LESSON 11: Innovative Technologies for Assessment Tasks in

Teaching and Learning

Assessment, learning, and teaching are closely connected and interwoven

because each provides information that can determine effective instruction. In the
process of conceptualizing a plan on how to teach, as the learning outcomes are put
in place, the next step to consider is how these are to be evaluated. This is an
important part of instruction because data gathered in this phase of instruction will
inform the teacher whether the students have actually learned or that the teacher
has to reconsider a better approach in teaching.

Although the conventional ways of assessment still work, the role that ICT
plays in the present teaching and learning context has definitely changed the course
of direction that a teacher can pursue. The use of technology plays a vital role in
assisting teachers how to assess students' learning. It involves digital devices or
online applications that can be used in constructing, delivering and reporting
learners' performance.

ICT and Assessment of Learning

Assessment is very important in student learning. There are many approaches

to assessment in learning with an emphasis on the process of learning along with
the product of learning. The ultimate measure of student's competence is
performance. Development in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has
thrown open numerous possibilities for assessing student learning and providing
immediate feedback.

Assessment is the process of identifying, gathering and interpreting

information about students' learning.

Types of Assessment

1. Formative assessment - provides feedback and information during the

instructional process, while learning is taking place, and while learning
is occurring.

2. Summative assessment - takes place after the learning has been

completed and provides information and feedback that sums up the
teaching and learning process.

3. Diagnostic assessment - can help you identify your students' current

knowledge of a subject, their skill sets and capabilities, and to clarify
misconceptions before teaching takes place. Knowing students"
strengths and weaknesses can help you better plan what to teach and
how to teach it.

4. Authentic assessment describes the multiple forms of assessment that

reflect student learning, achievement, motivation, and attitudes on
instructionally relevant classroom activities.
The Role of ICT in Assessment in Learning

There are new technologies created to provide students with higher level
thinking skills, particularly the aspects of creative and critical thinking, and the
opportunity to teach and assess those skills. The use of ICT in assessment is very
helpful, to teachers because students" information and results of examination can
be recorded and stored and can easily be retrieved. With the use of ICT, the teachers
can right away give feedback to students on the results of assessment. Feedback
from the computer during the use of test material improves student performance in
later use of the same test material.

In educational assessment, the use of technology as an innovation and

support for teaching and learning (Sindhu, 2013), is essential to improve instruction
and increase performance. With an effective classroom assessment system in place,
a valid demonstration of student learning and progress connected to classroom
instruction and experience can be confirmed.

Tests play a vital role in traditional learning as well as e-learning and this
helps the teachers and the learners in measuring learning. There are many freeware
where the teachers can create quizzes and evaluate learning electronically. Online
examination systems seek to efficiently evaluate the test takers thoroughly through
a fully automated system that not only saves time but also gives fast results. It is
done in most cases through a Web- Based Online Examination Software. This online
examination will also eliminate the need for monitoring while the exam is being
taken.
One of the advantages of using a web-based exam software or an online
examination system is that it gives a high level of transparency as opposed to the
traditional method or remote method. It is almost impossible to compromise exam
questions and evaluations because they cannot also be influenced. Most online
exams generate their results instantly and it is often possible for the exam taker to
get information on his results immediately. Some of the major advantages of online
examination are: (1) accessibility and flexibility; (2) time management; (3) save cost;
and (4) statistical analysis.

Security and confidentiality should also be considered. Security needs to be

given top priority for any website that you will add information to. Some schools
utilized software for security and privacy of examinations.

Current Trends in Assessment in Learning

Traditional assessment like objective test such as multiple choice, matching

type true or false and other paper-and-pencil test received criticism by some experts
in assessment. The 21s century assessment includes: (1) utilizing multiple measures
of assessment, (2) increasing the use of technology, (3) focus on the growth and
development of the learner, and (4) differentiating the roles and responsibilities of
the teachers, administrators and other stakeholders. In the 21st century, educators
and students can no longer afford this disconnect. To help students become college
and career-ready, we need to teach them how to apply what they are learning in
school to the practical and intellectual tasks in their everyday lives (Wolpert-Gawron,
2010).
 The concept of 'classroom' has been shifting in recent years with dedication to
purposefully designed learning spaces and seamless integrations of technologies
(Williams, 2017). In the 21st century, we are facing a global economy where
information travels at the speed of light and knowledge of how to harness and sift
through that information has become vital to our personal and national well-being.

