How do I start using DigiExam?

Learn how to get started with DigiExam on its own, or in Canvas.

Written By Jay Heath (Super Administrator)

Updated at April 17th, 2023

What is DigiExam?

DigiExam (DE) allows you to administer an assessment to students with the ability to prevent students from looking at outside resources or applications. As the teacher, you have to configure DigiExam how you like, create your exam at DigiExam.com, optionally link DigiExam to Canvas if you want the grade to automatically populate from DE back into Canvas, administer the exam to students, then grade the exam. A number of Overlake teachers use this already in their classes and during finals to administer multiple-choice or essay style tests. Once a test is started the teacher can see who has started and who has not. Once a test is started the DE application forcibly quits all other applications and takes over the student’s screen so no other applications can be accessed.

Some quick terminology:

  • DigiExam: an online software tool that allows teachers to create exams for students that give the ability to lock students' computers down so they may not access other resources on that computer during the exam.
  • DigiExam Student App: Students must download the DigiExam app on their computers to take a DigiExam test. 
  • Exam ID: This is the unique identifier or ID for each exam so that DigiExam knows what exam a student is attempting to complete.
  • Consumer Key and Shared Secret: these are the special codes or passwords that are required to connect Canvas and DigiExam to allow them to communicate.
  • Student Code: If you use the "Exam ID" method of giving an exam your students will be asked to provide a student code - this is their six-digit Veracross (VC) ID that they can find on the Veracross Student Portal or at https://overlake.org/user. It's the same code they use in the Campus Center and Library and Bookstore.
  • Unlock: occasionally students will have their test interrupted due to a network issue, battery life on their laptop, etc., and the teacher will need to manually unlock their exam to allow them to continue working on their exam. This will allow them to pick up where they left off.

How do I get started?

 The basics of using DigiExam are as follows:

  1. Create exam in DigiExam
  2. Determine how you will administer your exam (read more below):
    1. Exam ID
    2. Canvas Integration
  3. Grade Exam

There are two primary ways to administer an exam in DigiExam: first, you can distribute an Exam ID for students to use via Canvas, and have the students enter the exam ID into the DigiExam app on their computer, along with the Student Code, and then can begin the exam. This option is easier to set up, but does not bring DigiExam grades back into your Canvas gradebook, if that is of interest to you.

How do I use DigiExam in Canvas?

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Where can I learn more?

  1. Please use the following instructions to do any of the following:

    1. Set up an exam

    2. Add questions to an exam

    3. Start an exam

    4. Schedule an exam

    5. Grade an Exam

    6. Monitor students

  2. General Resources available in the Teacher Knowledge Base or the
    Student Knowledge Base.

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