How will I know what my students have learned?

This section provides a brief introduction to designing your course assessment strategy based on your course learning outcomes and introduces best practices in assessment design. The Guide to Course Delivery will provide resources on how to build and manage your assessments using specific technological tools in an online learning environment.

Tie assessments to the course learning objectives

To determine what kinds of assessments to use in your course, consider what you want the students to learn to do and how that can be measured. When designing an effective assessment plan, it is important to begin with the end in mind.

The goal is to start with the learning objectives and then design assessments that provide evidence of the learning you want to be demonstrated. For example, if your objective is for students to compare and contrast historical texts, but your assessment asks for factual recall of historical events, there is a misalignment between the intended outcome and the evidence. Consequently, students are frustrated that the exam does not measure what they learned.

Another consideration is what type of assessments best fit your learning objectives. For example, a case study may be more appropriate for measuring students’ ability to apply skills to a new situation than a multiple-choice or essay test.

The sections below are suggestions for how to build effective assessments once you’ve brought your learning objectives and assessment in alignment.

Create authentic, learner-centered assessments

Authentic assessments can be defined as “a form of assessment in which students are asked to perform real-world tasks that demonstrate meaningful application of essential knowledge and skills.” (1)

This approach is considered to be learner-centered because it gives students multiple chances to practice tasks.

Rethink traditional assessments to enhance the learning experience. At the end of a learning unit or module, summative assessments are frequently employed to measure students’ understanding. These assessments are usually graded, cumulative in design, and take the form of a midterm exam, research paper, or final project. Consider replacing a traditional assessment with an open-ended project situated in a meaningful, real-world context or modifying existing assessments to “do” the subject instead of recalling information. Here are some high-level questions for authentic assessment design to get you started(2):

  • Does this assessment replicate or simulate the contexts in which adults are “tested” in the workplace, civic life, or personal life?
  • Does this assessment challenge students to use what they’ve learned in solving new problems?
  • Does this assessment provide direct evidence of learning?
  • Is this assessment realistic? Have students been able to practice along the way?
  • Does this assessment truly demonstrate success and mastery of a skill students should have at the end of your course?

Use practices that promote inclusivity in your assessment design. Take inventory of the explicit and implicit norms and biases of your course assessments. For example, are your assessment questions phrased in a way where all students (including non-native English speakers) can be successful? Do your course assessments meet basic accessibility standards, including being appropriate for learners with visual or hearing needs?

Resources

Provide multiple opportunities for students to demonstrate their understanding

Tailor learning by assessing previous knowledge. At the beginning of a learning unit or module, use a diagnostic assessment (or pre-assessment) to gain insight into learners’ existing understanding and skills prior to beginning a new concept. Examples of diagnostic assessments include: discussion, informal quiz, survey, or a quick write paper.

Use frequent informal assessments to monitor progress. Formative assessments are any assessments implemented to evaluate progress during the learning experience. When possible, provide several low-stakes opportunities for learners to demonstrate progress throughout the course. Formative assessments provide five major benefits (3):

  1. Learners can identify their strengths and weaknesses with a particular concept and request additional support during the learning unit.
  2. Faculty can target areas where learners are struggling that should be addressed either individually or in whole class activities before a more high-stakes assessment.
  3. Formative assessments can be reviewed and evaluated by peers which provides additional opportunities to learn.
  4. Informal, low-stakes assessments reduce student anxiety.
  5. A more frequent, immediate feedback loop can make some assessments (like quizzes) less necessary.

Examples of low-stakes, formative assessments include: Classroom assessment techniques to gauge student learning, quick assessments like polls which can make large classes feel smaller, or informal reflection papers and/or discussions.

Resources

Design clear, scaffolded assessments

Students are likely to perform better on assessments when the instructions and grading criteria are clear.

Use rubrics when possible. Research suggests that assessments designed with a corresponding rubric lead to an increased attention to detail and fewer misunderstandings in submitted work (4).

How Rubrics Help Instructors
  • Encourage the instructor to clarify their criteria in specific terms.
  • Provide objectivity and consistency in grading student work.
  • Provide useful feedback to the instructor regarding the effectiveness of instruction.
How Rubrics Help Students
  • Improve student performance by clearly showing the student how their work will be evaluated and what is expected.
  • Help students become better judges of the quality of their own work.
  • Provide students with more informative feedback about their strengths and areas that need improvement.

Break up larger assignments into smaller parts. Scaffolding large or long-term assignments into smaller assignments with different deadlines gives learners natural structure, helps with time and project management skills, and provides multiple opportunities for learners to receive constructive feedback. Learners also benefit from assignment scaffolding when:

  • Rubrics are provided to assess discrete skills and evaluate student practice via smaller pre-assignments.
  • The stakes are lowered for preliminary assignments.
  • Opportunities are offered for rewrite based on feedback.
Resources

Next Steps

  • Identify summative and formative assessment possibilities for each of your high-level course learning outcomes based on the Bloom's TaxonomyTable Alignment with Assessment.
  • Use the provided template to begin mapping your course assessments.
  • Visit the Guide for Course Delivery for a more detailed look on how-to build and manage your assessments online.
References
  1. Reddy, Y. M., & Andrade, H. (2010). A review of rubric use in higher education. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 35(4), 435-448.
  2. Mueller, J. Authentic Assessment Toolbox http://jfmueller.faculty.noctrl.edu/toolbox/whatisit.htm
  3. Stull, J., Varnum, S., Ducette, J., & Schiller, J. (2011). The many faces of formative assessment. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 23(1), 30-39.
  4. Wiggins, G. (1998). Educative Assessment: Designing Assessments to Inform and Improve Student Practice. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Go to Topic 3: How will I carry out instructional activities in my course?