As an educator, we know that our students must graduate ready to function

in this expanded world. Educational technology is used to increase the efficiency of
education in teaching, learning and assessment. Computers and related technology
are viewed as the future of teaching and learning and also as a powerful
technological machine to promote development of loaning. Computers able to create
a more attractive and effective learning environment (Keser & Ozcan, 2011).

Education technology has introduced new, exciting and innovative ways to

engage students in active learning while online. The teachers can incorporate active
learning activities through technology in fully-online lessons, homework modules,
and even in-class online activities. Roblyer and Edwards (2000) as cited in (Keser &
Ozcan, 2011) suggested that there are important reasons for teachers to use
technology in education: motivation, distinctive instructional abilities, higher
productivity of teachers, essential skills for information age, and support for new
teaching techniques (cited in Samak, 2006).

Online learning initiatives often fail to engage and teach learners because they
are passive in nature - reading PDFs, flipping through slides, listening to long
lectures. One way to improve these experiences is to focus on incorporating active
learning methodologies.

Active learning is any learning activity in which the student interacts or

engages with the material, as opposed to passively taking in the information. The
parents can also help the learners engage in rich learning experiences at home and
during daily activities such as field trip.

The teacher will give learning activities that are intentional, meaningful and
useful. Activities which involve student interaction with content can include
listening to and/or watching a live or recorded talk, engaging with a written or visual
text, engaging with multimedia, or a combination of these.
Criteria in Choosing Appropriate Assessment Tools

Assessment methods are the strategies, techniques, tools and instruments for
collecting information to determine the extent to which students demonstrate
desired learning outcomes. Teachers need to select tools to assess student
achievement in the target outcome(s). The selection of tools involves a process to
obtain detailed information and the need to keep the process feasible and
manageable. Student learning styles vary widely and their strengths and challenges
with respect to assessment vary as well. Teachers need to consider that variation as
they choose assessments for their courses. By varying the way teachers assess
student understanding, they are more likely to offer opportunities for every student
to demonstrate their knowledge. The first step in attaining competency in selecting
appropriate tests involves understanding the purpose or purposes for which an
assessment is given. According to Mehrens (2001) as cited in McDivitt and Gibson
(n.d.), in its broadest sense, the purpose of any assessment is to gather data to
facilitate decision making. However, many kinds of decisions and many different
types of information may be gained from the use of tests and may serve to facilitate
decision making. The following may be considered in choosing appropriate
assessment tools: (1) goals of assessment (2) methods of assessment, either direct
or indirect; and (3) the interval in giving assessment.

One of the challenges for beginning teachers is to select and use appropriate
assessment techniques suited to the learners' needs. During teaching, teachers not
only have to communicate the information they planned but also continuously
monitor students" learning and motivation in order to determine whether
modifications have to be made (Airasian, 2005). Beginning teachers find this more
difficult than experienced teachers because of the complex cognitive skills required
to improvise and be responsive to students' needs while simultaneously keeping in
mind the goals and plans of the lesson (Borko & Livingston, 1989). The informal
assessment strategies teachers most often use during instruction are observation
and questioning.

The teacher may either be utilizing direct or indirect method. Examples of

direct method are examinations, written assignments, oral presentations and
performances, internship supervisor's ratings of student skills, portfolios, score
gains between entry and exit tests, capstone projects, theses, and dissertations, etc.

Indirect methods can provide a useful supplement and check on the findings
from direct measures. The following are examples of this indirect method: Student
satisfaction surveys, surveys of students and alumni, exit interviews with
graduating students, student participation rates, reflective essays, data on
placement and other measures of post-graduation performance, etc.

The teacher may consider the following characteristics in selecting appropriate

assessment tools whether conventional or ICT-based assessment:

1. Measure the desired level of performance (level of satisfaction, productivity,

efficiency, student performance)
2. Cost effective in terms of effort, time and money
3. Useful that will produce results that provide information that can be used
in making decisions to improve student learning
4. Reasonably accurate and truthful
5. Dependable, consistent responses over time
 6. Evidence of being on-going, not once and done

After the discussion of a certain lesson the teacher conducts formative

assessment. One of the key characteristics of formative assessment is the frequent
use of evidence gathered from various methods as feedback. Besides serving as an
indicator of attainment levels, students use this feedback to set goals for the next
stage of learning. With this, teachers may utilize ICT in assessment. It enables both
teachers and students to provide valuable, feedback on each learner's progress. The
rapid development of ICT has provided teachers with digital platforms that support
learning and teaching (Woo et al, n.d.). Online task assigned by teachers will assess
the collaborative problem-solving construct and the five strands (Participation,
Perspective Taking, Social Regulation, Task Regulation as well as students' Learning
and Knowledge Building skills) according Drigas and Karyotaki (2006). It is also
stressed in the same study that large-scale differential item functioning (DIF)
analysis can validate an online problem solving ability test that minimizes the
extraneous differential effects of students' language background. Thus, online
assessment can be incorporated by teachers. ICTs provide the means for the explicit
design and implementation of individualized or collaborative problem-solving tasks
through teachers' interactive scaffolding and immediate feedback supply towards
learners (Drigas & Karyotaki, 2006).

