With sufficient planning and preparation, most students with disabilities should be able to take an Honorlock-enabled exam successfully. However, instructors and students should be aware of accessibility-related concerns, limitations, and barriers when creating or taking Honorlock-enabled exams.
When considering accommodations, keep in mind that Honorlock does not allow instructors to exempt an individual student from the settings established on the exam. If a setting directly contradicts a student’s accommodation, alternative proctoring methods must be implemented. This includes the possibility of taking the exam without Honorlock enabled. See Honorlock Exam Flexibility for Specific Students for more information.
It's important to note that Honorlock may flag behavior that aligns with a student’s approved accommodations. Instructors are responsible for determining if violations occurred and should review the entire exam video to ensure course policies were followed.
Accessibility Barriers
The following are known Honorlock accessibility barriers that students may experience as they take an exam.
Photo ID and Room Scan difficulties for users with motor disabilities, low vision, or blindness
If Photo ID and Room Scans are enabled on the exam, students with motor disabilities, low vision, or blindness may experience difficulties holding up their photo ID or laptop to scan the room.
No auditory feedback is provided to acknowledge a successful completion of a photo ID or Room Scan. This makes it difficult for students with low vision or blindness to know if they have met requirements.
Students experiencing difficulties can contact Honorlock Chat support using the Chat icon on the bottom right of the screen.
Magnification difficulties for users with low vision
Honorlock does not magnify well beyond 200% magnification. This may cause students with low vision to have difficulty using the proctoring tool.
The use of small images or small text may also impact students with low vision.
Keyboard and screen reader navigation difficulties for users with visual or motor disabilities
Getting into the exam:
- There are known keyboard navigation and screen reader auditory feedback barriers that may prevent students reliant on these tools from completing the Honorlock verification process to enter an exam. These issues are particularly evident when verifying a photo ID and performing Room Scans.
- Some focus styling and inconsistencies are present throughout Honorlock. Once again, users reliant on screen readers or other assistive technology may find it difficult to navigate through the verification process to enter the exam.
During an exam:
- Users reliant on screen readers or other assistive technologies may experience some navigation issues getting to Honorlock’s Live Chat feature.
- Honorlock’s Hotkey Detection has been enabled to prevent the use of certain combinations of keystrokes during the exam, which will result in a blurred screen and a flag if attempted. This may impact some keyboard shortcuts used with assistive technologies.
- Students may experience issues with inaccessible exam content. It is the instructor’s responsibility to ensure that all content within the exam meets accessibility standards. These include, but are not limited to:
- Images must be accessible with screen readers or other assistive technologies. They should not be the only context for answering a question and should contain appropriate alternative text. All visuals should be clear enough and large enough for users with low vision or colorblindness to see.
- Videos or other multimedia must be captioned.
- Tables should be clearly labeled and plainly formatted.
- Design and color should follow Universal Design for Learning (UDL) best practices.
- Exam directions should be clear and not rely on visual clues for how to answer the question. For example, a matching question visually shows two related columns. While students without vision issues might understand what is expected based upon that visual information, those using screen readers will not see the columns and must rely on clearly written instructions for how to answer the question.
- Images must be accessible with screen readers or other assistive technologies. They should not be the only context for answering a question and should contain appropriate alternative text. All visuals should be clear enough and large enough for users with low vision or colorblindness to see.
Color contrast barriers may be difficult for users with low vision or colorblindness
Some of the links, buttons, and filters within Honorlock have insufficient contrast, which may cause users with low vision or colorblindness to have difficulty seeing where to click and interact in order to navigate through online proctoring or exam setup.
Strategies to Ensure Accessibility
For Educators
Proactively plan your exam content and Honorlock settings to ensure accessibility for all students.
- Create exam content and questions that are accessible. Always present images and multimedia in accessible formats, even if no students in your class have registered accommodations.
- Read any student's approved accommodations carefully and consider having a conversation about the student’s comfort level with using Honorlock.
- When choosing Honorlock Proctoring settings, only select the settings that are required for you to maintain the integrity of the exam. If appropriate, disable the requirement for validating a photo ID and conducting a Room Scan, as well as any other settings that might make it difficult for students to access the exam.
- Set up a practice exam before a high-stakes assessment to ensure students are able to use Honorlock and feel comfortable with the steps and technology required.
- Add language on your syllabus to address the use of Honorlock in your course and any accessibility concerns.
- Look at all approved accommodations for your course. Discuss questions and concerns with Student Life Disability Services and determine whether alternative proctoring methods should be used.
- Inform students that you will review all proctoring results to ensure exam policies were followed. Assure them that any flags the AI proctoring tool adds for behavior that aligns with their approved accommodations will not count against them.
- Set up extended test time and allow extra attempts. This can be set up through the CarmenCanvas quiz in the same way as it is for non-Honorlock enabled exams.
For Students
If a course is using Honorlock for an exam, leverage any instructions, resources, and practice opportunities your instructor provides.
- Take any Honorlock-enabled practice exams that are available for you in your course. This way you can see for yourself if the Honorlock tool is appropriate for you.
- Discuss the exam with your Student Life Disability Service accessibility counselor and/or your instructor to determine if alternative proctoring is needed.
- During an exam, give yourself grace. Understand that the proctoring tool may be flagging you but it is your instructor who will determine if the behavior constitutes potential academic misconduct. After the exam, feel free to contact your instructor with any difficulties or concerns you had during the exam.