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-- the Forum May 1993 --
Assessment Alternative
(a pull out chart)
Portfolio
Systematic collections of a student's activities,
achievements, and projects. Portfolios serve as a basis to
assess effort, improvement, processes, and achievement.
Characteristics
- More accurate than tests in measuring students'
knowledge and skills.
- Provides opportunities for the student to develop and
exhibit diverse abilities.
- Provides multiple achievement measures taken over
time.
- Provides a record of a student's learning process,
improvement, effort, and achievement.
- Allows for individual and learning style differences.
- Encourages student self-assessment.
Applications
- Audiotapes of students speaking, reading, narrating,
or being interviewed: foreign language, literacy, job
skills.
- Videotapes of a student's performance, samples of
student work: plays physical education, group interactions,
presentations, speeches, creating of art (throwing a pot on
potter's wheel).
- Scanning images inter the computer that have been
created by the students: photos of artwork, drawings,
projects.
- Samples of student writing recorded and stored on the
computer.
- Essays written on the computer in response to case
studies, compare and contrast questions, decision making, or
problem solving questions. Record of instructor comments and
resulting student corrections.
Journals
A record of student's personal writings.
Characteristics
- Provides opportunities for a student to reflect on and
personalize subject matter.
- Encourages students to think about subject matter.
- Provides opportunities for students to think about and
answer questions that arise when they are learning.
- Alerts the instructor to a student's problems with
learning, understanding, and problem-solving.
- Provides the instructor with feedback on students'
attitudes toward the class and their learning process.
Applications
- Students determine relevance and meaning by reflecting
on and writing about subject matter.
- Students write a self-evaluation.
- Students reflect on and write about how they learned.
- Students share journal entries anonymously for peer
feedback.
Simulations
Using the computer to model a process or system.
Characteristics
- Provides opportunities to simulate real-life
situations, problems, or performance.
- Provides opportunities to discover or explore the
results of one's decision or actions.
- Provides opportunities to experiment with a wide range
of possibilities in a given situation and the resulting
consequences.
- Provides opportunity to perform high-risk, life-
threatening, and dangerous procedures or decision making in
a safe environment.
- Provides feedback as to why something went wrong.
- Provides opportunity to observe and predict
performance in a real-life situation.
Applications
- Pilot training simulator.
- Science experiments (i.e., chemistry experiments)
- Case studies of potentially explosive situations
(i.e., police work in marital conflict).
- Performance of laboratory procedures.
- Business transactions.
- Decision making: medical emergencies or diagnosis.
Adaptive Testing
A large pool of items are developed for this computer-based
assessment. Items are randomly given to a student.
Subsequent Item selection is based on a student's answering
correctly or incorrectly; a correct answer leads to a more
difficult question; an incorrect answer leads to an easier
question.
Characteristics
- Provides more accurate data than traditional testing
on a student's knowledge of a subject.
- Provides an evaluation of a student's performance
depending on the level of difficulty obtained.
- Provides an opportunity to save time in test taking
for students who have mastered the content.
- Provides an opportunity for students to take a test at
their own rate of work.
- Provides and opportunity to retest a student; Items
are randomly selected and different each time.
- Provides an opportunity to individually assess student
performance.
- Provides an opportunity to asses a wide range of
abilities; Items are selected based on the student's
performance.
Applications
- At the end of a module of instruction, understanding
is tested by asking a series of questions.
Exhibitions
Comprehensive demonstration of skills and/or competencies.
Characteristics
- Require students to produce a demonstration or live
performance in class or before other audiences.
- Evaluate complex skills.
- Reflect real-life situations.
- Promote student initiative and creativity.
- Allow for student choice in how to approach and
perform the tasks.
- Require trained judges for scoring according to
predetermined criteria.
Applications
- Collaborative projects.
- Interdisciplinary settings.
- Performance evaluation.
Experiments
Used to evaluate student understanding and application of
scientific concepts and processes.
Characteristics
- Provide evaluation of problem-solving skills.
- Allow students to develop and test hypothesis.
- Require higher-order thinking.
Applications
- Hands-on work in laboratories.
- Use of technology tools.
- Collaborative projects.
Constructed Responses
Students produce an answer to a question rather than
selecting from possible answers.
Characteristics
- Allow for evaluation of more than one subskill at a
time.
- Allow for student creativity.
- Evaluate higher-order skills.
Applications
- Mathematical problem solving.
- Creating a figure, diagram or graph.
- Describing procedures.
Writing/Essays
Students write a description, analysis, explanation,
summary, or composition.
Characteristics
- Allows students to demonstrate how to use facts in
context.
- Require problem solving and critical thinking skills.
- Allow the student to demonstrate knowledge of
language.
Applications
- Interdisciplinary.
- To present arguments for and against a given issue.
- To describe an application of a rule or principle.
- To describe procedures.
- To illustrate cause and effect.
Oral Discourse
Oral exchange between instructor and student.
Characteristics
- Allows instructors to ask for clarification or tell
more about the topic.
- Allows students opportunity to expand on ideas.
- Allows instructors to adapt questions to student's
level of knowledge.
- Requires assessment on an individual basis.
Applications
- To evaluate learners' speaking abilities, i.e., speech
classes.
- To assess oral proficiency, i.e., foreign language
classes.
- When written assessment is inappropriate.
Collaborative Testing
Students take tests in small groups and are allowed to
consult with one another.
Characteristics