Collaborative Online Examinations: Impacts on Interaction, Learning, and Student Satisfaction

This paper presents the results of a field experiment on online examinations facilitated by collaboration support systems. In particular, it examines collaborative learning and virtual teams through online examinations as an assessment procedure, compared to traditional examinations. Assessment is increasingly regarded as an important part of the learning process. Applying constructivism and collaborative-learning theories, the collaborative examination process features students´ active participation in various phases of the exam process through small group activities online. A 1 times 3 field experiment evaluated the collaborative online exam compared with the traditional in-class exam, and the participatory exam, where students participated in the online exam processes without groups. Data analysis using results from 485 students indicates that collaborative examinations significantly enhance interactions and the sense of an online learning community and result in significantly higher levels of perceived learning