Learning Assessment Research Articles

TEACHER’S INNOVATION IN TEACHING LINGUISTIC KNOWLEDGE: EXPLORING STUDENTS’ REFLECTIONS IN LEARNING EFL WITH TECHNOLOGY

The foundation of competence for English teachers in the EFL context, as well as for any language teacher, lies in linguistic knowledge (Chang & Kanno, 2010; Kemaloglu-Er, 2017; Marfui, 2016; Medgyes, 1992). However, due to English being a foreign language in Indonesia, teachers who work with EFL learners require innovative strategies to achieve teaching goals and fulfill the profile of future EFL teachers (Chun et al., 2016; Hoopingarner, 2009; Kern, 2006; Kessler, 2018; Köksal, 2004; Salaberry, 2001). This study aims to explore EFL students' reflections on their experience of learning Linguistics with technology and its impact on their linguistic knowledge, which is valuable for their future. A total of 156 prospective teacher students participated in the study. They provided reflections on the learning process for Phonetics and Phonology courses at the end of the semester, using the Three What’s reflection writing concept guide: What, So What, Now What (Borton, 1969; Rolfe, 2014). Based on the reflection results, linguistic competence is acquired through a systematic learning process, both offline and online, which incorporates various technology-based learning resources (such as Google Classroom, Quizizz, YouTube, Padlet, etc.), with relevant linguistic content. The use of technology as a teaching strategy to aid student comprehension represents an innovation in language learning, as students become more creative in discussing and creating projects related to the course. Furthermore, they continue to utilize the technology they have experienced in other learning activities. By incorporating technology into the process of understanding essential linguistic concepts, teachers can model the target language being taught, demonstrating that teacher innovation is an integral part of professionalism and contributes to the improvement of learning continuity. In line with this notion of sustainability, it is recommended that further research be conducted to investigate the effectiveness of using technology in assisting and motivating students in assessment as learning, assessment for learning, and assessment of learning.

WASHBACK EFFECTS OF ONLINE ASSESSING STUDENTS’ READING COMPREHENSION IN NARRATIVE TEXT

The Covid-19 pandemic has altered the educational landscape. This is due to the fact that traditional classroom learning has been replaced with online learning. Even if the learning and assessment take place at home, teachers must be able to offer an effective learning process and assessment. The impact of testing on teaching and learning is known as washback. Teachers appear to play a significant part in developing different types of washback by examining the probable positive and negative washback that tests may cause at the micro and macro levels. In other words, the teachers' beliefs play an important role in influencing the washback effect. This study aims at explaining washback effect of online students’ assessment on reading comprehension in narrative text. Secondly, to describe students’ engagement in following online learning and assessing of reading comprehension. It employed qualitative method and descriptive research design. Data collection techniques used observation, online reading test, interview, and documentation. Meanwhile, data analysis techniques implemented data reduction, data display, data verification. The research participants were 32 the seventh graders of an Islamic secondary school in Semarang regency. The results show that narrative reading text used folklore digital storytelling namely The Crying Stone. The reading comprehension test consisted of forty items, they were short answer, close test, true or false, vocabulary development, matching, and references. Based on the data, there are two types of washback effects namely negative washback effect and positive washback effect. Positive and negative washback effect covered formative assessment and summative assessment. They are included assessment as learning, assessment for learning, and assessment of learning. Positive washback effects made students have eagerness to be autonomous learners. Students had high motivation and well-prepared in joining reading class. Meanwhile students had difficulties in learning and follow the reading assessment because of bad internet connection as negative washback. Sometimes some parents were not able to buy internet data package.

Investigating the Impact of Different Learning Assessments on Students' Adoption of Learning Strategies Through Explore-Exploit Tensions

In the current educational reform, learning assessment activities demonstrate diversity and integration. students can actively engage in the evaluation process and monitor their learning performance across different aspects over time. However, limited research conducted on students' psychological acceptance and utilization of diverse types of learning assessments. This study examines the psychological changes in young students' learning assessment activities from the perspective of their trade-off between information exploration and exploitation. Regarding participation, students tend to rely more on teachers' intuitive quantitative evaluations rather than placing trust in results obtained through interactions with their teachers and peers. Regarding the use of evaluation results, grade-related assessments are easier for students to utilize, while assessments involving strategies, attitudes, and emotions are often perceived as less valuable. In terms of self-regulation and knowledge application, students encounter challenges when attempting to acquire useful information independently and adjust their future learning strategies. Adjusting future learning strategies based on quantifiable results such as grades is relatively straightforward for students. Based on these findings, this study proposes three pedagogical recommendations. Firstly, the teacher should establish an appropriate assessment environment. Secondly, the cultivation of students' self-regulation skills should be emphasized throughout the evaluation process. Finally, the teacher should set short-term learning goals for enhancing student abilities while fostering long-term goals aimed at developing personal adaptability skills.

