2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

In continuation to previous work on development of online exams for both in-person and online courses, more examples of online questions plus analysis of grades for various courses in mechanical engineering will be presented. Previously, questions were developed for which the numerical values can be randomized for different students. In addition to such questions, questions in which the problem can be randomized between students will be presented. The questions developed for this purpose must of similar difficulty and solution approach to keep it fair among students. Further analysis on grades between online and in-person exams will be presented to investigate the effectiveness of online exams, particularly those which are not proctored.

The inspiration for this work started during and continued after the covid pandemic; initially on how to conduct online exams and then due to relatively a greater number of students being sick on the exam day or being in quarantine. This is particularly problematic during the final exams, in which there is limited time for makeup exams. In most cases, taking a makeup exam in the following semester to clear an incomplete grade mostly negatively affects the student’s letter grade. Several other benefits of this approach also came to light after the execution of exams. For example, students are able to take the exam at their best time and lengthier exams may be given for the courses that require it. Since the study is conducted at a regional teaching campus of a major state university, many students are working adults with full time jobs and in certain cases, full time families. This approach has also helped those students to stay on the course for their academic journey.