Generating Test ID and using mastery connect link to give assessment VERSUS assigning assessment in

MS-CPS

What are the Pros and Cons of generating a test ID and giving students a Mastery Connect Assessment using the student.masteryconnect.com link, which prompts them for their user id VERSUS just assigning a Mastery Connect Assessment as an Assignment within a Canvas module?

melodyc_lam

@mswebmaster Great question!

Pros of generating a test ID and using the student.masteryconnect.com link -- they don't have to log in to a service like MasteryConnect or Canvas, which is good for getting the test up and ready to go. In our district, most of our younger students have their ID number on their desk or laminated on a little piece of paper. Generating the test ID is pretty straight forward.

Cons of generating a test ID and using the link -- lack of security.  We've had a few instances of cheating with exams where the student will log in under multiple accounts and either take the exam or look at answers ("digital looking over at someone's paper", basically.) Students can have issues logging into the test if they're not entering in the IDs correctly. 

On the other hand:

Pros of MasteryConnect assessment through Canvas -- students don't have to type in a test ID or their student ID as the student is authenticated through Canvas. We have 2FA on student accounts in our district, so it's very hard for a student to get to another student's account. Since MasteryConnect is an external tool assignment, controls can be set per exam so that students can only access the item at specific times. You can also differentiate (if needed) the exam, so for example, if a group of students are absent, set it so that they can't see the assignment at all but everybody else can.

Cons of MasteryConnect assessment through Canvas -- teachers will have to make sure that the assessment is published and in an accessible place (like a module) and ensure that the dates and times are correct when setting up the assignment so that students do not get access unless they're in the classroom. Some students may struggle with navigating Canvas -- there's some tips for this, like using our classroom device management tool to help them navigate to the correct page, or using an announcement to access the link. 

Hope this helps!