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 1.Task 2.Physical Context 3.Social Context 4.Assessment Form 5.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 4 th 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.