As students leave school and begin contributing to society in their professional and personal lives, they’ll need to find new ways to resolve 21st-century challenges. Creativity is the key to this. School districts have accordingly placed greater emphasis on teaching and measuring creative skills in recent years. Yet, as many educators consider online formats, they […]
With 18 US states formally adopting the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)—and dozens more moving towards NGSS principles—a significant change is underway. Rather than merely recalling facts, students need to demonstrate mastery across 3 learning dimensions: scientific and engineering practices, disciplinary core ideas, and cross-cutting concepts. These will challenge students to think critically, solve real-world […]
Education is evolving rapidly, with advanced technologies and new strands of study making an undeniable impact. However, our assessment methods often remain widely unchanged, and as such may fail to fully assess the skills and understanding students need in the 21st century. For example, while multiple-choice quizzes have their place, they’re not ideal for measuring […]
While many educators are aware of computer adaptive testing (CAT) and the benefits it offers for students, it can be difficult to step away from the familiarity of traditional assessment methods. Teachers may be unsure of how to design and implement an adaptive test and might even question whether CAT is right for their students. […]
Assessment is vital: it allows educators and institutions to understand where students need support and also gives young people the qualifications they need to progress to their next phase. Assessments also play a key role in creating an equitable education system that gives every student the chance to demonstrate what they’ve learned. However, challenges such […]
Traditional mathematics diagnostic assessments, such as multiple-choice Scantron tests, are used in many classrooms – but they have limitations. Because grading paper-based assessments is time-intensive, both students and educators often have to wait for feedback on performance. Also, multiple-choice tests measure performance accurately around the mean but not so well at the extremes. With scores […]
