Case #1 is a legitimate concern. I've seen teachers give part of an assessment online and the other part on paper before. I suppose that could be done here. Automated grading on multiple choice, true/false, and matching sections still reduces a significant amount of manual grading. I imagine your argument to that, though, would be that you might as well just use Scantron forms. I can't really argue with that. One workaround, albeit very tacky, would be to physically remove the modifier buttons (Ctrl, Alt, etc.) and the f-keys (F1, F2, etc.) from the keyboards. (although if they're not allowed to change the OS, they're probably also not allowed to rip buttons off of the keyboards) Another workaround would be to have an Android-esque on-screen keyboard with word-autocomplete functionality. That, however, would probably collect tons of complaints and take lots of time to develop. You might be able to find keyboards online that you can order that are strictly alphanumeric (that doesn't have any of the "special-purpose" keys), but that could get expensive. On Windows, this can all be disabled programmatically, but based on what I've read throughout the comments of this article, I don't believe it can be done on Ubuntu. The options above, I feel, are the only ones even close to reasonable.
Regarding Case #2, I would argue that it's a relatively rare case and I'm sure teachers would be happy to accommodate a student with a disability by allowing them to take the exam orally or by giving them a paper copy. Also, if the app is written properly, you should be able to install text-to-speech software (the kind written for disabled people) and give the student a room to his or herself. (where he or she won't be verbally announcing the answers to everyone in the room)
That makes it way to much of a pain in the butt to administer. Being proactive is better. We use computers to make things easier and more manageable. Probably one of the reasons they want to use a computer as a test station was to not have to monitor crap like this. I wouldn't doubt he could have figured out how to do what you say if that's what he wanted. Even better, have someone walk around the room looking over their shoulder... and give the students pens and paper not a computer so they won't even have any opportunity.
In that case, refer to my other answer:
by adamdoyle (1665063) on Wednesday December 07, @08:45PM (#38298428):
Or if you're feeling extra clever, you could straight up disable the keyboard [stackexchange.com] and rely on the mouse for selecting answers. It would have to be enabled at the beginning for the user to enter his or her credentials, but then you could disable it during the actual test (there's no way to exit fullscreen with only a mouse), and then re-enable it upon completion. The site I linked to explains how to both enable and disable the entire keyboard programmatically. The linked site produces a shell script... In Java, you could run that shell script with: Process.Start(@"./scriptname.sh").
Or if you're feeling extra clever, you could straight up disable the keyboard and rely on the mouse for selecting answers. It would have to be enabled at the beginning for the user to enter his or her credentials, but then you could disable it during the actual test (there's no way to exit fullscreen with only a mouse), and then re-enable it upon completion. The site I linked to explains how to both enable and disable the entire keyboard programmatically. The linked site produces a shell script... In Java, you could run that shell script with: Process.Start(@"./scriptname.sh").
Or just pop up a fullscreen window that says "TEST FAILED! your test proctor has been notified that you were cheating. Gather your things and please leave the testing area.
And maybe give the proctor some means of re-enabling the exam in the event that someone mistakenly presses one of the disallowed hotkeys. (if the teacher knows the students personally, he or she may be able to use good judgement to determine if the student was actually cheating)
If you ask me, you don't really need to prevent users from doing those things. You just need to tell they're not allowed to, and then have your java app detect if those things have occurred and then take action from there. By "take action," I mean that you could either (a) make some kind of notation in the database so that you can penalize them, or (b) send an SMS message or email or something to the test administrator to alert them of the situation so that they can walk over and determine if the student is attempting to cheat.
Uh, yeah, the GP said "window" not "wind" (I see how you could get those two mixed up). I do, however, agree with you. I'm not saying we should get rid of coal-fired plants, but we should also have wind turbines, solar panels, and nuclear power as well. Energy diversity is the key to all of this.
or even simpler: the whole experiment is done inside a Faraday cage (which they seem to trust) and the button is entirely mechanical inside of the cage and doesn't have any electronics until outside of the cage.
haha fine... it's a hydraulic button that squirts a fluid onto a material that will be later analyzed in a lab to determine the time it was pressed based on evaporation rates...
