Student Stories with Proctorio

The A.S. Proctorio Survey was not designed to be representative of the entire student body. These qualitative submissions illustrate some of the students' experiences with Proctorio.

Experience #1

"I almost missed my final exam due to proctorio. It took the whole exam time to fix my situation and I practically begged my professor to give me a second chance to complete it."

Experience #2

"I was incredibly stressed about it at the beginning of the semester and it definitely inhibited my ability to study. However, as I used it more I began to become more comfortable with it."

Experience #3

"It’s really bad. If I get a notification saying low battery I get kicked out of my class. And if you have any toolbox downloaded and for some reason something pops up telling you anything you are automatically kicked. That is disturbing and makes tests quizzes or exams all the worse."

Experience #4

"I read the syllabus throughly for this particular class and there was no mention that we could opt out of proctorio, which I was surprised because everything else was mapped out for us. This profesor is very strict and not willing to help students, whereas in my other classes professors even offer to help and reach out, but its okay, I get it, I am an adult and the rules are the rules.

I think in normal circumstances is more useful than prejudicial, but in instances when we are all stuck at home and there are no libraries open to find some quiet space, it's just crazy.

I just gave birth and have a six year old, you can see on my proctorio videos that the baby is crying the background, and the six year old calling me. Also, it makes me nervous that they can not enter into the room and that I can't leave or even yell to everyone: "be quiet" because the test will flag me. It makes me irritable because without proctorio I could've easily picked up my baby, clam him down, scroll down and finish my test. With proctorio I am nervous that I will get flagged down. Is like someone looking but not really looking. I would much rather come to campus to take the test that getting accuse of something that they could hardly prove, even if I was doing it."

Experience #5

"One day I was taking a quiz. Something that shouldn’t be that hard. I studied two days prior and was ready to go. But at the same time I was starting to feel anxious and stressed about taking the quiz. Then I open up Chrome to take my quiz. This is the most annoying part since it takes at least a minute for chrome to open successfully in my Mac. Then I started taking my quiz, all of a sudden, I had a panic attack. This was the first time I’ve ever had one throughout the course of 13 years of schooling. I remember my body was shaking like crazy, and I was sweating like crazy. I feel that the pressure of taking these quizzes and exams is already enough, but with having to be recorded adds more stress.

Also it has gotten in the way of my siblings privacy and schooling. One day I was taking an exam in my room. Then my sibling wanted to walk in the room but couldn’t since he’s uncomfortable with being recorded. I couldn’t turn off my camera or change direction of it because it would send a message to my professor that I’m cheating. Because of this he couldn’t walk into the room to grab his laptop, which made him late to his class."

Experience #6

"Thought giving exam in class is something we all got used to over the years I personally have huge anxiety with video chats video surveillance. I been having hard time even showing my face on video cam even thought i have no trouble doing so in class. Proctorio is understandable but it gives me sense on of someone is watching me specifically gives me huge anxiety and it affects my performance. I never had the urge of cheating since I have been able to do good in classes without cheating and had no problem with it. But proctorio have given me test anxiety and being able to show my surrounding also feels like it invades my privacy in my own house since I dont have my own room I dont feel comfortable sharing my surroundings. I am hugely in favor of browser locking or any other types of software. But by saying not wanting kids to cheat to justify is affecting other students."

Experience #7

"Terrible, it has taken me out of exams for sneezing or siblings accidentally joining the internet."

Experience #8

"It gives me anxiety that it may kick me out of the test, but they always communicate good."

Experience #9

"Using Proctorio is not that difficult but the issue of unnecessary kick out and flagging is just annoying. It adds up to anxiety and other issues. I also used it for my Math Classes which most of the time doesn’t work so you will be losing time while trying to fix it and reaching out to your professor. I was hoping and expecting that before they decided to use this, they had a dry run and identify issues that needs to be addressed. Plus the specific software requirement becomes an equitable access issue."

Experience #10

"I have been kicked out of exams or flagged down because of things that weren’t my fault. Not all students have a quiet or study-friendly environment."