Physical Education Curriculum Implementation Using Hyflex Learning Modality in the New Normal

In order to address issues on the delivery of quality education during the COVID-19 pandemic and to transition to post-pandemic teaching and learning delivery, hyflex was introduced in many schools all over the world. The purpose of this study is to explore the implementation of the physical education curriculum in junior high school using hyflex learning modality and identify the teaching practices, challenges and opportunities that teachers encountered during implementation. This study utilized a qualitative research method using a case study approach employing focus group interview with physical education teachers in a selected private school in Zamboanga City. Hyflex learning modality allows students to attend classes flexibly. The learning modality presented an avenue for teachers to become efficient in the digital age thus responding to a future-ready education landscape. Digital literacy and innovative pedagogical strategies among teachers were seen as opportunities in this modality. Challenges on internet connectivity, technological resources, assessment and monitoring of online distance learners (ODLs), and equity in learning need to be addressed first. The results of this study provided education administrators an overview and a guide in curriculum innovations in physical education to improve the delivery of the course in the context of new normal.

Early intervention speech-language pathologists’ beliefs and practices related to assessing dual language learners

IntroductionEarly intervention (EI) speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are required to provide culturally and linguistically responsive assessments for dual language learners (DLLs). However, SLPs consistently report feeling underprepared to assess DLLs and research demonstrates gaps in implementation of best practices in pediatric outpatient and school-based settings. This study was designed to understand EI SLPs’ beliefs and practices related to assessing DLLs referred to early intervention programs. MethodsA total of 132 EI SLPs completed a survey in which they were asked to describe their assessment procedures for a DLL case scenario and were further asked to identify the degree to which they agreed with a variety of assessment practices for assessing DLLs. ResultsResults revealed that EI SLPs’ beliefs aligned with best practices for assessing DLLs. However, substantial gaps exist between EI SLPs’ beliefs and their self-reported practices for assessing DLLs. ConclusionsThese results suggest DLLs may not be receiving evidence-based EI assessments, leading to the potential perpetuation of both over- and under-diagnosis of speech and language delays within this population. Implications include the need to increase the quality of EI SLPs assessment practices through additional training, the removal of systems-level barriers, and the continued need for increased training within preprofessional training programs.

Evaluating the Quality of Training Programs for Pre-Service Music Teachers in Chinese Higher Education Institutions

This research utilized an explanatory sequential design within a mixed-methods framework to assess the effectiveness of three pre-service music teacher programs aimed at Grades 1-12 in China. First, a group of four evaluators was asked to holistically assess the overall quality of these programs on a scale ranging from 1 to 10. Second, the evaluators were invited answer four open-ended questions about the areas for improvement in terms of program goals and objectives, program curricula, instructional methods, and learning assessments, respectively. The generalizability (G-) theory framework was employed to analyze the quantitative data, particularly to examine the variability in ratings and the reliability of the program evaluations. The qualitative data underwent coding, categorization, and organization according to recurring themes. The results indicated that the rating of the quality of these programs by the four program evaluators was extremely consistent and unbelievably reliable. Furthermore, major areas for improvement are identified in program objectives and curricula as well as instructional methods and learning assessments. Implications for pre-service music teacher training program developers in Chinese colleges and universities are discussed.

Authentic Assessment of English Language Learners Used in An Indonesia High School

The purpose of this study is to describe (1) the type of assessment used by teachers in assessing student in learning english and (2) the authentic assessment used by teachers in assessing students in learning english. The research method used is qualitative with a descriptive type. The sample technique used is purposive sampling. Two English language teachers in grades ten and eleven at SMA Muhammadiyah Special Program Kottabarat Surakarta are the subjects of this study. Interviews, documentation, and observation are the research methods used. The data analysis techniques used are data collection, data reduction, data presentation and then conclusion drawn. The researcher found that there are 4 types of assessments used by the two teachers, namely 1) formative assessment, namely in the form of assignments and try in tests, 2) summative assessment, namely in the form of midterm exams and final semester exams, 3) formal assessments, 4) informal assessments. The authentic assessment used by both teachers in English learning is an essay or portfolio.

Challenges of EFL Course Retaking: Toward a Model for Remedial Reading

Course retaking brings pivotal challenges for learning institutions all over the world. This urges many academicians to investigate the reasons why students retake courses. Therefore, this article identifies the micro and macro challenges associated with retaking a reading course. It also generates a remedial reading model for English as foreign language (EFL) contexts. Data was collected from reading course specifications, course report, and focused group discussions with six experienced language instructors at the preparatory year program of a Saudi university. Using grounded theory, the qualitative data was analyzed through thematic analysis. The findings revealed a complex web of challenges associated with different stakeholders: the course retakers, language instructors, administration, and retakers’ families; all of them share the challenge of time constraints, especially after the shift from two to three semesters. At the micro level, course retakers struggle with poor foundational skills and demotivation, focusing on passing exams. They also lack exposure to English and seldom invest office hours for help. Language instructors struggle with learning materials, demotivation, and assessment. At the macro level, students’ families contribute to maximize these challenges. A gap exists between the intended learning outcomes and student levels and admission criteria. These challenges collectively hinder course retakers’ reading skills. The study generates a five-pillar bridging model that integrates learning outcomes, exam-oriented teaching strategies, simplified reading materials, technology-assisted reading, and motivational strategies to foster EFL remedial reading. The study recommends some pedagogical implications for remedial reading classes.

