I have a course in which the students work on a network improvement plan that they build on each week. In that project I grade each submission and the student has to make improvements based on my comments. At the end of the session they turn in a final paper.
I created a digital webpage that gave concrete real world examples of my educational technology learning objectives.
Students complete case studies which ask them to apply their learning to real life situations . These exercises require students to use critical thinking skills and analysis of their lessons to respond. These assessments highlight the students ability to use the lessons' materials in practical ways.
Beyond the individual courses, we ask students to maintain portfolios throughout their program. These portfolios are submitted with their graduate petitions. The students are often pleased to see the progress that they make over the course of the program but we also use the portfolios to evaluate our performance. If students do not make significant progress in their skills, there is something wrong with our delivery.
Apart of every syllabus there is a grade for a portfolio , a project, participation, homework/classwork, quizzes, and exams. The authentic assessment allows the student that suffers from test anxiety to show their knowledge, skills, and abilities by way of a hands on presentation such as performing the steps of venapuncture or capillary puncture.
Before students begin the courses I teach they have done a significant amount of Authentic as well as alternative assessment. The courses I teach are mostly bookwork which goes beyond their previous training. We do have some Authentic assessment though, which consist of; writing papers on various topics which will require research to accomplish and be in a required format. They will be tasked with demonstrating their ability to do piping design calculations for refrigerant and water systems as well as load calculations for air conditionng and heating of residential and commercial buildings. They are also tasked with calculating indoor air quality using a psychrometric charts. We also have them write a business plan which is rated by how well they used and understood the instructional material. Some of these are part of the final assessments which are mostly alternative.
Nia, that is a good response. It does allow you to build that relationship as well keep curriculum current.
I do this as well and I find that it really helps the student remain focused and interested in the material being presented.
My online class does require that the students submit a portfolio at the end of the course. This serves as a summative assessment tool that shows what important ideas and concepts the student took from participating in the course. The students are also encouraged to collect their portfolio assignments from all of their online courses and continue to use them when job hunting or working in a related field. Other methods of using authentic assessments in my courses would include the discussion area where I often require students to discuss their real world experiences and opinions that relate to the discussion topic. I also assign projects that require students to submit work products that mimic those they may be asked for from a future employer.
Victoria, I also teach online where the curriculum is already designed. One thing I like to do in my discussion area is add additional questions or areas of research that push the student to move deeper into the topic. Some of them expand the discussion based on point of view or opinion and sometimes I will ask the student to perform more research to answer a particular question related to the original topic. I find that this not only allows me to personalize the course but also keeps the student engaged in the discussion because there is always something new (but still related) to talk about.
good point. they need to know that life is interesting and learning tools to navigate life help!
I completely forgot about case studies!! I think they are a great tool for the classroom. This presents real life scenarios and usually is a great way to engage students in discussion and participation. Case studies often present unusual and interesting scenarios; students love those and they don't even realize they are learning while doing a case study.
For my online class, the discussion forums is the tool I use to perform the assessment. The question often asks how they can apply the course objective to their jobs or the industry. I also often ask what they have learned, what they want to learn and how has the session affected their every day lives. Students are often encouraged to elaborate on their topic if they lack details in their response. During the process, this encourages students to think deeper. Students often realize that they either have learned more than they thought or learned less than they thought. If less is the case, I encourage them to review the materials once more and come back to discuss their findings.
Presently, I am taking an on-line associates degree program in medical billing and coding with Colorado Technical University. In one of the classes, I used authentic assessment because I had to do a performance where I had to interview a manager of a coding clinic and I had to observe other participants go through the same process.
Authentic assessment is very helpful in my area, because I can express to the student briefly the content, like for example using optimalresume, after explaining the fact of portfolio, it is easier to the student because they see a lot of examples, and the idea or outcomes is easier to build because of the samples they see online.
I love to use case studies. It gives relevance to the industry.
MOst of my masters degree is authentic assessments. I like these the best because it will show application based ideas!
You could start simply by using case studies or springboard scenarios that will encourage students to use critical thinking and your content to solve a real world problem.
Currently I teach at an online school where the curriculum is already designed. Although there is some room to individualize our classrooms, there is not enough ability to alter assessment/evaluation techniques. How would you recommend that I try and incorporate alternative and/or authentic assessments into my classroom?
I too have used authentic assessment in the classroom by discussion and group presentation.
