A Collection of Assessment Tools and Strategies

The Toolbox Collection • October 2018

A COLLECTION OF ASSESSMENT TOOLS AND STRATEGIES

Here are some ideas to get you thinking about new and different ways to assess student learning in your courses.

NO-FAULT QUIZ

As reported by Sporer (2001), students often ask the question, “Can I get extra credit?” One way to provide this opportunity in a meaningful way is through the No-Fault Quiz. Students are given a 5- to 15-question quiz (i.e., multiple choice, true/false, fill-in-the-blank) covering the previous week’s content. Points gained on the No- Fault Quiz count as extra credit, and points that may be “missed” do not count against the student. Answers to the questions are provided immediately after the quiz. Student performance is recorded, but students are exposed to quiz questions that can later serve as a source for review.

HAND-IN DATES

Typically, course syllabi specify the assignments that students are expected to complete during the semester and the dates that each of those assignments are due. An alternative is the Hand-In Date strategy:

»» At the beginning of the semester, students receive a list of the assigned projects, papers, and presentations to be completed.

»» Instead of providing specific due dates for each assignment, the instructor provides a series of “completion dates” (e.g., Completion Date No. 1, Completion Date No. 2).

»» Students choose the order in which they complete the assigned tasks for the semester. They must submit one completed assignment on each of the designated completion dates.

This strategy allows students to choose which assignments they can complete first and which ones will require the greatest amount of time to complete. Additionally, this strategy provides an opportunity to front-load assignments and prevents the common practice of requiring a massive amount of completed work during the final two weeks of the semester.

EXIT CARDS

Davies and Wavering (1999) describe a procedure for encouraging students to engage in ongoing reflection about their learning. Exit cards provide a strategy for students to process what they are learning and apply that information to their chosen discipline. On a weekly basis, students are asked to complete a 5x8 card that contains three questions:

»» What?

»» So what?

»» Now what?

The “What?” question focuses on the content presented and learned during a particular class session. The “So what?” question is designed to elicit a summary of the main points discussed and reviewed during the week. The “Now what?” question requires students to relate that content to their lives, learning, and future roles and responsibilities.

PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING

Problem-based learning (PBL) is a strategy receiving an increasing amount of attention in higher education. Its origins are often attributed to Thomas Corts of McMaster University in Canada, who developed this technique as a way of teaching medical students (Rheem, 1998). Duch, Groh, and Allen (2001) describe the PBL process:

In the problem-based learning approach, complex, real-world problems are used to motivate students to identify and research the concepts and principles they need to know to work through these problems. Students work in small learning teams, bringing together collective skill at acquiring, communicating, and integrating information. (p. 6)

PBL provides an excellent mechanism for helping first-year students gain and practice skills that will serve them well throughout their higher education experience and beyond. In particular, PBL helps students develop critical thinking, improve verbal and written communication techniques, learn to work as members of a team, seek solutions to realworld problems, and contextualize the acquisition of new knowledge and skills. Typical phases of the PBL process include:

1. presenting the problem or scenario, 2. clarifying the questions involved in the problem, 3. generating possible hypotheses, 4. gathering information related to the problem—typically done with team members investigating various components of the issue, 5. synthesizing the derived data, and 6. creating a final response and action plan.

Beyond these basics, the construction and execution of PBL scenarios can go in a number of directions based on course-related learning outcomes. The presented scenarios can originate from actual facts (e.g., current news reports, data, historical documents, audio/video clips) or imagined scenarios (e.g., fictional charts, reports, research based on real events). Through group discussions and individually written responses, the scenarios should require students to grapple with conflicting data and points of view, their personal values and ethical dilemmas, and interdisciplinary perspectives on real-world issues and concerns.

In addition to discussions and reflection papers, PBL activities often result in the creation of one or more final products (e.g., presentations, memoranda, reports, songs, poems). PBL can be implemented in a classroom setting or within an online learning structure; in large or small classes; and over a semester, a block of time within a course, or in a single class. Finally, PBL provides a great venue for creating interdisciplinary learning opportunities. A list of sample topics and disciplines relevant to those topics is included in Figure 2.

