Why E-Assessment?
Diversity of Perspectives in Assessment
Assessment generally refers to the evaluation of students. However, depending on the purpose and disciplinary context, assessments can serve multiple functions.
Assessment is suitable for:
- Measuring the characteristics of individuals (Diagnostic Perspective).
- Assessing learning prerequisites and learning progress (Higher Education Context).
- Initiating learning processes themselves, thereby enabling better learning (Didactic Perspective).
For this, feedback is particularly important alongside the assessment of learning objectives. This is also referred to as Assessment for Learning. This entails a change in perspective that no longer asks what students can achieve, but rather how instructors can support student learning. The students and their learning are at the center, which is often closely linked to formative assessment.
Various Application Scenarios with Digital Media
The "E" in E-Assessment stands for the use of digital media and devices. This can mean the use of a browser-based Learning Management System, conducting a live poll (self-assessment) during a lecture using clickers, or performing an oral exam through a video conferencing system.
Advantages:
- Dynamic media such as videos or interactive graphics can be presented.
- Various options for linking assessment requirements with learning (as noted by Schaper 2021).
- Submissions can be created through specific software.
- In open text tasks, inputs can be edited as many times as needed. Furthermore, the text remains legible at all times, allowing for more objective evaluation.
- Feedback can be provided immediately through automatic evaluation, e.g., in self-assessments.
- Access to additional question types, such as automatic evaluation of programming tasks. Additionally, other task types can be designed and implemented.
- More efficient and structured evaluation of assessment performance is possible (Schaper).