From a Distance...

 
Online Newsletter for Arkansas Distance Learning

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Is Your Institution Ready to Authenticate Distance Learning Students?
by Michael Jortberg

When the 1,100-page Higher Education Authorization Act was signed into law in August 2008, one passage on distance learning stood out.  Arkansas institutions with SACS or NCA accreditation will soon be asked how their institution validates that the distance learning student doing the work is actually the student registered for the class.

Since the law is already in effect, technically all U.S. schools with distance learning programs are in violation. However, for now they are covered by the user ID and password as a result of clarifying language added to the bill through the work of the Instructional Technology Council.

The clarifying language anticipates this stopgap will no longer provide coverage once solutions are mainstream, affordable, sophisticated and not in conflict with students’ right to privacy.

Back in 2005 when this language emerged, Little Rock-based Acxiom® Corporation began looking at how to meet the needs of the distance learning industry. Acxiom – itself invested in the future of Arkansas’s education, with more than 2,300 employees statewide – researched several approaches based on commonly used authentication tactics:

• “Who we are” represents solutions that are mostly used for physical access to facilities, such as a secure data center. These biometrics solutions are expensive and require a registration process that would burden a school’s already busy IT department.

• “What we have” represents items the student carries with him, such as a driver’s license, passport, or digital tokens including usernames and passwords. While these are useful in environments where people guard their credentials, distance learning students who want someone else to take an exam for them will share their user ID and password. These solutions are too easy to duplicate and are not a good fit for distance education. 

• “Where we are” represents a location at a moment in time, such as a computer's IP address. Because distance education programs are growing due in large measure to their flexibility, restricting a student to a single PC or IP address is not realistic.

• “What we know” is information the student knows about himself. This tactic is used extensively in financial services and is a good fit for distance education because of its flexibility.  This information may be embedded in an existing learning management system without additional enrollment processes.

Based on this research, Acxiom developed a solution designed specifically for authenticating distance learning students. Acxiom's system randomly sends challenge questions to students just prior to online assessments. Several pilot programs have yielded very positive results due to the low cost per student and the high institutional control of the authentication process.

Unlike other solutions, Acxiom’s does not require any hardware, software, student registration processing, or instructor training. Acxiom’s authentication solution also integrates smoothly into Moodle, Blackboard’s CE and Vista programs, and plans to integrate into many other popular learning software systems.

Resources:

If you’d like to learn more about how the distance education industry is addressing the new requirement in distance education, the DOE and accreditor rulemaking process, or read other articles on the subject, the following links may be helpful.

Acxiom.  Identity verification to support academic integrity website:   www.Acxiom.com/StudentIdentity

Acxiom LinkedIn student identity and academic integrity group:  http://www.linkedin.com/e/gis/100235

Foster, A. L. (July 25, 2008).  New systems keep a close eye on online students at home [Electronic version].  The Chronicle of Higher Education 54(46): A1.  http://chronicle.com/free/v54/i46/46a00103.htm

Gilcher, K. W., McNabb, L., Lokken., F., (Presenters), & Epper, R. (Moderator). (October 1, 2008).  What's around the corner? Clarifying student authentication in the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008.  Webcast online at http://www.wcet.info/2.0/index.php?q=taxonomy/term/491

Walden, J. (September 1, 2008).  "Big Brother" battles web cheating [Electronic version].  Arkansas Business.  Online at www.arkansasbusiness.com/article.aspx?aID=107724.21604.119868

About the Author

Michael Jortberg has worked for Acxiom for three years managing the firm’s efforts in the Higher Education market. He has presented at numerous conferences including the Higher Learning Commission and WCET annual events. He focuses on identity verification solutions in numerous industries including distance learning. Prior to Acxiom, Mr. Jortberg worked in the CRM software industry and as a management consultant.

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