One of the
ways of assessment is by verbal discussion also known as viva or oral exam.
This is a very good way of assessment as it allows you to assess the depth of
knowledge that a student has. For example oral assessment is used in schools or
universities where students are studying a particular language, for example
English or French. The purpose of learning a language is to be able to
communicate verbally and the best way to assess this is via a speaking test.
This method
of assessment is also used in medical colleges where verbal discussion proves
useful in assessing medical students speaking skills as in the near future they
will have to communicate with patients.
This method
of assessment is often used along with some other method of assessment and is
not suitable for subjects such as Mathematics.
Another way
of assessment is through case studies. This is application based assessment and
covers the applying, analysing and evaluating parts of the Bloom’s Taxonomy. It
requires the students to apply the knowledge they have gained rather than the
traditional approach of written assessment which only manages to assess the
knowledge gained by the students. In subjects such as Physics it is the ability
of the student to apply the knowledge gained to unfamiliar situations which
pays off in the practical world and thus it is important to assess the students
using this method. Engineering students are often given situations where they
are to analyse the situation, evaluate the solution and then to create the required
model.
Even in
fields such as ICT, the system analysist needs to work on/ deal with a
particular situation. Hence IT students are assessed using case studies where
they are given a particular real life problem and they have to analyse and
propose a solution.
Peer-to-peer
assessment ensures that there is a two-way learning. In this method of
assessment the students assess each other and so the student who is assessing
and the student who is being assessed both get to learn.
The
traditional written assessment is practised in many schools and colleges. This
method of assessment is applicable in all subjects and if designed carefully it
can assess not only knowledge but also understanding and evaluation. This
method is especially useful in assessing creative writing skills of students.
Another
method of assessment is through group activities. This method of assessment
assesses the collaborative skills of students. It provides the students with an
opportunity to work together as a team.
Role play
is an excellent method for assessment as it allows the students to enact
someone in a particular situation. For example a student learning French needs
to know how to communicate with people in different situations, for example in
a restaurant while ordering food or, in a grocery store or at the information
office in an airport.
Hi Annie, I agree with you about oral assessments - they can really show the depth of a students understanding in any subject even maths! for example discussing how a student solved a problem gives us an insight into their thought processes. Case studies too as you say provide an invaluable insight into real world application of student learning; similarly peer to peer assessment not only assesses content but each student's understanding of the assessment process. Role play is also a good form of assessment but one which requires acceptance of validity on the part of the students particularly here in the UAE where assessments tend to be very formal and our students may not take it seriously.
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