Innovative Approaches to Assessment: Moving Beyond Traditional Testing

As instructors attempted to continue normal assessment processes in an online setting, the COVID-19 outbreak pushed education into a frenzy. And also leads students to the cheap assignment help service to get their assignments instantly. Online proctoring wasn’t the best long-term plan for many institutions because of privacy and other issues, even if it was useful when faced with unexpected challenges with few answers. Other institutions were unable to access online proctoring choices for students, therefore it was not an option.

Luckily there are different ways to conduct exams in education and innovative approaches to measuring students’ progress. For those who are here to know How to Write a Business Research Paper then this blog is not for you. Here are some of the best assessment approaches to use in online classes.

What are innovative teaching approaches to assessment?

Every modern classroom must include creative assessment examples. They provide critical information regarding what kids know and don’t know. These ungraded examinations might also serve as useful guidance for students. It has the potential to assist people to improve their performance. They can be used by teachers to decide whether additional instruction is required or not. Because teachers are the source of education for students (bestassignmentwriter, 2022).

Using novel evaluation procedures consistently and effectively eliminates surprises when receiving final marks. Students can constantly advance and flourish when they are consistently included in teaching and learning. Assessment as learning is one example of innovative assessment. To put it another way, the feedback helps to make learning better. With this in mind, considering innovative teaching methodology or assessment does not necessarily imply determining what was done properly or appropriately. Instead, it focuses on the chances for improvement.

Use a lot of question pools and mix up the answers

A tried-and-true method used in the pre-internet era can be applied to our digital one to assist in preserving the validity of assessments and protect students’ privacy and security. Instructors can try to use vast pools of questions for various assessment activities before assigning a predetermined number of questions at random for each exam. This assures that no two pupils receive the same exam questions. Digital tools can also be utilized to automatically mix alternatives, ensuring that pupils see a variety of answer options.

Pose open-ended or open-book questions

Although the traditional true/false and multiple-choice questions are helpful in evaluating students, they might be constrained in an online setting. Consider incorporating open-ended questions like essays or fill-in-the-blanks. Most students can utilize their textbooks when they are tested online, ask open-ended questions or allow them to use resources while taking the test. These test types can be made more reliable by using time restrictions or set windows of availability.

Use Learning Technologies

Cornell University employs a number of learning tools to help with formative and summative evaluations. They use the following tools as examples:

• Quizzes, peer evaluations, conversations, and assignments are just a few of the assessment options available in Canva’s learning management system.

• Quizzes embedded within videos. These tools allow students to rapidly assess their understanding of course information delivered in instructional films.

• Polling in the classroom. This method enables instructors to use questions in class to get immediate responses from students, inside or outside of the classroom.

Tools for surveys and digital portfolios (like Digication) are two other tactics Cornell uses.

Make use of multimedia projects

A Chronicle story from the previous year lists a few unusual techniques teachers have employed to evaluate their students, such as multimedia and creative methods. This, of course, will only work for some forms of study, but it can work fairly effectively in some. For example, Johanna Mellis, an assistant lecturer of international history at Ursinus College, had excellent outcomes with her 100- and 200-level courses. Mellis assigned pupils to put together imaginative end-of-semester projects. 

Students would conduct traditional research before “remixing” what they discovered with a specific digital tool. The plan was to develop the project for a non-technical audience – in other words, for the average layperson to grasp. They were instructed on how to use TimelineJS, Microsoft Sway, Fakebook, and StoryMaps. Podcasts, videos, digital sketching tools, and writing are all possibilities. It not only provides instructors with another option to evaluate students but it also offers students a pleasant way to communicate themselves and utilize principles they’ve learned by presenting them in multiple formats.

Make use of Collaborative Testing

Instead of testing individuals, assign couples or small groups that enable students to have more in-depth discussions regarding the issues and come up with appropriate responses. In this way, it encourages discussion of important subjects, varied perspectives, and ways of thinking, as well as critical thinking. Finally, students can assist one another in better understanding the topic matter. Alternatively, students can consult their own answer papers and choose the option they feel is correct before starting the actual test. These kinds of assessment tasks not only give teachers perceptions of how well students are learning but also give learners a special and perhaps entertaining opportunity to see their own development. 

Round Robin Charts

This approach entails passing charts between groups to test comprehension. Each group of four or five pupils starts with a chart and markers. The group writes down their response to an open-ended inquiry. Additionally, they can impart any information they may have on a subject addressed in class. The chart is passed to the following group of students once they have finished with it. After each group has completed each chart, the class discusses the results.

Strategic Questions

You can utilize questioning techniques with one person, a small group, or the whole class. Effective formative assessment techniques entail asking students to respond to more complex questions like “why” and “how.” Higher-order questions necessitate more in-depth thought on the part of the students. They can assist the teacher in determining the level and scope of the pupils’ understanding.

Think-Pair-Share

This is one of several basic formative assessment tools for teachers to employ. The instructor poses a question, and pupils record their responses. After that, students are divided into pairs to debate their responses. Moving about the classroom allows teachers to hear different conversations. It allows them to obtain vital information in different degrees of comprehension.

Wrapping up

As we grow in a digital environment, instructors will need to think outside the box to create new evaluation strategies to monitor students’ progress.