Assessment in Higher Education Teaching

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Assessment in Higher Education Teaching
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What is an assessment?

• An assessment is an activity, assigned by the
  professor, that yields comprehen-sive information
  for analyzing, discussing, and judging a
  learners performance of valued abilities and
  skills. (Huba Freed, 2000)

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Why assessment?

• Whats wrong with testing or evaluation?

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Assessment has a history

• By 1970s, changes in college audience and
  perceptions of college education
• In 1980s, movement to reform college education
  begins
• Assessment becomes method of judging quality,
  adding accountability

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Why do assessments?

• What does a good assessment tell me?

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Assessment tells me

• What have my students learned?
• How successful have I been at what I was trying
  to accomplish?

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Why do assessments?

• In the context of a course, what benefits can
  come from a good assessment?

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Assessment can

• Guide students improvement
• Help students check their progress
• Help students find weak spots
• Help students make choices

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Assessment can

• Set standards
• Determine fitness for entry for a program or
  certification
• Add variety
• Get students motivated

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500 Tips on Assessment

• (2005) Brown, S., Race, P. and Smith, B.
  Editor(s) Routledge, London
• Chapter 2

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Selecting an assessment

• The first step in assessment of learning is to
  list your goals for the course. Once you have
  specified objectives you can determine which kind
  of assessment is appropriate for each.
  (McKeachie, 72)

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The assessment toolbox

• Some terms on types of assessment

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The assessment toolbox

• Norm-referenced compares student performance to
  a sample group
• ex. SAT, ACT, etc

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The assessment toolbox

• Criterion-referenced compares student
  perform-ance to a standard - usually a benchmark
  of skill or knowledge
• ex. Drivers License

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The assessment toolbox

• Summative tests the students learning up to a
  point in time.
• ex. final exam

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The assessment toolbox

• Formative tests the student on learning as it
  happens.
• ex. quiz, homework

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The assessment toolbox

• Reviewing McKeachie, chapter 6

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What are we assessing?

• Often, we find that we are assessing not what we
  really want to assess, but what happens to be
  easy to assess.

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500 Tips on Assessment

• (2005) Brown, S., Race, P. and Smith, B.
  Editor(s) Routledge, London
• Chapter 3