Figure 2. Sample PBL scenarios and suggested disciplines.

ALTERNATIVE WAYS TO DISPLAY KNOWLEDGE

It is quite common for faculty to assign writing projects to students in the form of lengthy, referenced research papers. There is value to be gained from doing the necessary research, synthesizing the derived information, then summarizing conclusions and findings in a formatted paper. As an alternative, however, or even as a supplement, it is helpful to have students condense their main findings into a different format. The following examples, Pecha Kucha, Wikis, and Pinterest, force students to think differently (e.g., taking content they have summarized in writing over to a more visually oriented venue).

Conversation is a meeting of minds with different memories and habits. When minds meet, they don’t just exchange facts: They transform them. …

Conversation doesn’t just reshuffle the cards: It creates new cards. --Theodore Zeldin, English philosopher (2000, p. 14)

PECHA KUCHA

Pecha Kucha (pronounced pa-check-a-cha), which literally means “chit chat” in Japanese, is an electronic presentation format composed of exactly 20 PowerPoint slides with exactly 20 seconds of narrative per slide. These presentations can be performed live or recorded using available computer software (e.g., iMovie). Given a topic to explore and present, students must consider the facts and concepts to include (or to omit) and then create a visual and auditory display within the time constraints of the Pecha Kucha format. Pecha Kuchas are fun to create and also require planning and a mastery of the topic. You can find samples at www.pechakucha.org.

WIKIS

A wiki is a website that allows users to edit content actively and collaboratively. One option for creating wikis is the website Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creating_a_new_page). The sponsors of Wikipedia provide specific directions for creating a wiki on a new topic. These directions are easy to follow and allow instructors to limit access to only students enrolled in their classes. Instructors could ask students to create a wiki and collaboratively and asynchronously create a body of knowledge (i.e., words, pictures, quotations, external sources) on an assigned topic. At the end of the semester, students would be evaluated on the quality and organization of their Wikipedia article. As an additional component, teams could develop their own articles and provide constructive criticism for other groups. This interactive dialogue should increase student involvement and, ultimately, the quality of their work.

PINTEREST

Pinterest is a website that provides students the opportunity to collect and organize pictures, video and audio clips, and articles around an assigned topic (www.pinterest.com). Omnicore (2018) reports that Pinterest currently attracts almost 175 million active users and is growing faster than Facebook and Twitter. Students could develop a Pinterest display around a course-related content topic and then share and pool the acquired information to review and process key concepts. Within the context of a course, students could be assigned a related topic with the purpose of gathering the information and resources necessary to teach their classmates the most salient content and principles related to their topic. The accumulated bank of Pinterests then becomes a databank for learning and review for the entire class.

DRABBLE

Looking for a new way to challenge students in their writing, critical thinking, creativity, and connections with course content? Have them create a Drabble, a unique, succinct, and fun writing exercise, as a classroom activity or assignment. These very short novels help students choose their words wisely and think carefully about what they want to say. The Drabble comes from an unlikely source: the British comedy troupe Monty Python and its 1971 publication, Big Red Book (Chapman et al., 1971), which describes this word game as a competition in which the winner creates a novel using 100 or fewer words. In 1987, Steve Moss, then editor of the New Times, an independent newspaper in San Luis Obispo, California, took the art form to a new level, or, more accurately, a new low. Under Moss’s leadership, the newspaper began sponsoring annual Drabble contests but changed the original Monty Python format, reducing the allowable number of words to 55. Other rules include the following:

»» The novel must include a setting.

»» The Drabble should feature one or more characters.

»» The story must include conflict.

»» The conflict must be resolved. (Drabble, 2018)

Here are two Drabbles, the first using the longer and the second the shorter format: »» Whodunnit? Only five of us made it to the escape pod. We peered through the viewports at the cataclysmic destruction of our spacecraft as we spun away into the Deep Black. It had been a deliberate, traitorous act—some mole undetected by the crew—and we knew that the saboteur had to be on board. We exchanged suspicious glances. I studied the others closely. The second technician was looking particularly nervous—fidgeting and sweat-soaked. The navigator didn’t meet anyone’s eyes for long. I sat back, thinking hard. Which one of them would be the first to guess it had been me? (“52 Drabbles,” n.d.)

