Assess Through Multiple Means
Learner-Centered Assessment
A learner-centered assessment focuses on helping students learn, not just testing what they know. It involves students actively engaging in their learning process and creating and using the assessments.
Learner-centered assessments offer several benefits including enhanced learning, increased engagement, personalized feedback, development of critical thinking skills, boosted confidence, growth mindset, and active participation.
Assessment
- Provide opportunities for formative assessments, where students have the chance to practice their developing skills. Incorporate summative assessments, where students have a chance to demonstrate their mastery of the course objectives.
- Formative assessments are ongoing and provide feedback to help students improve their learning throughout their time in the course. They are typically ungraded or worth a small fraction of the student’s final course grade. They are flexible and focus on practicing specific skills in order to master the course objectives. Examples include: one-minute notes, discussion posts, exit tickets, concept maps, informal response to posed questions, multiple choice check ins, surveys, polls, etc.
- Summative assessments evaluate student learning and performance in relation to the course objectives. They are usually graded and contribute significantly to a student’s final course grade. Summative assessments cover a broad range of material and skills learned throughout the course. Examples include group projects, portfolios, lab reports, final exams, research papers, etc.
Choice
- For each type of assessment, give students some options on how to complete it. Universal Design for Learning recommends offering multiple ways for students to engage and act in assessments.
- It is important to identify which actions are essential for the learning goals and which can be adjusted to accurately assess each student’s learning.
Revision
- The ability to revise assignments is crucial in inclusive assessment because it allows students to demonstrate their learning more fully by addressing feedback and improving their work, creating a more equitable environment where all learners, regardless of their initial understanding or learning style, have a chance to succeed and showcase their knowledge effectively.
- The ability to revise assignments also supports a growth mindset in students.
What does student choice look like?
Just as professionals can take varied approaches to accomplish a task, it is reasonable for students to have this opportunity, as well. With this in mind, allow students some flexibility in how they demonstrate their knowledge and skill.
- Orient the assessment around the course learning objectives
- Offer students more than one option for assessment, or invite them to generate their own assessment, provided it connects with the learning objectives
- Offer more than one route to demonstrate mastery
- Examples may include creating a video, infographic, website, or facilitating a class discussion
- Welcome diverse approaches provided the work demonstrates mastery of the relevant learning objectives
- Develop rubrics that can be applied across assessment formats
- Provide students with the autonomy to demonstrate mastery of course material through their preferred means
Provide students with the autonomy to demonstrate mastery of course material through their preferred means.
These recommendations are rooted in the principles of Universal Design for Learning (Tobin & Behling, 2018).
Faculty Spotlight
In this video, Dr. Laura Feibush discusses creating scaffolded, authentic activities with the option for using a variety of audio tools that allow for meaningful assessment as well as transferable skills for the students.
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References
Beilock, S. L., & Carr, T. H. (2005). When high-powered people fail: Working memory and “choking under pressure” in math. Psychological Science, 16(2), 101-105. https://www.jstor.org/stable/40064185
California Classroom Science. (2020, April 09). Learner-centered classrooms: Getting students involved in assessment. California Association of Science Educators. Retrieved December 18, 2024, from https://classroomscience.org/articles/fyi/learner-centered-classrooms-getting-students-involved-assessment
CAST. (2024, December 5). UDL tips for assessments. Retrieved January 15, 2025, from https://www.cast.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/cast-udltipsforassessment-20200920-a11y.pdf
Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning. Equitable assignment design. Indiana University Bloomington. Retrieved December 18, 2024, from https://citl.indiana.edu/teaching-resources/diversity-inclusion/equitable-assignments/index.html
Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning. Summative and formative assessment. Indiana University Bloomington. Retrieved December 18, 2024, from https://citl.indiana.edu/teaching-resources/assessing-student-learning/summative-formative/index.html
Edmentum. (2019, September 06). Formative and summative assessments [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjcI9y_qH9o&t=66s
Glazer, N. (2014). Formative plus summative assessment in large undergraduate courses: Why both? (EJ1060846). ERIC. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1060846.pdf
Hummel, B. (2024, March 19). Formative vs. Summative assessments: What’s the difference? iCEV. Retrieved December 18, 2024, from https://www.icevonline.com/blog/formative-vs.-summative-assessments-what-do-they-mean
Nieminen, J. H. (2022). Assessment for inclusion: Rethinking inclusive assessment in higher education. Teaching in Higher Education, 29(4), 841-859. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2021.2021395
Office of Teaching, Learning, & Technology. (n.d.). Summative assessment. University of the Incarnate Word. Retrieved December 18, 2024, from https://my.uiw.edu/tlt/center-for-teaching-learning/assssment/summative-assessments.html
Tai, J., Ajjaw, R., & Umarova, A. (2021). How do students experience inclusive assessment? A critical review of contemporary literature. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 28(9), 1936-1953. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2021.2011441
The Harriet W. Sharidan Center for Teaching and Learning. (n.d.). Inclusive assessment of student learning. Brown University. Retrieved December 18, 2024, from https://sheridan.brown.edu/resources/inclusive-anti-racist-teaching/inclusive-teaching/inclusive-assessment-student-learning
Tobin, T. J., & Behling, K. T. (2018). Reach everyone, teach everyone: Universal design for learning in higher education. West Virginia University Press.
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