It would be interesting to have these people participate in a blind test in the same way that audiologists do hearing tests. Give them a button to push when they "feel" the pain associated with the electromagnetic field while you turn on the and off the field during random intervals. Unless they're actually feeling something, they shouldn't be able to correctly push the button at the right time.
I'd be interested in hearing their response to that. (although I suppose there are some people with whom you simply can't have rational arguments)
Ok, before anyone responds to this, I should note that I just read the post below mine that says "use wget, then calibre..." That's actually not a bad way to do it - I didn't think of that. However that doesn't make you a programmer, that makes you a "super user," as stackexchange would call it.
That's ridiculous. Just because you're a programmer doesn't mean you're familiar with the various SDKs necessary to do such at thing. Which do you think would be faster? Copying and pasting a few pages into Word or learning (at least) two new SDKs and dealing with everything involved with that. Some of us have jobs and don't have the time to research and write a program like that in addition to actually reading the book.
Well it is the stripped down netbook version, right? I think it's called "starter edition," or something. (I've never used it though, so idk how "stripped down" it is)
I don't see the problem. It's a "tablet" (by today's definition) that gives you the option of booting into Windows in the rare cases that you might need to. If it's priced right, then I think it would be a good alternative to those other Android tablets. Granted, I think the Android tablets are stupid, so maybe I'm biased. I like to think of the tablets with Wacom transducers and decent processors as tablets - not those Android-loaded things.
I never trust a native speaker who cannot use his own language correctly. "look at what we just did in only 100 lines or fewer".
Use fewer with objects that can be counted one-by-one.
Use less with qualities or quantities that cannot be individually counted.
Incorrect: There were less days below freezing last winter.
Correct: There were fewer days below freezing last winter. (Days can be counted.)
Correct: I used less flour to bake the cake than she did. (you cannot say 'one flour, two flour')
The more you know!
There is no such thing as "correct" in the English language. There is no organization that dictates what is and what is not "correct." Even among linguists there are prescriptivists and descriptivists. The descriptivists say that "correct" is whatever most people understand and use in the current time period. Prescriptivists try and make rules to decide what should be correct. That's how words such as "ain't" make it in the dictionary. In the end, though, if people understand what you're saying without having to think too hard, it's good enough. (not to mention obnoxious and unnecessary for you to be correcting)
Don't get me wrong, though. There are some things you should definitely not do or else I will immediately start to not trust you. There are some pretty definite rules for punctuation and even spelling. If you write "there" instead of "their," then I have to go back and reread the sentence and waste my time trying to figure out what you meant. "Less vs fewer," though, is not a distinction that makes it more difficult to understand and is not important.
Obviously they can be written different - that's not the point. Why spend time doing trivial non-physics stuff (solving systems of equations) on a physics test? There's no reason to be testing 3rd semester sophomores (engineering students) on high school math during a physics test. Also, it's ridiculous to dismiss a completely valid argument as "bogus" just because you take the opposite side. There's obviously much debate on the subject as can be seen from the high level of variation in test design amongst professors.
Further, part of the test is to see what you can complete in a limited time. You're not supposed to be able to brute force your way through everything with a mechanical wrecking ball. You're supposed to sneak your way through with cleverness.
Yes, often substitution or elimination is faster, but not always. Also, he often specifically tells us we will have to use a calculator to solve the system (in order to not run out of time). In my math classes, calculators are not allowed. In Physics, though, he assumes we can do math and lets us focus on just the Physics. The hard part is figuring out the system. Solving is easy but (potentially) time consuming.
If you're using a calculator to solve augmented matrices, you're not actually solving augmented matrices. The augmentation is to help you with the process of solving the matrix, not as some end-result that you stick on an answer box.
