Run assessments on Apple devices
iPad and Mac are approved devices for administering secure exams. Both work with state online exams, including tests from the Smarter Balance Assessment Consortium (SBAC) and ACT Aspire. With assessment mode, apps can automatically lock and configure iPad and Mac for testing to prevent students from accessing other apps or features, circumvent the assessment, or invalidate the results.
Securing iPad or Mac for testing with a supported app requires no additional set-up or configuration with mobile device management (MDM). Apps with assessment mode automatically lock iPad or Mac into the single app, which means that while assessment mode is active, users can’t switch to another app. Hardware buttons and features like autocorrect, spell check, Dictionary look up, sharing, or screen recording are automatically disabled until the student completes the test.
Assessment apps in iOS 14 or later and iPadOS 14 or later can now have more granular control over which features to enable and restrict on iPadOS. For example, a math test may enable autocorrect and spell check and restrict features like Dictionary lookup and keyboard shortcuts, while a science test may enable Dictation and restrict predictive text.
If your testing app doesn’t support assessment mode or you use an app for diagnostic, classroom or formative, or interim assessment purposes, you can use MDM to set up your iPad for Single App Mode. Your MDM software installs a profile that identifies the selected app and forces it to open on the device, preventing students from using other apps. In the profile, you can specify additional features that you don’t want students to use. For low stakes assessments, your teachers can also the Classroom app to lock students into a single app.
Check with your assessment provider to make sure that their app uses assessment mode.
For more information about assessment with iPad, see Curriculum, Assessment, and Teaching Tools for iPad.