Experience #12

"I didn’t personally had problem using proctorio but I know some of the classmates had problem like internet connection problem or something happens and test getting turned in unprepared. I feel like internet connection would be the problem out of hand but test getting turned in may be the problem that could be solved if possible:) Also when we had a questions about tests -for example, not being able to see the picture examples or not understanding the question- it took more time to get an respond."

Experience #13

"We have to be on camera at all times in the cosmo Dept except during quizzes as of now. The quiz part Can change. We have to state in the chat in zoom when we’re going to the restroom. I HATE ONLINE BEAUTY SCHOOL pressure and feels high stakes most of the time. They don’t acknowledge the world around us w/ covid and revolution and elections and other countries happenings like war in Armenia."

Experience #14

"I have used proctorio, and it is very anxiety-inducing!! I find myself rushing through the exam because of it because i will become so avoidant with the anxiety and pressure it builds up in me. And it’s calculus so I have to always look down at my work, and eye tracking makes it feel wrong to do that."

Experience #15

"Disturbance of privacy."

Experience #16

"I have used Proctorio for one of my classes throughout the semester, and it has worked fine. There was a practice test we could take beforehand to learn the testing process. I do not like how my privacy is compromised because SMC is worried about me cheating. The use of Proctorio implies that SMC does not trust me or my peers."

Experience #17

"I dropped a course because of this. it was weird knowing my teacher could see me but also all around my home/ room."

Experience #18

"Horrible. I have anxiety so I naturually move a lot ESPECIALLY during tests and exams because theyre important for my grades. AND PROCTORIO FLAGS ME OR LOCKS ME OUT FOR THE SLIGHTEST EYE TWITCH OR ME SCRATCHING MY HEAD I HATE IT. Ive literally failed so many biology quizes because of it. And they’re timed so it takes a while to CONTACT PROCTORIO AND HAVE THEM OPT ME BACK IN. So frustrating i lost the promise because of it this semester."

Experience #19

"Horrible! I failed my Statistics midterm because it kicked me out half way through for no reason. The whole system is glitchy and doesn't always let me in during the verification it just hangs so I've also failed quizzes. I now have to retake the class because of it."

Experience #20

"No one is happy about it and I try to pick classes that doesnt use proctorio in class."

Experience #21

"Really no point to proctorio it just stresses students out and limits their capabilities of answering questions logically and correctly since there is the distraction that proctorio is watching."

Experience #22

"My experience with the use of a proctored for one of my classes did not go well. There would be times when taking a test the proctor would ask for an access code which would waste time for our test. Also, there are some professors that would not help us when having issues with proctorio and make us rely on the service proctorio offers. Adding on, proctorio would say that there are other tabs open when reality there aren't other tabs open besides the window that is being used and would not allow us to do the assignment."

Experience #23

"Violation of your intimacy , harassing."

Experience #24

"It caused me severe test anxiety to the point I had to have emergency Therapy sessions after class."

Experience #25

"It was nervewrecking, I tend to stare down or into the wall while thinking and that action might be flagged and considered as cheating."

Experience #26

"One time, I accidentally pressed the "ESC" button and my exam was stopped immediately. As I am currently living abroad, I had to make an international call all the way to US and call the Proctorio help center. The person told me to share my screen in order for him to help me out. Although my time got deducted, I could still go back to my exam. After hanging up the call, I had some difficulties in the Prechecks section, and to my surprise, a message in the proctorio chat help room came from the same guy who was in the phone, and told me what to do in the prechecks. I realised that the camera was on the whole time as well. One could only tell how much privacy students can have with Proctorio. I fully do not support Proctorio not only because of its privacy issues, but also the fact that its not efficient at all."

Experience #27

"The experience felt very intrusive. I share both a laptop and a studio apartment with my partner; downloading the software on a shared computer and "showcasing" our living space didn't just make me feel uncomfortable but I felt like I was violating his privacy as well."

Experience #28

"Proctorio is very invasive and it increases stress."

Experience #29

"It limits the student and takes a lot of time away from taking the actual test."

Experience #30

"It shows down, it locked me out without cause.""

