstract outlines what is included in the issue: This special edition of the Journal of Applied Testing Technology (JATT) includes several articles describing empirical studies that examine key measurement issues, including comparability of LRP and Test Center Proctored (TCP) scores on high stakes exams, detection of score anomalies and potential cheating for LRP and TCP exams, potential impact of testing modality on candidate experience ratings, and relationships between technology disruptions, candidate experience and test scores. A methodological article is included outlining an approach to quantifying candidate response similarity that may be indicative of cheating or other test fraud; and a literature review article is included providing background on the evolution of online testing and research in different assessment contexts.

"Both John and Dianne should be commended for the extraordinary job they did in pulling together world-class experts to expand on six areas of important research...this special edition of JATT is a must-read for everyone in this industry, at this time," Harris concluded.