Solving systems of kinematic equations are trivial though. We're not being tested on linear algebra, we're being tested on Physics. In Linear Algebra, all of our system-solving is done sans calculator.
a laptop wouldn't work because what kind of teacher is going to let students have internet access during a test? (not to mention access to scanned copies of their notes, etc.)
IIRC, every math or science test I had in college was open notes/open book, and most were take-home tests. Memorization was not rewarded; ability to apply techniques was.
I have taken Calc. 1, Calc. 2, Vector Calc, Differential Equations, Physics I and II, Intro. Linear Algebra, Statics, Dynamics, Intro. Analytic Geometry, and more and of all of them, Statics and Dynamics were the only ones with open book/notes tests (because they were taught by the same guy).
I agree with your point but I have a hard time believing that your TI-83+ can do the computations faster than Mathematica. (maybe the other students were just slower)
I agree that you shouldn't "need" a calculator, but on a test in a non-math class, it's nice to have. For instance, in Physics, maybe you have a bunch of problems involving kinematic equations and you barely have enough time to set them up. It's nice to be able to use the calculator to reduce your augmented matrix into RREF. Sure, I can do it by hand, but I don't always have time on a test. With a TI-89, I can save a bunch of time by taking the grunt work out of the equation. And a laptop wouldn't work because what kind of teacher is going to let students have internet access during a test? (not to mention access to scanned copies of their notes, etc.)
One argument heard for using these calculators is: 'They are limited enough to use in exams.' Sounds sensible, but it raises the question: 'Why are we teaching a generation of students to use crippled technology?'"
Do you really want students to have internet access during a test? I know how to solve a system of equations by hand (by reducing a matrix into RREF) but my Physics teacher and Mechanics teacher both lets us use a calculator to solve them on a test to save time. Are you saying they should let me use a computer that may or may not have an aircard (i.e. internet)?
Slashdot Mirror
Case #1 is a legitimate concern. I've seen teachers give part of an assessment online and the other part on paper before. I suppose that could be done here. Automated grading on multiple choice, true/false, and matching sections still reduces a significant amount of manual grading. I imagine your argument to that, though, would be that you might as well just use Scantron forms. I can't really argue with that. One workaround, albeit very tacky, would be to physically remove the modifier buttons (Ctrl, Alt, etc.) and the f-keys (F1, F2, etc.) from the keyboards. (although if they're not allowed to change the OS, they're probably also not allowed to rip buttons off of the keyboards) Another workaround would be to have an Android-esque on-screen keyboard with word-autocomplete functionality. That, however, would probably collect tons of complaints and take lots of time to develop. You might be able to find keyboards online that you can order that are strictly alphanumeric (that doesn't have any of the "special-purpose" keys), but that could get expensive. On Windows, this can all be disabled programmatically, but based on what I've read throughout the comments of this article, I don't believe it can be done on Ubuntu. The options above, I feel, are the only ones even close to reasonable.
Regarding Case #2, I would argue that it's a relatively rare case and I'm sure teachers would be happy to accommodate a student with a disability by allowing them to take the exam orally or by giving them a paper copy. Also, if the app is written properly, you should be able to install text-to-speech software (the kind written for disabled people) and give the student a room to his or herself. (where he or she won't be verbally announcing the answers to everyone in the room)
That makes it way to much of a pain in the butt to administer. Being proactive is better. We use computers to make things easier and more manageable. Probably one of the reasons they want to use a computer as a test station was to not have to monitor crap like this. I wouldn't doubt he could have figured out how to do what you say if that's what he wanted. Even better, have someone walk around the room looking over their shoulder... and give the students pens and paper not a computer so they won't even have any opportunity.