Experience #31

"It is nerve-wracking to allow an online program take over your computer. On top of that you are sharing your driver's licence online which is generally not smart due to identity theft. On top of that, you are taking a quiz or exam. All of these stresses about my privacy, safety, and doing well on the exam add up and increase anxiety tenfold and decreases my performance. Also the fear that kicks in when my mom shouts or my dad starts doing the dishes is completely unreasonable. It is not me cheating so why is my heart racing to a painful pace? It is the orange highlight around the box that shows your face throughout the entire exam. This is not nice or practical."

Experience #32

"I have been dealing with a lot more pop ups on my cell phone. And the teachers aren't notifying the students prior to the class that they are using this software. Also I am not comfortable with the teachers having monitoring access to any device we use to attend class."

Experience #33

"I used proctorio for my stats class and had a girl flagged for cheating for having her DOG in the room. I like to read the questions out loud to process them but was told by my professor not to because it could be flagged as cheating. I share a room with my sister and in the event that she needs something in the room she can’t come in because it’ll count as cheating. My dog started barking once and I was so busy freaking out that it would be flagged as cheating that I could not concentrate. It’s unfair to assume that everyone has a quiet and private space to work in, some people share a room with multiple people. Distance education is hard enough, have some compassion."

Experience #34

"I babysit my 2 year old niece so I have to constantly check the baby monitor and of course my eye movement is constantly moving. I don’t want to be docked points or even get a 0 because of that."

Experience #35

"I have been kicked numerous times because my computer cannot run the software. I feel invaded and treated like a child."

Experience #36

"I do not like that my professor uses it since our tests are open notes. I also have autism and I always worry that it will seem that I am cheating."

Experience #37

"I use VPN when I am in China. If this software is unstable, it is very easy to drop. Once disconnected, Proctorio will automatically determine that I cheated. This is a huge blow to me.""

Experience #38

"First of all, using Proctorio in an exam makes me very uncomfortable because you have to sit up straight all the time and you can't even hold the scratch paper. Secondly, in the process of using Proctorio, the network connection must be unblocked. Some students also need to use VPN, which makes the network unblocked during the exam. However, once the network speed is not good, the system will recognize you as cheating, for which I have a very painful experience. So I'm pretty much against proctorio."

Experience #39

"It’s so easy to cheat without video proctoring I think it makes sense to have it. All the students who are against it aren’t going to do better on their test just because their camera is off unless the are willing to cheat."

Experience #40

I almost missed my final exam due to proctorio. It took the whole exam time to fix my situation and I practically begged my professor to give me a second chance to complete it.

Experience #41

It is illegal. I have information on my computer l will not do that if you use proctorio which is totally ##### illegaly they still info from us never ever let that happen on my computer. Students have a lot of stress in their career goal so proctorio make more ### up. Comennn there is coronavirus what are you all trying to do with ### proctoria ????? People lost income and you all still ### our life with proctoria?

Experience #42

It makes me feel so stressed out. As a student with disabilities I tend to move and look around a lot and while taking tests I am in fear that I will get flagged the whole time due to my learning disabilities.

Experience #43

It was horrible I already have test anxiety and this made me feel like I couldn’t concentrate at all, I have two room mates and so any time they would do anything even outside my room I was terrified I would get flagged for it and the test thrown out.

Experience #44

I have extended time accommodations for my class exams which means using Proctorio for an extensive amount of time. This is incredibly uncomfortable given my eye movements will be greater than that of my peers without extended time and it worries me if my professor thinks I am suspicious because of that. I also cannot stand up or use the restroom after 4-5 hours even with the anxiety I feel. It’s a mess.

Experience #45

I use proctario every week and it’s always something. I once got a zero on this quiz and it logged me out and didn’t tell me why . I then contacted proctario for assistance and they didn’t help at all.

Experience #46

I don’t live in a study environment due to COVID-19, and I have difficulties using the camera in the first place. So making it obligatory makes taking exams limiting and difficult.

Experience #47

Lots of glitches and sometimes the calculator doesn’t work.