»» Love on the Net—Sarah sat at the table, awaiting her perfect match, pink carnation held at the ready. When Jason arrived, their eyes immediately met across the crowded café. As he sauntered over to her, his smile quickly faded. “You told me you looked like George Clooney,” she said. “You told me you were a woman!” he retorted. (“WriteWords,” n.d.)

Effective Drabble writing requires students to consider carefully the plot of their stories and choose their words to fit within the constraints of the 55- or 100-word format—great skills for any writer to develop. Drabbles also can be valuable learning experiences across academic disciplines and courses. The following examples demonstrate the range of activities that Drabbles can inspire in the classroom:

»» Students can create a Drabble on a specific discipline- or content-related concept in any class connected to specific course outcomes, themes, or subjects (e.g., mitochondria, Mark Twain, quadratic equations, existentialism).

»» The shortened format can help students outline the main points they want to communicate in another writing assignment, allowing them to brainstorm ideas and making the Drabble a preview of that work.

»» Students can post their work on the class’s learning management system and then critique their peers’ novels in a Drabble gallery.

»» To add an extra step, students can illustrate their Drabbles with one photograph.

»» To make the assignment more creative and incorporate the use of technology, students can transfer their Drabbles into a comic book format or a movie, using iMovie, for example.

MIND MAPS

Learning is a fascinating process. Throughout our lives, and in many ways, we learn and master various combinations of facts, concepts, and principles. A great deal of learning occurs in a linear fashion (e.g., formulas, computations, sequential lists of facts, rules of grammar). A graphical depiction of this type of learning could be represented with outlines, flow charts, and tables, illustrating the one-dimensional relationship between pairs of informational variables. One of the aims of higher education, however, is to promote learning that requires deeper, more critical thought, including the ability to analyze relationships and make multiple connections between facts and concepts. A mind map (aka concept map, cognitive map) is a tool that organizes words, thoughts, ideas, tasks, activities, and more in the form of a diagram. … start[ing] with a key or main idea in the center with subtopics [arranged] radially around the main idea. The subtopics group and cluster similar ideas, and they branch out to lower-level topics, guiding you to wherever your thought processes lead you. (Arthur, 2012, p. 9)

The mind map’s origination has been traced back to the Phoenician philosopher Porphyry of Tyros, who created graphic depictions of Aristotle’s Organon. The modern rendition of the mind map, however, is attributed to author and educational consultant Tony Buzan (1974), who compared the mind map with the map of a city:

The centre of your Mind Map is like the centre of the city. It represents your most important idea. The main roads leading from the centre represent the main thoughts in your thinking process; the secondary roads represent your secondary thoughts, and so on. Special images or shapes can represent sites of interest or particularly interesting ideas. (Buzan, 2012, p. 6)

Tsinakos and Balafoutis (2009), summarizing current research on mind maps, suggested the following process for map creation:

»» Begin with a blank (preferably large) sheet of paper.

»» Place the main topic of the map in the center of the page. The topic should be depicted in a large, colorful manner and accompanied by a graphic design or picture.

»» Draw radiating, curved lines (branches) from the main topic to represent key ideas. Branches should be drawn in bright colors, identified with one-word labels, and, if the content is sequential, numbered in a clockwise manner.

»» Add sub-branches as necessary to clarify and define the topic.

»» Use arrows, geometric figures, punctuation marks, symbols, and pictures to prioritize the importance of the content.

You can integrate mind maps into the process of teaching and learning in first-year courses in several ways:

»» For effective pedagogy, it is helpful to provide students with intentional strategies to summarize and synthesize content presented in textbooks, classroom lectures, or demonstrations. For example, within small groups, students could create mind maps for a key topic or concept under investigation. These could be shared in class or posted in the discussion forum housed in the campus learning management system (LMS). A collection of mind maps can also help students prepare for examinations.