In that case, refer to my other answer:
by adamdoyle (1665063) on Wednesday December 07, @08:45PM (#38298428):
Or if you're feeling extra clever, you could straight up disable the keyboard [stackexchange.com] and rely on the mouse for selecting answers. It would have to be enabled at the beginning for the user to enter his or her credentials, but then you could disable it during the actual test (there's no way to exit fullscreen with only a mouse), and then re-enable it upon completion. The site I linked to explains how to both enable and disable the entire keyboard programmatically. The linked site produces a shell script... In Java, you could run that shell script with: Process.Start(@"./scriptname.sh").
Or if you're feeling extra clever, you could straight up disable the keyboard and rely on the mouse for selecting answers. It would have to be enabled at the beginning for the user to enter his or her credentials, but then you could disable it during the actual test (there's no way to exit fullscreen with only a mouse), and then re-enable it upon completion. The site I linked to explains how to both enable and disable the entire keyboard programmatically. The linked site produces a shell script... In Java, you could run that shell script with: Process.Start(@"./scriptname.sh").
Or just pop up a fullscreen window that says "TEST FAILED! your test proctor has been notified that you were cheating. Gather your things and please leave the testing area.
And maybe give the proctor some means of re-enabling the exam in the event that someone mistakenly presses one of the disallowed hotkeys. (if the teacher knows the students personally, he or she may be able to use good judgement to determine if the student was actually cheating)
oops, left out a word:
*You just need to tell them they're not allowed to.
If you ask me, you don't really need to prevent users from doing those things. You just need to tell they're not allowed to, and then have your java app detect if those things have occurred and then take action from there. By "take action," I mean that you could either (a) make some kind of notation in the database so that you can penalize them, or (b) send an SMS message or email or something to the test administrator to alert them of the situation so that they can walk over and determine if the student is attempting to cheat.
Uh, yeah, the GP said "window" not "wind" (I see how you could get those two mixed up). I do, however, agree with you. I'm not saying we should get rid of coal-fired plants, but we should also have wind turbines, solar panels, and nuclear power as well. Energy diversity is the key to all of this.
Sending your loved ones false messages of your death is rather cruel.
Well, I'm not sure that one applies to everyone.
Video-enforced speeding tickets? Do they actually have that somewhere?
or even simpler: the whole experiment is done inside a Faraday cage (which they seem to trust) and the button is entirely mechanical inside of the cage and doesn't have any electronics until outside of the cage.
haha fine... it's a hydraulic button that squirts a fluid onto a material that will be later analyzed in a lab to determine the time it was pressed based on evaporation rates...
It would be interesting to have these people participate in a blind test in the same way that audiologists do hearing tests. Give them a button to push when they "feel" the pain associated with the electromagnetic field while you turn on the and off the field during random intervals. Unless they're actually feeling something, they shouldn't be able to correctly push the button at the right time.
I'd be interested in hearing their response to that. (although I suppose there are some people with whom you simply can't have rational arguments)
Ok, before anyone responds to this, I should note that I just read the post below mine that says "use wget, then calibre..." That's actually not a bad way to do it - I didn't think of that. However that doesn't make you a programmer, that makes you a "super user," as stackexchange would call it.
That's ridiculous. Just because you're a programmer doesn't mean you're familiar with the various SDKs necessary to do such at thing. Which do you think would be faster? Copying and pasting a few pages into Word or learning (at least) two new SDKs and dealing with everything involved with that. Some of us have jobs and don't have the time to research and write a program like that in addition to actually reading the book.
Well it is the stripped down netbook version, right? I think it's called "starter edition," or something. (I've never used it though, so idk how "stripped down" it is)
I don't see the problem. It's a "tablet" (by today's definition) that gives you the option of booting into Windows in the rare cases that you might need to. If it's priced right, then I think it would be a good alternative to those other Android tablets. Granted, I think the Android tablets are stupid, so maybe I'm biased. I like to think of the tablets with Wacom transducers and decent processors as tablets - not those Android-loaded things.
I never trust a native speaker who cannot use his own language correctly. "look at what we just did in only 100 lines or fewer".
Use fewer with objects that can be counted one-by-one.
