The assessment of cross-cultural experience: measuring awareness through critical text analysis

Abstract

A holistic model of assessing cross-cultural experience is developed employing both authentic assessment and quantitative methods. Authentic assessment methods address the multi-faceted nature of cross-cultural experience. In this case, portfolios are used, involving the students in the assessment process. Within the context of portfolio assessment, a quantitative instrument is presented, measuring the degree of cross-cultural awareness by locating evidence of critical thinking in student-generated text. The intention of the quantitative instrument is to provide an index for the achievement of our educational objective, cross-cultural awareness. This assessment is carried out by multiple raters. Findings indicate that interrater reliability is maintained, and results from a study with independent raters suggest that the method can be easily acquired and conducted reliably.