»» One of the skills that can best prepare students during their college journey, as well as after graduation, is the ability to communicate in writing. Good writing is preceded by good planning. Using a mind map helps students organize their thoughts and conceptualize the components of written assignments. After creating their initial map drafts, students can either participate in a peer review process or submit their maps to the instructor for suggestions. Experiencing the benefits of good planning can foster the habit of using mind mapping as part of the writing process.

»» With the growing popularity of mind maps as a strategy for learning, free online tools have been created to assist in this process. One such website is Coggle (https://www.coggle.it/), where students work from a blank white screen using a palette of colors and design tools that can turn anyone into an expert mind mapper in a matter of minutes.

Figure 3. Mind map of key theories of teaching and learning in higher education.

As an example of the mind map process, Figure 3 depicts some of the key theories of teaching in higher education. Various aspects of the presented theories are color-coded to illustrate the level that they overlap and complement one another. Creation of this mind map might start with a student conversation about theories that will be included, followed by a discussion about how the components intersect (resulting in the color-coding process). Finally, the resulting mind map could be shared with other groups of students for review and suggestions.

ORAL DISCOURSE

Many techniques can be used to assess student learning in higher education. The exact menu of assessment tools chosen by instructors depends largely on the knowledge, skills, and dispositions found in a course’s learning outcomes. Singh (2011) suggested that, although assessment practices tend to focus on written products (e.g., examinations, research papers), the boundaries could be reasonably extended to include oral discourse. These structured, oneon-one conversations with instructors, when thoughtfully conceived and implemented, allow students to talk about what they have learned, demonstrate an understanding of their knowledge and class objectives, and apply course content in new ways.

Joughlin (1998), in a review of the literature on assessment practices related to oral discourse, identified four areas to guide instructors in evaluating student performance: (a) knowledge and understanding (e.g., recall of basic concepts, facts, and principles), (b) applied problem-solving ability (e.g., applying the knowledge base in derived scenarios), (c) interpersonal competence (e.g., communication abilities), and (d) intrapersonal qualities (e.g., self-awareness, poise). Oral discourse can be a primary mode of summative assessment, focusing on the outcome of instructional goals, or it can be linked with written assessment strategies as a formative function, allowing the instructor to monitor how well students are meeting objectives as the course progresses. For example, faculty members might engage students in an oral discourse, then later ask them to elaborate further in a written assignment, including external references and resources that focus on one of the questions or topics of discussion that emerged during the conversation. Combining oral and written assessment reinforces students’ understanding of course content and accomplishment of learning outcomes.

Adopting oral discourse as an assessment tool will require instructors to do some intentional planning, but the energy spent will pay dividends later in the quality of the experience for students and the ease with which their performance can be evaluated. For example, an instructor teaching a course in which Goldilocks and the Three Bears is a primary text could use an oral discourse as a strategy to assess course learning objectives. To begin, the instructor creates a list of questions that will guide the conversation with students; this step is critically important. Heritage and Heritage (2013) suggest that initial questions and answers stimulate further response and elaboration (i.e., initiation, response, feedback, response, feedback). This interactive process facilitates an organic, self-sustaining conversation rather than a simple question-and-answer session.

These questions (i.e., prompts) should be designed to assess student learning at varied levels of thinking (e.g., remembering, applying, analyzing, creating). For example, when focusing on the Goldilocks story, the instructor, using Joughlin’s (1998) model, might begin the conversation with one or more of the following prompts to assess students’ basic knowledge and understanding:

»» What are the three main events in the plot of this story?

»» Describe the personality and characteristics of Goldilocks.

»» What kinds of observations can you make about Goldilocks and her character or personality?

»» Create a scenario where this story occurs in a 21st-century setting.

»» What are some of the lessons intended from this story?

»» What elements of this story explain its longstanding popularity?

When planning an oral discourse, instructors also should create a rubric (Figure 4) to guide the assessment of students’ performance during their one-on-one dialogue. Students would receive the rubric before the conversation to gain a sense of how the dialogue will progress and how they will be evaluated.

Figure 4. Rubric for assessing student–instructor dialogue.

This article contains elements from past issues of The Toolbox.

Note to readers: Additional assessment tools that primarily rely on the use of technology will be included in Volume 4 of the Toolbox Collection: Digital Learning, scheduled for release in December 2018.