Use less with qualities or quantities that cannot be individually counted.
Incorrect: There were less days below freezing last winter.
Correct: There were fewer days below freezing last winter.
(Days can be counted.)
Correct: I used less flour to bake the cake than she did. (you cannot say 'one flour, two flour')
The more you know!
There is no such thing as "correct" in the English language. There is no organization that dictates what is and what is not "correct." Even among linguists there are prescriptivists and descriptivists. The descriptivists say that "correct" is whatever most people understand and use in the current time period. Prescriptivists try and make rules to decide what should be correct. That's how words such as "ain't" make it in the dictionary. In the end, though, if people understand what you're saying without having to think too hard, it's good enough. (not to mention obnoxious and unnecessary for you to be correcting)
Don't get me wrong, though. There are some things you should definitely not do or else I will immediately start to not trust you. There are some pretty definite rules for punctuation and even spelling. If you write "there" instead of "their," then I have to go back and reread the sentence and waste my time trying to figure out what you meant. "Less vs fewer," though, is not a distinction that makes it more difficult to understand and is not important.
Obviously they can be written different - that's not the point. Why spend time doing trivial non-physics stuff (solving systems of equations) on a physics test? There's no reason to be testing 3rd semester sophomores (engineering students) on high school math during a physics test. Also, it's ridiculous to dismiss a completely valid argument as "bogus" just because you take the opposite side. There's obviously much debate on the subject as can be seen from the high level of variation in test design amongst professors.
*is trivial, though.
Further, part of the test is to see what you can complete in a limited time. You're not supposed to be able to brute force your way through everything with a mechanical wrecking ball. You're supposed to sneak your way through with cleverness.
Yes, often substitution or elimination is faster, but not always. Also, he often specifically tells us we will have to use a calculator to solve the system (in order to not run out of time). In my math classes, calculators are not allowed. In Physics, though, he assumes we can do math and lets us focus on just the Physics. The hard part is figuring out the system. Solving is easy but (potentially) time consuming.
If you're using a calculator to solve augmented matrices, you're not actually solving augmented matrices. The augmentation is to help you with the process of solving the matrix, not as some end-result that you stick on an answer box.
Solving systems of kinematic equations are trivial though. We're not being tested on linear algebra, we're being tested on Physics. In Linear Algebra, all of our system-solving is done sans calculator.
a laptop wouldn't work because what kind of teacher is going to let students have internet access during a test? (not to mention access to scanned copies of their notes, etc.)
IIRC, every math or science test I had in college was open notes/open book, and most were take-home tests. Memorization was not rewarded; ability to apply techniques was.
I have taken Calc. 1, Calc. 2, Vector Calc, Differential Equations, Physics I and II, Intro. Linear Algebra, Statics, Dynamics, Intro. Analytic Geometry, and more and of all of them, Statics and Dynamics were the only ones with open book/notes tests (because they were taught by the same guy).
I agree with your point but I have a hard time believing that your TI-83+ can do the computations faster than Mathematica. (maybe the other students were just slower)
I agree that you shouldn't "need" a calculator, but on a test in a non-math class, it's nice to have. For instance, in Physics, maybe you have a bunch of problems involving kinematic equations and you barely have enough time to set them up. It's nice to be able to use the calculator to reduce your augmented matrix into RREF. Sure, I can do it by hand, but I don't always have time on a test. With a TI-89, I can save a bunch of time by taking the grunt work out of the equation. And a laptop wouldn't work because what kind of teacher is going to let students have internet access during a test? (not to mention access to scanned copies of their notes, etc.)
Do you really want students to have internet access during a test? I know how to solve a system of equations by hand (by reducing a matrix into RREF) but my Physics teacher and Mechanics teacher both lets us use a calculator to solve them on a test to save time. Are you saying they should let me use a computer that may or may not have an aircard (i.e. internet)?
Are they referring to the actual GNU organization or just some random /. user with username "gnu?"