Learning Assessment

This page will provide information on monitoring student learning through synchronous and on-demand delivery with "small incremental assessments" using student feedback, questions, answers, assignments, and quizzes.

Grasping students' learning progress in real-time with on-demand delivery is a challenge. Therefore, monitoring student progress more frequently than in face-to-face classes is necessary. One way to monitor learning progress is to give assignments at every class or intervals of several classes and provide feedback on the grading results and comments. 

By monitoring student progress in increments, teachers can determine mid-semester whether the class is on track. Additional lectures, feedback, or new assignments can be made if not.
On the other hand, students can check their understanding of the class in small increments, allowing them to identify stumbling blocks early on and improve their learning methods. 

Small increments of evaluation are also necessary to avoid a semester-end test being administered after a set of classes has been completed. Still, the students needed to understand the course content fully.

Assessing learning progress in synchronous delivery

In synchronous delivery, the video and audio transmitted to students may be interrupted due to the communication environment, or students may miss the time to ask questions, causing the teacher to proceed with the lecture without the students having a good understanding of the lecture content. As a countermeasure, it is adequate to make it easier for students to notify teachers. Specific examples are shown below.

• Tell students at the beginning of class that they may ask questions immediately if they do not hear or understand the lecture well.

• Decide on a method for students to ask questions to the teacher during class (e.g., video conferencing system chat, audio, etc.) and communicate this to students beforehand.

• If a student asks some question or notifies of a communication problem during a lecture, share the fact that a notification has been received, including with other students, and pause the class to respond to or address the problem.

In synchronous delivery, students may experience difficulty concentrating and fatigue from listening to lectures on video for long periods. As a countermeasure, it is also effective to set the lecture time in smaller increments and to check the level of understanding of the lecture content by using Webex or Zoom's polling function during the lecture.

• Explanatory material on how to vote using Webex  →  Download here

After synchronous delivery, comment cards can be distributed electronically to collect feedback from students on the class and any questions that students could not voice during the class. Comments and questions received from students can be summarized and answered at the beginning of the following week's class or reflected in class management from the following week, thereby enhancing the quality of the class and the quality of communication with students.

• Example of creating a comment card (Google Forms)  →  Check here

There are different types of valuation methods, each with different purposes and characteristics

One familiar type of evaluation is the end-of-semester test or final report. These tests and reports are classified as "summative assessment" evaluations. They are administered after a set of classes has been completed and when we want to get an overall picture of the learning outcomes. 

Small incremental assessments are commonly referred to as "formative assessments." Small incremental assessments are conducted mid-semester to see if students are on track to meet their learning goals. It is recommended that classes incorporate small incremental assessments to monitor learning more frequently.

To monitor student learning, "quizzes," "mini-reports," and "reflections" are administered. Having outputs in lectures helps students maintain focus and encourages continuous learning. In addition, teachers can monitor students' level of understanding through quizzes, etc., so they can identify points to follow up on in the next class. These can also be used as attendance records.

Checklists and rubrics are valuable tools for evaluation. A checklist is a list of evaluation items. A checklist can also be made into a rubric by indicating checklist items on multiple rating scales. 

Clarifying the evaluation perspective has the advantage of making grading and commenting easier. It can also be helpful when multiple teachers and TAs grade the work. It can also be used for the mutual evaluation of reports and presentations among students. 

The evaluation tool can be used to evaluate reports and various practical tasks such as experiments, practical training, and presentations. 

For more information, please refer to our specific method for small increment evaluation and feedback. It is also available for download here.