Class and Exam Modalities’ Impact on Student Exam Scores

Abstract

Higher education constantly has to adapt to meet the changing needs of our students. One of the challenges instructors have faced when delivering online courses is the assessment integrity. This issue was highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced educators to quickly convert traditional in-person courses to online versions of the course. However, the flexibility that online courses offer students has led to an increased demand for more online options. As educators work to create more online options, it is essential to develop online assessment that maintains the same level of academic rigor and integrity as a traditional in-person course. To evaluate the impact of the modality on exam scores, we compared exam scores from analogous organic chemistry 1 courses that were delivered in three different modalities: in-person, online, and hybrid. The impact of the modality and testing platform is presented here.