Continuing with my growth in educational technology, I’m moving on from design thinking to assessments. To begin, I’m writing three thoughts I have on assessments. Full disclosure - I can’t say I know much about assessments and these are my personal thoughts.
Assessments are used to see how students are growing, performing, their level of engagement, interest, and thoughts. Instructors learn this information not through graded tests and quizzes but through observation, feedback, projects, etc. I teach a small animal nursing skills course, where students learn to perform phlebotomy and place IV peripheral catheters for the first time. Students struggle when learning these technical skills and often view their performance as a failure. To better understand their feelings of these learning processes and help redefine failure as a positive step, students complete an assessment of their progress throughout their semester.
Assessments are used by both students and educators. Students provide feedback, such as did the project or activity help them retain content or retrieve it? Did they enjoy the learning experience, or benefit from it, and how could the experience be improved? And educators can gauge how students are performing through their progress, answers, and engagement.
Assessments come in many forms and are often ongoing. Assessments can be through observation, written or verbal feedback, comments and suggestions, conversations, projects, assignments, and more. Assessments are reviewed and, when needed, actions are taken to enhance the educational experience, help the students, and clarify the expectations.
Update 1: I've learned a touch more about assessments since posting this initial blog. Surprisingly, my first initial thoughts appear fairly accurate. However, one adjustment could be made. Above I mention that assessments do not include student tests and quizzes. While not always the best method to use, these are considered a type of assessment. I find the difference in assessment for learning versus assessment of learning very interesting. It's important to consider the ultimate goal of an assessment and I believe these two differences are a good place to start.
Update 2: With a touch more knowledge I'm back to strengthen my initial thoughts. I'm happy with my initial thoughts, but want to focus on the importance of feedback through assessments. It has been found that feedback is very important for student growth, but it can also be difficult to give the appropriate feedback to foster such growth. Beneficial feedback extents beyond the simple "good luck" or "nice work" comments. Feedback should be strategically thought out, including what it's purpose is, how will it meet, or extend beyond, it's goal, what type is most appropriate, and when/how will it be delivered.
Update 3: Adding to my assessment knowledge is the use of digital technology. I can certainly integrate technology into the three initial thoughts on assessments. First, I think that relating content to the current interests of student generations is key. While tricky, if we can incorporate the "hot" topics, hobbies, and entertainment of students into their teaching and learning experiences they will likely be more engaged. We can certainly use technology to do so. Assessments using digital tools should be accessible by all students and instructors. While there might be a learning curve for some to utilize and understand the tool, these digital tools can deliver unique learning experiences. And lastly, digital tools certainly allow for assessments to be delivered in different forms. Maybe video assessments are completed through FlipGrid, verbal feedback is delivered through Voxer, or written comments are given using Google Docs.
Update 4: This past week or so focused on Content Management Systems (CMS). These digital platforms provide online framework for teaching and learning. Course content, information, and assessments can be posted within these platforms. I still believe my inital thoughts are valid, but it now that I realize a large portion of these assessments are available through these CMSs! Without these systems it would be extremely difficult to organize my course content and ensure student accessibility.
Update 5: I'm revisiting my initial thoughts after learning about digital assessments, specifically digital games. I had truthfully never considered digital games as an assessment type. I certainly never thought I could create one either. Digital games as an assessment support my initial thoughts. Students move throughout a game, making appropriate choices to continue moving forward. These choices force students to review and retrieve previous content. Immediate feedback about a game play/movement can be delivered to students. Feedback might include advancement in play or an explanation as to why an answer may be correct or incorrect. And lastly, this form of an assessment is certainly unique. Engagement through this type of assessment might spark interest in certain students and aid in learning.
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