What are the most effective ways to ensure digital assessment is engaging for students?

1 Learner-centered assessment

Learner-centered assessment is an approach that focuses on the needs, interests, and preferences of the students, rather than on the content or the instructor. It involves giving students more choice, autonomy, and ownership over their assessment tasks, as well as more opportunities to collaborate, reflect, and self-regulate their learning. For example, you can allow students to choose from a range of assessment formats, such as essays, podcasts, videos, or portfolios, or to propose their own topics or questions. You can also encourage students to work in groups, to peer-review each other's work, and to set their own goals and criteria for success. Learner-centered assessment can enhance students' engagement, as it makes them feel more valued, respected, and empowered in their learning process.

2 Authentic assessment

Authentic assessment is an approach that aligns the assessment tasks with the real-world contexts, problems, and scenarios that students are likely to encounter in their future academic, professional, or personal lives. It involves asking students to apply their knowledge and skills to complex and meaningful situations, rather than to recall facts or perform isolated exercises. For example, you can ask students to create a product, a service, or a solution for a specific audience or purpose, or to simulate a role or a task that they would perform in a certain field or domain. You can also provide students with authentic resources, tools, and feedback that they would use in those situations. Authentic assessment can enhance students' engagement, as it makes them see the relevance, value, and usefulness of their learning outcomes.

3 Gamified assessment

Gamified assessment is an approach that incorporates elements of games, such as points, badges, levels, leaderboards, or narratives, into the assessment tasks, in order to increase students' motivation, enjoyment, and challenge. It involves designing assessment tasks that are fun, interactive, and rewarding, as well as providing students with clear rules, goals, and feedback. For example, you can ask students to complete a quiz or a puzzle that awards them with points or badges for correct answers or actions, or to participate in a competition or a quest that involves different levels of difficulty or complexity. You can also provide students with immediate and constructive feedback that shows them their progress and performance. Gamified assessment can enhance students' engagement, as it makes them feel more curious, excited, and satisfied in their learning experience.

4 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?