Course Assessment Tools And Methods Utilizing Assignments, Tests, And Exams

Until recently, course assessment methods have been relegated to simply having an instructor examine results of assignments, tests and, exams, and making subjective determinations of how well the class is performing. This includes an “educated guess” as to whether or not students are grasping concepts being delivered in lecture classes (and supported in laboratory classes) and formulating an overall opinion of how the class is performing. When this method is used, in most cases, when queried about class performance, the instructor has little more to contribute than, They’re doing ok,” or “I think they’re doing better than last semester’s class,” or “I believe this is the best class I’ve ever had,” or some similar phrase. Seldom does the instructor have a quantitative value that can be assigned to the class performance, and rarely is he or she able to pinpoint which particular subjects within the course curriculum were problematic. The result is that the instructor usually lacks the data necessary to take the corrective action that can result in improvement in class (and individual student) performance.