Believe it or not, you all keep driving us forward, and this year is no exception.
During 2019, we brought many solid updates to Unicheck, from the Similarity Report renewal to the launch of Modifind and Emma.
With winter holidays approaching quickly, we wanted to recollect on what’s been done. If you’ve missed anything this year, now’s the time for us to get on the same page.
BTW: At the end of this post, you’ll see some our upcoming enhancements. You’re welcome to suggest any additional milestones for 2020 by
filling out a simple survey 😊
Major Upgrades to Unicheck:
A new report with a side-by-side comparison and safe links
A full report makeover allows you to analyze a student submission and its checked version in one window, exclude groups of matching sources, safely browse sources scanned for malicious content and broken links, and more.
Refined accessibility standards to remove any barriers to education
Now that Unicheck complies with the WCAG 2.0 standards, students with learning disabilities can navigate the platform without any hindrances.
Responding to your requests 24/7 via live chat, emails, and phone
We’ve extended support hours to be always available to ensure that you have an interruption-free experience. Even minor issues can be addressed promptly to prevent you from wasting a lot of precious time.
Data stored in your geographical region and improved security
You’re concerned about data security, and so are we. That’s why Unicheck has transitioned to the Amazon cloud. Now, we can set up data centers close to your institution and greatly increase data storage security.
Сhecking papers instantly, even during a high load season
Don’t worry about whether Unicheck can handle peak loads. Thanks to Amazon’s hosting, Unicheck has reached a 99.95% uptime, which means you can expect to check tons of papers during exam sessions with no issues.
To reduce cheating, we launched Modifind, a text modifications finder
To conceal unoriginal work, some students may resort to digital text modifications, and we’ve rolled out Modifind (text modifications finder) to help. Modifind launches alongside the similarity check and notifies you of any modifications. Once detected, the submission will be flagged inside an LMS grader, and you’ll see the Attention tab inside the report with all the details.
The release of Emma, an AI assistant that helps prevent contract cheating
Verifying the authorship of each submission may take time. We released Emma to prevent contract cheating, encourage everyone to release their own voice, and identify those who need your advice on academic writing.
Most Notable Events
This year’s event schedule was full of exciting keynote speeches, new acquaintances, edtech updates, dancercise, and nightly parties. California, USA, and Barcelona, Spain, became the top destinations for Unicheckers; we’re likely to have met you at OTC, InstructureCon, MoodleMoot Global, or CanvasCon Europe.
Topical Two-Part Webinar
In addition to the offline events, we hosted two online ones, which brought to light the problems pushing students to cheat. This link will take you to the first session on text modifications, and this one—to the second one on contract cheating issues.
Those were truly our first timid steps toward making interactive and live content. So, please don’t judge us too harshly; we’ll carefully plan similar events.
Valuable Feedback Received
We can’t help but share some of the most memorable messages you shared on social media. It’s so flattering and motivating!
Who Joined Us This Year
The good news is that Unicheck’s fans are gradually multiplying in number, demanding more effort from our side to help you streamline the workflow and encourage original thinking among students. Here are some of the institutions that have joined Unicheck this year:
- Autonomous University of Noreste (Mexico) – 3,300 students
- The Peruvian Union University (Peru) – 8,000 students
- University of Manizales (Colombia)
- ITESM – The Monterrey Institute of Technology, Tecmilenio
- The Complutense University of Madrid
- Rey Juan Carlos University
We’ve also provided Unicheck pro-bono to Prepanet, The Monterrey Institute of Technology.
What’s in Store for 2020:
Assistance with citing and referencing sources
This complete solution will serve the needs of both students and educators. It will help create citations and references in a variety of formats, check their accuracy, and more.
Checking source code for originality
This AI-driven tool smartly detects source code matches in Python-based computer courses. Currently, we’re fine-tuning its interface and revamping the search algorithms.
A new user interface for the standalone solution
The time has come to completely refresh our standalone solution. It’s going to be spick and span with a brand-new user interface, faster navigation, and document search.
Your Holiday Wishlist is Here
Make a wish and say what Unicheck is still missing. We’ve created a two-question survey for you to share your thoughts right here.