Using e- assessment

E-assessment

The use of technology - PCs, laptops, PDAs, mobile phones and other media, to deliver e-testing, or to enable learners to create e-portfolios for collecting evidence towards a qualification.

e-futures.org

OCNLR survey on e-assessment

• Interest and enthusiasm from a range of OCNLR centres

• Advantages recognised included flexibility for learners in submitting evidence

We are finding…

• More centres using some e-assessment, ranging from VLEs to short videos of practical demonstration

• Centres want some guidance on presenting evidence in digital format for NOCN units

E-assessment practitioner event Jan 2010

Presentations from OCNLR centres– Macmillan Cancer Support– Kensington and Chelsea College– Womens Radio Group– Point Blank

Input from panel of Quality Reviewers

Practitioner networking

Macmillan Cancer Support

Niall Julian discusses Macmillan Learnzone with Manoj Nanda at the e-assessment event

•Macmillan Cancer Support run OCNLR accredited courses for volunteers in various locations.

•Macmillan have developed ‘Learnzone’ a VLE using moodle which provides learning resources and is used for learners to access their course assignments.

http://learnzone.macmillan.org.uk/

•Draft assignments can be uploaded and tutors can send feedback before learners resubmit a final version.

Interaction with OCNLR• This is a ‘blended learning’ model, so face to face

contact with learners informs tutors’ judgement of the authenticity of assignment material received

• The existence of an e-portfolio on Learnzone solves problems with sending paperwork

• OCNLR Quality Reviewer is given access to Learnzone to sample assignments and view verification records etc.

Kensington and Chelsea College Offender Learning and Skills

Dominic Murphy explains his work at HMP Wandsworth in the pilot for Virtual Campus, a VLE using Moodle, intended for

offender learning in prison and the community

• Virtual Campus could be used in ‘outreach’ to engage learners beyond the prison education department

• Learners who are moved could access their work easily at the next establishment or in the community

• Virtual Campus could be used for both e-learning and blended learning. OLASS teachers believe most offenders need face to face learning to consider and change their behaviour

• Dominic’s team in Wandsworth are working on producing assessment materials for NOCN units for moodle. Dominic.Murphy@hmps.gsi.gov.uk

Interaction with OCNLR• So far this has been used in ‘blended learning’, so

face to face contact with learners informs tutors’ judgement of the authenticity of assignment material uploaded.

• OCNLR Quality Reviewer can be given access to Virtual Campus to sample assignments etc.

• It will be important to standardise between e-assessments and paper based evidence; what is on Virtual Campus and what is elsewhere.

Womens Radio Group

Chrissie Kravchenko presented the work of Womens Radio Group, where women can learn interviewing skills and

ESOL as well as radio editing

• An audio file is an essential format of evidence for the editing criteria

• Each editing project can also be used to evidence other skills e.g communication.

• Learners are given a USB stick at the start of the course and bring their raw and final versions of assignments to be loaded onto a hard drive at the centre.

• A simple folder system is used to store and reference evidence.

• Other providers could collect and keep evidence in a similar way, using simple equipment such as small audio recorders, compact digital cameras for video

Course 1

Sameen Lee AnnitaMichelleMarisa

Project 1Draft

(audio file)

Project 1Final

(audio file)

Project 2(Word file)

Interaction with OCNLR• Quality Reviewers are pleased to see such

assessment methods in use and would like to see other providers use more e.g. short video clips of role plays as assessment evidence

• The simple computer filing system is appropriate and easy to use; this is using e-assessment in face to face learning, with no distance learning or VLE

Point Blank

JC Concato demonstrated the music technology course Point Blank deliver entirely by e-learning

• Point Blank have developed their own VLE

• Lessons can be downloaded week by week

• Each week there is a one hour on line forum for the learning group and tutor

• Assignments, eg audio files, are uploaded to the VLE and can be reviewed by the whole group

• Tutor feedback on assignments is given as a video file

Interaction with OCNLR

• Point Blank already accredit a number of their courses with OCNLR

• We are currently working with them to finalise the issues of quality review associated with this model of learning and assessment

• We expect that the features of the model will support good assessment and verification practice

Useful links on e-portfolios

• http://moodle.org/about/

• http://www.efutures.org/graphics/e_portfolios.html

• http://openlearn.open.ac.uk/