In case you were wondering…...

Yes, Microsoft is indeed going to greater extents to reign in potential cheaters and/or "braindumpers".  I had mentioned in an earlier blog that Microsoft was in the process of implementing new measures to detect cheating on certification tests.  These measures, as described, would be able to tell whether a person had "braindumped" (if one can go garagesaling or scrapbooking, then certainly a test can be braindumped J) a test or not.  I guess by how long it takes them to answer a question, click-time for a selection and overall time to take a test.  If you have ever taken a certification test, you know what all of these mean - so I am not revealing any secrets here (not that I had any to reveal mind you).

At any rate, I had a student in class recently who was taking a number of tests (not for the class I was teaching but for other classes).  He was taking them at a prodigious rate and doing really, I mean REALLY, well on all of them.  He was one of those people who had a phenomenal memory.  He also had an amazing grasp of the principles presented in class.  He also asked many interesting questions (as in make the instructor think type questions) throughout the class.  What made his situation so unique is that he was actually contacted by Microsoft.  He wasn't able to disclose the details of his conversation, but apparently he was asked a number detailed, technical questions to, in his own words, "see if I really knew the subject".  Again, he wasn't able to elaborate very much, but it seems that there really is checking done on test-takers who do too well (sad we have to think that way - if we get a 100 on a test at school, you are congratulated, if you get a 1000 on a Microsoft test, you are viewed with suspicion.

I applaud Microsoft for actually checking a tester, but am saddened that they must assume the tester has cheated for doing well.

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