Alternative Assessment: Ensuring Authenticity

1
(No Transcript)
2
Alternative Assessment Ensuring Authenticity
3
Authentic assessment of authentic achievement

• What is authentic assessment?
• an assessment requiring students to use the
  same competencies, or combinations of knowledge,
  skills and attributes, that they need to apply to
  the criterion situation in professional life.
• (Gulikers et al, 2004)

4
Some history

• Boud (1990) gaps between teaching and
  professional practice and between assessment
  tasks and the world of work
• Biggs (1996) constructive alignment between
  instruction, learning assessment
• Dochy (2001) core goal of alternative
  assessment is application of knowledge to actual
  real life cases
• Herrington Herrington (1998) McDowell (1995)
  increasing authenticity of assessment has
  positive influence on student learning
  motivation
• cf performance assessment (Hart 1994 Torrance
  1995)

5
5 dimensions of authentic assessment

• Task
• Physical Context
• Social Context
• Assessment Form
• Criteria Standards
• Each is a dimension that can vary in level of
  authenticity

6
Task
Physical Context
Social Context
Assessment Form
Criteria
7
Other aspects

• Alignment with authentic instruction
• Formative assessment (? learning tasks)
  practice needed
• Complexity of task (range from simple to
  multi-disciplinary, ill structured)
• Student perception of authenticity
• Student levels of learning

8
Practical Application - Context

• LLAW4212 Transactional legal practice
• 4th year topic
• 9 units, semester 1
• 125 students
• Competency based required for accreditation -
  NGP

9
Practical Application - Assessment

• Learning driven by assessment
• 30 formative assessment items
• Most done in groups some individual
• Feedback from staff, best practice examples,
  peers
• No fail zone
• Reflection built in
• Summative assessment - 360 performance review

10
Practical Application examples

• Tasks eg obtain probate
• Physical context Victoria Square
• Social Context collaborative/individual/seeking
  assistance
• Assessment form drafting will
• Criteria letter writing

11
Practical Application examples

• Tasks eg obtain probate
• Physical context Victoria Square
• Social Context collaborative/individual/seeking
  assistance
• Assessment form drafting will
• Criteria letter writing

12
Does this have wider application?

• Competence not just for FE/VET
• In HE, students need cognitive competence
  (critical thinking, problem solving) and also
  metacognitive and social competencies
  (reflection, communication, collaboration) (
  Birenbaum 1996)
• Authentic achievement also includes authentic
  academic achievement (in context of becoming an
  academic)

13
References (1)

• Biggs, J. (1996). Enhancing teaching through
  constructive alignment. Higher Education, 32,
  347-364.
• Birenbaum, M. (1996). Assessment 2000 towards a
  pluralistic approach to assessment. In M.
  Birenbaum F. J. R. C. Dochy (Eds.),
  Alternatives in assessment of achievements,
  learning processes and prior knowledge (pp 3-29).
  Boston, MA Kluwer Academic Publishers.
• Boud, D. (2000). Sustainable assessment
  rethinking assessment for the learning society.
  Studies in Continuing Education, 22, 2, 151-167
• Dochy, F. (2001). A new assessment are Different
  needs, new challenges. Learning and Instruction,
  10, suppl 1, 11-20.
• Gulikers, J. T. M., Bastiaens, T. J., Kirschner,
  P. A. (2004). A Five-Dimensional Framework for
  Authentic Assessment. Educational technology,
  Research and Development, 52, 3, 67-86.

14
References (2)

• Hart, D. (1994). Authentic Assessment A handbook
  for education. Menlo Park, CA Addison-Wesley
  Publishing Company
• Herrington, J. Herrington, A. (1998). Auhtentic
  assessment and multimedia How university
  students respond to a moel of authentic
  assessment. Higher Education Research
  Development, 17, 3, 305-322.
• McDowell, L. (1995). The impact of innovative
  assessment on student learning. Innovations in
  Education and Training International, 32, 4,
  302-313.
• Torrance, H. (1995). Evaluating authentic
  assessment. Buckingham, UK Open University
  Press.

15
(No Transcript)
16
(No Transcript)
17
(No Transcript)
18
(No Transcript)