Evaluation Measures, Ongoing Improvements and Enhancement Week 6 Introduction to Web-Based Mentoring and Distance Education

Week 5: Evaluation Measures, Ongoing Improvements and Enhancement Discussion Questions: What is important to assess in an online course? What are some effective assessment techniques/strategies? What is your planned assessment strategy? How can you be sure you assessing the standards/objectives that are addressed in your course?

Table of Contents Assessment in an Online Course Formative Assessment Summative Assessment Self Assessment

I. Assessment in An Online Course When developing an online professional development initiative you must have an assessment strategy. Your assessment strategies must measure whether you have reached your stated goals. There are two types of assessment: Formative and Summative. Reflection is also a key assessment type – it is important to encourage participants to reflect in order to help them build their own skills but also to help you to inform your future decisions.

II. Formative Assessment Discussion Questions Questions can be posted in the form of a discussion thread on the discussion board. Over a specific period of time, students are required to post responses. In addition to general postings, students should be required to post a minimum number of replies to classmates’ postings. Students can be scored based on the completeness of response to the particular topic and overall class participation. Instructor Feedback: The instructor should respond to individual postings, offering positive comments and posing thoughtful questions for more depth into the subject matter. Also, the instructor can post a summary of the class ideas or important points that were made.

II. Formative Assessment Online Chats Students participate in a synchronous online chat, responding to questions posed by the instructor. The chats can involve teams or the whole class. During the chat, the instructor can score students based on class participation. Also, the instructor can obtain immediate feedback on the instruction and student content knowledge in an informal assessment.   Instructor Feedback: The instructor can offer positive feedback throughout the chat and offer closing comments at the conclusion of the chat. Also, the instructor can post a summary of chat ideas and key points for students to view at a later time.

II. Formative Assessment Review Questions The instructor poses short-answer questions for students to answer. The questions should allow the students to review important course concepts and be tied directly to the course outcomes. The questions should also address the knowledge and skills needed to be successful on the performance assessment.   Instructor Feedback: After reading students’ responses to the review questions, the instructor must determine if there is a gap in instruction, or if more instruction is needed on a particular topic. The instructor should provide this feedback to students and alter instruction as needed.

II. Formative Assessment Short Quizzes Short quizzes provide a quick assessment of basic content knowledge. Quizzes can be used to reinforce certain concepts. They are also used to determine if students need more instruction on a certain topic, or are ready to move to higher-level skills and knowledge. The quizzes can be created online, have a variety of question types. It is recommended that pools of questions be created for the quiz generation to reduce the possibility of cheating.   Instructor Feedback:Quizzes taken online, such as quizzes generated in Blackboard, will automatically be scored. However you choose to administer the quiz, students should receive their quiz scores within a relatively short time. Also, the instructor should post a summary of comments about the quizzes on the course site.

II. Formative Assessment Graphic Organizers Students work individually or in teams to organize content into a graphic organizer such as a: concept map, timeline, web, outline, or Venn diagram.   Instructor Feedback:The instructor should create a rubric or scoring tool that includes the elements that he/she will be assessing in the graphic organizer. In addition to the rubric, the facilitator should comment upon the clarity of the assignment, content, and display.

II. Formative Assessment Reflections Privately or publicly the student composes a reflection about the content being learned of the process. Reflections can be assigned weekly or at the midpoint and end of the course. The student may post his/her reflections in the discussion forum or send it in an e-mail message to the facilitator.   Instructor Feedback:Individualized feedback about the reflection must be sent. Facilitators should consider the information in light of the content presentation method and make changes to the curriculum as appropriate.

III. Summative Assessment Pre-Assessment Students are given a pretest in the beginning of the course. The pretests can be in the form of essay questions (responded to on paper or in a discussion thread), quiz, or KWL activity.   Instructor Feedback:A pre-assessment allows instructors to see the knowledge and previous experiences of the students. The instructor should post positive feedback on the assessments and comment on concepts that will be addressed in the course.

III. Summative Assessment Post-Assessment When compared to a pre-assessment, instructors can see the new knowledge gained in the course. A post-assessment can be in the form of a journal entry/reflection, discussion board posting, the completion of a KWL activity, or an exam.   Instructor Feedback:The instructor should post positive feedback on the assessments and comment on what the students have learned throughout the course.

III. Summative Assessment Post-Assessment When compared to a pre-assessment, instructors can see the new knowledge gained in the course. A post-assessment can be in the form of a journal entry/reflection, discussion board posting, the completion of a KWL activity, or an exam.   Instructor Feedback:The instructor should post positive feedback on the assessments and comment on what the students have learned throughout the course.

IV. Self Assessment Learning Logs Learning logs are a combination of journals and personal portfolios, and can be in the form of a MS Word document. Students can respond to prompts and share the information with their peers. Learning logs allow students to record new information, demonstrate knowledge, and evaluate their own work. Instructor Feedback:The instructor should read the learning logs and offer feedback on student learning.  

IV. Self Assessment Journals Journals are similar to learning logs in that students respond to prompts. However, journals involve more self-reflection on the learning process, as well as reflection on the learned content. Instructor Feedback:Instructors should respond to every journal entry, offering positive and constructive feedback.  

Resources All information contained in this presentation are part of CTE’s Online Learning Model.