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Assessment

Grading, feedback, and student evaluation are couched in the term "assessment" in the halls of academia. Assessment is one of the most difficult jobs for any instructor whether new or experienced.

Design of Assessment Instruments

Writing a Good Exam

The exam is still the tool of choice for assessing the breadth and depth of student comprehension of specific course materials in many academic disciplines including the sciences. Writing an objective, fair, and thought provoking exam is an important task and a skill that takes time to master. Whenever possible, rote memorization should be discouraged on exams as this reinforces poor study habits such as "I'll study the night before so I don't forget."

Writing an exam to promote reflection involves more than testing student familiarity with the material. A good exam provides an opportunity to examine the student's ability to use the material under new circumstances. In this way, exams can be learning experiences in their own right by encouraging students to use the material they've learned in a new way and thereby reinforcing the importance of the material in tackling problems encountered outside the course.

Helping Students Prepare for the Exam

The instructor must make efforts to prepare the students for the style of exam to be anticipated. Encountering the course material in a slightly or entirely new context in an exam was stated above as a means for evaluating the completeness of student understanding and as a mechanism to promote reflection. In all fairness, the instructor should prepare the students for this format by developing a series of practice questions for exam preparation that are analogous to the anticipated exam. This ties in with the overall objectives of generating thought (promoting reflection) outside the immediate context of the lecture by training students to extrapolate beyond the lecture/text/exam/problem set environment.

Perhaps the best way to prepare students for taking an exam is to encourage them to practice their test taking skills. If possible, previous exams should be made available to give students a proper understanding of the length, format, and difficulty to expect in the exam. These materials can be made available as on line versions or can be included as a handout. Help students prepare for the exam by supplying a comprehensive exam study guide (web link?). A study guide will typically contain a summary of the course material actually covered in the lectures leading up to the exam. Keep in mind that the material actually covered may differ somewhat from that outlined in the syllabus. The exam study guide is an excellent mechanism for reminding students of their responsibilities to know certain material and provides an opportunity to re-emphasize key concepts from the lecture. Previous exams are also useful tools for students who are preparing for an upcoming exam.

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