Creating and Utilizing Rubric

A rubric is a set of criteria used to determine scoring for an assignment,

performance, or product. This can be used to score many kinds of written
assignments or exams, papers, projects, speeches, or Portfolios. They are not useful,
however, as a grading mechanism for multiple choice or short answer tests. There
are many samples of rubrics online, but the teacher may consider the learners,
objective of the lesson, contextualization, and localization. The main purpose of
rubrics is to assess student performances. For some performances, the teacher may
observe the student in the process of doing something, like making their projects,
online drill, tutorial, and many more. There are two (2) types of rubrics:

1. Analytic rubrics describe work on each criterion separately. It utilizes

separate, holistic ratings of specific characteristics, products, or behaviors.

2. Holistic rubrics describe the work by applying all the criteria at the same
time and enabling an overall judgment about the quality of the work. It
utilizes holistic rating for a product or behavior.

Technology can be used for assessing student learning in various purposes.

By using technology in managing assessment information data can be presented in
different ways to mest the needs of the students, teachers and administrators. An
electronic examination which is also called computer-based assessment (CBA),
computer-based testing (CB) or e-exam is a test conducted using a personal
computer (PC) or an equivalent electronics device, in which the delivery, responses
and assessment are effected electronically. e-exams were developed more than four
decades ago for professional certification in the IT industry and progressively
evolving as a preferred alternative to Paper-Pencil-Test (PPT) in schools, universities,
recruiting firms as well as private and public organizations (Bulama Bukar, Bello &
Baba Ibi, M, 2016). Computer-Based-Testing is more efficient than Paper-based
tests because it is an individualized testing and has faster score reporting within few
minutes after last submission. The students can immediately view the scores on
screen and more convenient for teachers and students.

Computerized delivery of objective tests has more advantages compared to

paper-pencil-test which include the following:

1. The creation of item bank of questions invites the possibility of each student
being presented with a paper made up of different questions, but of an
equivalent standard.

2. Automatic computerized marking facilitates immediate feedback for the

students.

3. Students can be invited to sit tests as frequently as they find useful.

4. Computerized recording of results facilitates the analysis of groups

responses to questions.

The teacher may consider balance assessments (blend of traditional and

ICT based assessment). Although computerized testing facilities can provide a rapid
means of assessing and providing feedback to large numbers of students, it is
essential to consider their use as part of the overall unit strategy, especially as
multiple choice/limited response type questions can lead to an emphasis on
"shallow" learning. Electronic assessment tools are unlikely to reduce significantly
the burden of assessment, but they can be used to promote deeper and more
effective learning, by testing a range of skills, knowledge and understanding. Using
computers in assessment does not have to mean more multiple-choice testing to the
exclusion of Other assessment techniques. A wide range of innovative assessment
methods lend themselves to computer-based implementation.

Electronic Portfolio

An electronic portfolio which is also known as a Portfolio, digital portfolio, or

online portfolio (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_portfolio cite note-1) is a
collection of electronic evidence assembled and managed by a user, usually on the
Web (Zimmerman, 2012). Portfolio includes input text, electronic files, images,
multimedia, blog entries, and hyperlinks. Portfolios are both demonstrations of the
user's abilities and platforms for self-expression.

Types of Portfolios

1. Ideal portfolio - It contains all work of students. It is not given to provide

students a grade.

2. Showcase/Professional Portfolios - These Portfolios are primarily a way

to demonstrate (showcase) the highlights of a student's academic career.

3. Documentation portfolio - It involves a collection of work over time

showing growth and improvement reflecting students' learning of identified
outcomes.
4. Learning Portfolios - These portfolios are typically created by a be student
as part of a learning activity as a way to demonstrate learning and the
learning process. These portfolios are often shared with other students to
elicit peer feedback. Learning portfolios support the idea of formative
feedback as an essential part of the learning process.

5. Evaluation/Assessment Portfolios - The teacher may utilize this for both

formative and summative assessments feedback.