Experience #48

Proctorio makes tests much more stressful for several reasons. Having a camera on while taking the exam makes it even more stressful. My computer has been wearing down freezes every once in a while, which sometimes results in Proctor shutting down since the camera will go out.

Experience #49

My laptop has a touch pad and will sometimes minimise my screen which causes Proctorio to flag me as cheating. It took them over 30 minutes to put me back in the test but by that time the test was already over and was labeled as failed due to the false flag or the camera will label me as absent even though I'm in a well lit room. I can't help if my skin is dark, they should have implemented that in the camera system.

Experience #50

I used Proctorio to do Japan 9 exam. It was really weird, and I felt uncomfortable.

Experience #51

I feel very uncomfortable putting my camera on for proctorio to record me. The fact that they can sell your identity and face to any company or government agency unnerves me.

Experience #52

It was truly a nightmare. It doesn’t come close to being an equivalent to taking exams in class, it just makes things considerably harder.

Experience #53

My experience was terrible I’m a very anxious test taker and I like to move around or I tend to get distracted with my surroundings but it kept notifying my teacher all my movements and she thought I was cheating.

Experience #54

My experience was terrible I’m a very anxious test taker and I like to move around or I tend to get distracted with my surroundings but it kept notifying my teacher all my movements and she thought I was cheating.

Experience #55

Just horrible. Slows down the computer, consumes valuable test time for no reasons

Experience #56

The use of proctorio creates an unreasonable amount of extra stress for not only myself but many other students I have spoken with. Not all of us have a quiet environment especially during these times with covid.

Experience #57

It was glitching for me. The camera works fine, but it “did not pass the test”. This led to my test being delayed for over an hour.

Experience #58

I had one class that used proctorio for quizzes. One time, while I was taking a quiz , Proctorio arbitrarily kicked me out of the quiz. I got in contact with proctorio and they were no help. I also emailed my professor and unhelpfully told me to just do better in the next quiz. He did not specify the reason why proctorio kicked me out during the test, but I suspect that it had to do with the noise around my apartment.

Experience #59

It’s hard to find a completely quiet place and makes me nervous and not relaxed.

Experience #60

I was unable to concentrate and focus on my exams while using proctorio.

Experience #61

This IS A HORRIBLE program. It discriminates against anyone with test anxiety!

Experience #62

I haven't used it, but I do oppose its use as the company has proven itself extremely unethical.

Experience #63

I got kicked out of my class because my mac book started ringing through Facetime. I had just started the midterm and got kicked in 15 minutes and my professor didn't let me back in. I have also gotten kicked out of a quiz because a notification popped up saying battery is now at 20%.

Experience #64

I have used Proctorio at another college (not SMC) and felt that it was very invasive of my privacy. I understand that it is mainly for academic integrity, however, I feel that there are better ways to do this instead of spying on the students. When using Proctorio, I was very uncomfortable the entire time I took a test, which resulted in lower scores. I was also uncomfortable with all of the things I was required to do to install/ use Proctorio.

Experience #65

From the first exam to this current one using Proctorio I have had issues. My professor even stopped giving Proctorio quizes since so many students had issues and only used Proctorio for Exams instead. The first exam up finding the right input options for the correct answers took time, the second exam Proctorio , the third Proctorio exam I was kicked out randomly from the test (causing my professor to have to fix it to allow me back in), the fourth Exam every student got kicked out of Proctorio, the fifth and last proctorio exam I am took the coding for about 4 questions were not displayed and I had to de-code the questions. Every single Proctorio exam I have had an issues. I have failed almost every exam since I was unable to complete inputting the test answers in. I have never failed a math class, I have never failed a class in my life. I have tried to opt out but no one has been able to tell me what to do instead. I have left every exam in tears, and now I am on the verge of failing not one but two classes only because of Proctorio.

Experience #66

My experience with this is horrible . Having my exams proctored has given me so much anxiety and stress and I failed all of my first and second exam so far . I don’t like being watched and I was crying so much after the exams were done and having my grade from an A all the way to like a D because of this proctor.