International Students’ Assessment Expectations and Experiences Between Handwritten and Typed E-Assessments Conducted Through the ExamOnline Platform
Authors: Loliwe Thando 
Published: December 2024

Aim/Purpose: This study examined the experiences of international students writing a typed e-assessment at the on-campus computer lab on the ExamOnline system.

Background: After a computer-based typed summative examination was introduced for one of the MSc degree’s modules in a UK university, it was critical to ascertain its inclusivity. The context is that departments in universities select criteria to ser-vice their diverse students, which oblige students to adapt or request assistance that can accommodate their academic needs.

Methodology: Through both questionnaires and interviews, the data was collected from sixteen international students who were part of the students who enrolled in the affected master's module in 2023/24 academic year.

Contribution: This study provides an understanding of international students’ characteristics and other factors that may likely influence them to desire individualised as-sessments when typed e-assessments are used in a higher education institution.

Findings: The students had positive experiences of writing a typed e-assessment at the on-campus computer lab. This was due to students’ individual characteristics, academic and social factors, such as aspirations, learning gained, ability to manage their emotions, typing proficiency, meta-cognition, amount of study-ing done, [not or] finishing the exams, travelling to and from the campus, and acoustics. Also, the good thing is that some students adapted to this typed e-assessment. However, some students expected support for their weak comput-er skills and modifications, including an option to use familiar computer key-boards and repeated practice sessions.

Recommendations for Practitioners: To support international students' adaptation to e-assessments, typing proficiency tests, practice sessions, and modifications, such as early communication of assessment modes, must be introduced to improve their ability to write typed e-assessments.

Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers must be vigilant at all times so that they can detect discriminatory practices and policies that may complicate student learning and achievement in higher education. This is because inclusive education also means inclusive and fair assessment methods.

Impact on Society: E-assessments must not be adopted because they benefit instructors in terms of their ease of marking and are an accepted norm. They must also be in the students’ best interest. This research demonstrates how to align typed e-assessments and the skills students use to complete them through inclusivity approaches to e-assessments.

Future Research: Future research must examine whether this study's findings can be generalised to students who are novices at writing typed timed e-assessments on the ExamOnline system in various subjects and levels of study. Also, further research could help understand the effect of this study's proposed changes on the inclusiveness of typed e-assessments according to the international students enrolled in this module.