ALC Honorlock Resolution

ALC Department Committee Meeting

March 16, 2021

Honorlock is an automated proctoring solution intended to monitor and flag behaviors that may indicate academic misconduct while students are taking exams at home. A Fall 2020 survey of Undergraduate Students included reports of Honorlock being unable to recognize faces with a darker skin tone. The failure of Honorlock and similar programs to recognize those with darker skin tones is a known issue and can include issues of the software not being able to validate someone’s identity, users being asked to shine more light on their face, and users being kicked out of exams. These biases in the Honorlock system may prevent students of color from having equal access to an uninhibited testing experience, compared with the experiences of their peers.

The Department of Asian Languages and Cultures stand with our students of color, many of whom already feel marginalized on our campus. The ALC Diversity and Climate Committee is recommending that ALC instructors do not use the Honorlock system for exams. The Committee further recommends that the ALC Chair bring concerns about Honorlock to our Associate Dean, Sue Zaeske, for further follow-up about the appropriate use of the Honorlock system at UW-Madison.

ALC Honorlock Resolution PDF