Introduction
Benefits of effective assessment
Effective assessment involves proactive review of the instruction delivery strategy and feedback from learners at the beginning, during execution, and at the end of a course. Reflectively, effective assessment has several benefits to the faculty in the form of improvement facilitation in the form of analysis, development, and implementation of series of activities.
Since effective assessment is offers information on the learner skills and level of knowledge in relation to a course or topic, the faculty may be in a position to create instructions that are aligned to the set of skills or knowledge that learners must acquire at the end of such a course. As a result, the faculty will be able to substantiate the scope of thinking that resonates with the level of the course (Woktczak, 2002).
Since effective assessment is intrinsic of the reliable data and needs of the learners, the faculty may be in a position to review feedback from learners to test the successful learning indicators against the current instruction methods as a prerequisite for effective instruction delivery.
Besides, the faculty may be in a position to pin point the future directions that the current instruction delivery and content may be developed towards a more effective learning experience (Woktczak, 2002). In addition, effective assessment may motivate educators since the parameters of the assessment captures evidence on the level of improvement among the learners at the end of a course.
Faculty culture and assessment opposition
The elements of faculty culture that would cause faculty to object to different assessment models and techniques include intellectual resistance, minimal support, resistance to change, and imbalances in the cost-benefit analysis within the faculty environment.
Under intellectual reluctance, some faculty members may oppose some assessment models that they perceive as inconsistent with values and norms. Besides, the faculty members may develop a negative perception of the magnitude of support within the faculty against the expectation of each assessment criterion (Woktczak, 2002).
When the level of support is perceived as too low, there may be resistance to embrace certain assessments models that are considered to be too demanding. The degree of instability as a result of different changes within a faculty may compromise the ability of some members to implement certain assessment models.
Besides, when the perceived benefits of a certain assessment model is lower than its cost, the faculty members may develop resistance to such an assessment criterion, especially when the element of motivation is not balanced with the constraints associated with each of the assessment models (Iwasiw & Goldenberg, 2015).
Development of Learning Objectives
Importance of learning objectives
Learning objectives are the goals that a course must accomplish in order to be declare successful. These objectives are summary of the expectations of a course module among the learners at the end of a course. Basically, the learning objectives are like the wind which determines the direction of tides in the sea.
The importance of learning objectives includes guiding the assessment strategies that an educator may apply since they capture the preset expectations and expected results.
Besides, learning objectives offer the direction for the choice of activities during instruction delivery in a learning environment. In addition, learning objectives grant learners the precise focus and purpose of a course to guarantee a balance between learning efforts and expected results (Iwasiw & Goldenberg, 2015).
Major components, education practices, and theories that underlie effective assessment
The major components of effective assessment include program outcomes, direct measures, indirect measures, major findings, and actions. These components guide the assessment model adopted by an educator to ensure that the objectives and outcomes of a course are well balanced.
The education practices that underlie effective assessment include reviewing the education values, integrating the learning process to be representative of the needs of learners, examining strategies that guaranteed clarity and sense of purpose among learners, and continuous learning-assessment program.
Besides, the education practices should embrace improvement module that tracks the feedbacks of learners frequently to ensure that the results represent the interests of learners by meeting and managing their expectations. As a result, the learning process will be more proactive and learner-oriented to ensure that the learning objectives are all addressed by the time the assessment is done.
The instruction variable theory guaranteed effective assessment since it reviews the students’ synergy and keep their attention on the instructor.
Foundational concepts of assessment
The foundational concept of assessment involves the activities that occur before and after the assessment. These activities include reviewing program outcomes, direct measures, indirect measures, major findings, and actions to ensure that the assessment criterion meets the preset indicators of successful course execution.
In the online assessment, it is vital to integrate the traditional and contemporary assessment models as a solution to the imbalances between the virtual and physical instruction delivery tools.
The two major methods of assessments specific to online teaching and learning are Tyler’s Objectives-Centered Model and Stufflebeam’s Context, Input, Process, Product Model. These methods review the context, process, and product as determining the success of a course at the end of delivery (Billings & Halstead, 2012).
The strategies and techniques to effectively assess student learning in the online environment include proper integration of technology in the learning environment, instructor motivation through support, and gradual introduction of change to ensure that resistance to assessment models is minimal (Woktczak, 2002).
References
Billings, D., & Halstead, J. (2012). Teaching in nursing (4th ed.). St Louis, MO: Elsevier Saunders.
Iwasiw, C., & Goldenberg, D. (2015). Curriculum development in nursing education (3rd ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones and Barlett.
Woktczak, A. (2002). Assessment methods and measurement instruments. Web.