Giving Students Agency Over Assessment

In my own, personal educational experience (including my years as an educator), there was only ever one option to demonstrate understanding or skills, a test. I was lucky, I  played the game of school very well, and was a savvy and competitive test taker. I did not question the validity of traditional assessment methods until I found myself working at BetterLesson. Working on the Master Teacher Project, I was exposed to best practices in learner-centered instruction, and honestly, it blew my mind.  

Gamification to demonstrate mastery

One teacher, in particular, awed me with her creative assessment strategy. Dr. Jessica Anderson, the 2016 Montana Teacher of the Year, gamified her high school science classroom. Students progressed at their own pace and were given different opportunities to highlight their skills and understanding. When students felt like they had “mastered” a topic and were ready to move on to another learning level, they could engage in a “challenge” of their choice to demonstrate their mastery.

Education Reimagined’s transformational Vision for the Future of Education describes this as a new paradigm for assessment in which assessment “for” and “as” learning are the predominant types deployed. “Assessments help learners and adults identify progress and challenges and tailor strategies and pathways towards mastery. Assessments are embedded in the learning experience and provide opportunities to demonstrate mastery through performance-based tasks and in real-world settings.”

Choice and ownership over assessment

When Dr. Anderson gave her students a choice in how they showcased their learning, she helped them take ownership of their learning and used assessment as a natural part of the learning process as opposed to a final (and arbitrary) hurdle to be cleared. It can be intimidating to grant this choice to learners. Educators may find success starting small, giving learners a more limited set of options (e.g. take a short quiz or write an essay) to begin. Over time, they may find they are ready to let learners co-design the assessment.  For example, students in an English class learning about argumentative writing may decide that they want to highlight their new skills by producing podcasts or short documentaries to promote social change as opposed to writing a traditional 5 paragraph essay. 

Where self-directed learning thrives

Outschool can support educators who are releasing agency to their students. With over 140,000 classes, Outschool connects students with experts who can support them as they demonstrate mastery in real-world settings. Sean Douglass can help learners craft their own podcast.  Miss Brittany can support students who want to showcase their learning in video form. David Huerta can help students build scratch animations.  Outschool’s network helps educators step into the role of learning facilitator, by making it easier than ever to connect students with additional expertise.  

When we give students a choice in demonstrating mastery and differentiate performance assessments, we put them in the driver’s seat. Outschool was built to support self-directed learning and can be a natural partner for classroom educators who are releasing agency to their students. Learn more about partnering with Outschool today.