What is Respondus LockDown Browser? LockDown Browser Icon

Respondus LockDown Browser (LDB) is a web browser which adds an additional layer of academic integrity to an exam by providing a secure, online environment for taking a quiz in Canvas. It prevents students from printing, copying, visiting other URLs/apps or closing a Canvas quiz until it has been submitted. When Respondus LDB is set up on a Canvas quiz, students will not be able to take the quiz with a standard web browser.

⚠   Respondus LDB is not a guarantee against academic dishonesty. It is intended to be used to augment standard invigilation practices and is not a replacement for invigilation. 

Guidelines 

Operational Guidelines Summary

Respondus LDB can only be used with Canvas quizzes in partnership with the Exams Office and it must be enabled for individual Canvas courses by the Digital Learning System Solution Support Team (DLSSS), upon request. It is intended that Respondus LDB quizzes are only used for summative assessment, not formative, and it is important to ensure that the Respondus LDB exam meets the general assessment guidelines in the QUB Assessment Handbook

Various steps need to be put in place before successfully administering such an exam. The Operational Guidelines outline where the responsibilities lie for each of the different tasks involved. Download a condensed version of the operational guidelines here (see image).

Information for students can be found in the Student Guide to Respondus LockDown Browser. A dedicated checklist for invigilators can be found in the ‘Quiz Set-Up’ section below.

Quiz Questions  

Before thinking about setting up the Canvas/Respondus LDB quiz, create your quiz questions using the ‘Question Bank’ feature. If you are unfamiliar with creating quiz questions, read the ‘Appropriate Use of Quizzes’ section in this staff guide or watch this training session recording.

For this type of assessment, it is best practice to keep the question requirements as straightforward as possible and quiz questions should be reviewed by an external examiner before the quiz is set up. As per the QUB Assessment Guidelines, ensure that your quiz is marked out of 100 points. For example, each question would be marked out of 10 points for a 10-question quiz. 

Quiz Set-Up

Once your questions are prepared, you can set up your quiz. Begin by applying the Canvas quiz settings, and then apply the Respondus LDB settings. Follow the steps in the Respondus LockDown Browser Set-Up Checklist, linked below. You can also watch the short video underneath which takes you on a tour of the Respondus LDB settings. 

The invigilator checklist, linked below, will be provided to invigilators by the Exams Office on the day of the exam. 

Click on the thumbnails to expand, or on the links to download
Set-Up ChecklistRespondus LockDown Browser Set-Up Checklist Respondus LDB Invigilator ChecklistRespondus LDB Invigilator Checklist

 

Further Considerations

It is essential that you read through these further considerations before setting up your quiz. Contact the VLE Pedagogy Support team for further guidance if required.


Exam Location

There are several locations on campus where Respondus LDB quizzes can be taken. The exam location should be agreed with the Exams Office prior to setting up the quiz.  

Note: Quizzes should only be taken on computers where Respondus LDB is already installed. Do not try to download and install Respondus LDB yourself as this can result in an uncontrolled testing environment. 


Canvas Account Roles

You must have a Canvas Teacher or Student role to be able to use Respondus LDB. If you try to access Respondus LDB with another Canvas role, you will receive an error message.  

Note: Only those with a Canvas Teacher role can access the Respondus LDB Dashboard.


Microsoft Authentication

As outlined in this online guide for students, students will need to complete Microsoft authentication in the exam room before they can take the quiz. This will require students to bring a personal device, such as a mobile phone, to the exam with them. Remind students about this requirement prior to the day of the exam


Access Code

An access code must be applied in the Canvas/Respondus LDB settings so that students only have access the quiz in the controlled environment. Access codes entered in the Canvas settings will feed through to the Respondus LockDown Browser settings automatically. The Exams Office will give the access code to invigilators on the day of the exam and the invigilator will provide the code to students in the controlled testing environment.  

Note: Special characters cannot form part of the access code. Alphanumeric characters only. 


Quiz Title

It is good practice to give your quiz a distinct title to ensure that it can be easily located by students on the day of the exam i.e. “Week 12 Summative Assessment Quiz”

 Note: Do not use an emoji in the quiz title.  


Quiz Instructions

Ensure that your quiz instructions are clear and specific to this type of exam. You may find the Student Guide to Respondus LockDown Browser helpful

Note: Students should have been made aware from the beginning of your course (in the module handbook/on Canvas) that Respondus LDB will be used as part of the summative assessment process. 


Setting dates/times

Care should be taken when entering the dates/times in the Canvas quiz settings.  

‘Due’: This should be the same as the end date/time of the exam.  

‘Available from’:  This should be the same as the start date/time of the exam.  

‘Until’:  This is the date/time at which the quiz will no longer be available. It is recommended that you add 1 hour on to the end of the exam window in the event of a late start to the exam.  

As an example, if your exam was 1 hour in length and it started at 9:30, the quiz should be made available from 9:30, due at 10:30 and available until 11:30.  


Have a 'Plan B'

It is good practice to have a back-up plan in the highly unlikely event that Respondus LDB isn’t working and the relevant internal teams (Information Services, Exams Office etc.) cannot assist. You may wish to create a duplicate quiz to which Respondus LDB has not been applied for students to take instead. Make sure that the duplicate quiz has been given an appropriate title to distinguish it, i.e. “Week 12 Summative Quiz: DUPLICATE”, and leave the duplicate quiz unpublished until the point at which it needs to be published to prevent students from having early access. 

Note: Contact the VLE Pedagogy Support team for more information if you intend to have a duplicate quiz. 


Multiple Quizzes

Only one quiz can be taken per Respondus LDB session. Do not try to get students to take more than one quiz in the same browser session.  


External Content

It is not recommended to include video content from Microsoft Stream, YouTube or Mediasite as part of your Respondus LDB quiz. 


Question Requirements

It is not recommended that file upload or spreadsheet submission be required as part of a Respondus LDB quiz. 

 


Useful Links

Operational Guidelines [Full list]

Operational Guidelines Summary

Student guide to Respondus LockDown Browser 

You may also find the Respondus website helpful, as well as their Quick Start Instructor Guide.