Beyond transfer learning: Leveraging ancillary images in automated classification of plankton

AbstractWe assess whether a supervised machine learning algorithm, specifically a convolutional neural network (CNN), achieves higher accuracy on planktonic image classification when including non‐plankton and ancillary plankton during the training procedure. We focus on the case of optimizing the CNN for a single planktonic image source, while considering ancillary images to be plankton images from other instruments. We conducted two sets of experiments with three different types of plankton images (from a Zooglider, Underwater Vision Profiler 5, and Zooscan), and our results held across all three image types. First, we considered whether single‐stage transfer learning using non‐plankton images was beneficial. For this assessment, we used ImageNet images and the 2015 ImageNet contest‐winning model, ResNet‐152. We found increased accuracy using a ResNet‐152 model pretrained on ImageNet, provided the entire network was retrained rather than retraining only the fully connected layers. Next, we combined all three plankton image types into a single dataset with 3.3 million images (despite their differences in contrast, resolution, and pixel pitch) and conducted a multistage transfer learning assessment. We executed a transfer learning stage from ImageNet to the merged ancillary plankton dataset, then a second transfer learning stage from that merged plankton model to a single instrument dataset. We found that multistage transfer learning resulted in additional accuracy gains. These results should have generality for other image classification tasks.

Evaluation of content knowledge and instructor impacts in a middle school outreach program: lessons from Brain Explorers

Despite general agreement that science outreach is important, the effectiveness of science outreach programs on participants' learning often is not assessed. Brain Explorers is a neuroscience outreach program that allows medical students to partner with Biomedical Sciences faculty to develop lesson plans with learning objectives, interactive experiments for middle schoolers, and assessments of learning. These lessons are then implemented through a community-level intervention in which medical students teach their lesson plans to middle schoolers and assist them in performing activities to reinforce the concepts. Importantly, the efficacy of these active learning interventions is assessed. Throughout the program's evolution, a variety of different forms of assessment have been utilized to examine student understanding. While the goals of outreach programs are varied, here we have focused on the evaluation of content knowledge gains laying out three unique evaluation methods including post-event, immediate pre- and post-event, and spaced pre- and post-event evaluation. Specifically, using Brain Explorers lessons as examples we explore the practicality and feasibility of various learning assessments in outreach programs, begin to examine the impacts of participation in these programs on the medical school instructors and encourage others in the field to implement assessment of their programs.

Flexible Assessment of Student Learning Using VARK Framework.

Flexible Assessment of Student Learning Using VARK Framework.

Internet of Things Cybersecurity Platform Benchmark: A Machine Learning Assessment

Internet of Things Cybersecurity Platform Benchmark: A Machine Learning Assessment

From Tradition to Innovation: Analyzing Strategies and Support for Enhancing Badminton Course Teaching Quality through Educational Technology.

This study aims to explore the impact of Multimedia-Assisted Teaching (MAT) on the quality of physical education (PE) instruction in universities, with a particular focus on badminton courses. A quasi-experimental design was employed, including pre-tests and post-tests, involving two badminton classes at Ming Chuan University, with a total of 101 students. These two classes were assigned to an experimental group (using MAT) and a control group (traditional teaching methods). The research instrument used was the Physical Education Teaching Quality Scale (PETQ), which includes four factors: course content, teaching strategies, classroom management, and learning assessment. The results indicated that, compared to traditional teaching methods, the use of MAT significantly enhanced students' perception of the quality of PE instruction. The experimental group scored significantly higher than the control group across all scale factors, suggesting that MAT is more effective in capturing students' attention and improving learning outcomes. The conclusion suggests that MAT has significant advantages in improving the quality of physical education instruction. The integration of MAT enables more flexible lesson planning and enhances the learning process through the features of multimedia-assisted teaching. It is recommended that physical education teachers consider applying multimedia technologies to aid teaching, in order to increase student engagement and effectiveness.

Leveraging AI in E-Learning: Personalized Learning and Adaptive Assessment through Cognitive Neuropsychology—A Systematic Analysis

This paper reviews the literature on integrating AI in e-learning, from the viewpoint of cognitive neuropsychology, for Personalized Learning (PL) and Adaptive Assessment (AA). This review follows the PRISMA systematic review methodology and synthesizes the results of 85 studies that were selected from an initial pool of 818 records across several databases. The results indicate that AI can improve students’ performance, engagement, and motivation; at the same time, some challenges like bias and discrimination should be noted. The review covers the historic development of AI in education, its theoretical grounding, and its practical applications within PL and AA with high promise and ethical issues of AI-powered educational systems. Future directions are empirical validation of effectiveness and equity, development of algorithms that reduce bias, and exploration of ethical implications regarding data privacy. The review identifies the transformative potential of AI in developing personalized and adaptive learning (AL) environments, thus, it advocates continued development and exploration as a means to improve educational outcomes.

The influence of assessment for learning, assessment as learning, and assessment of learning on speaking and writing skills in elementary school project-based learning

The implementation of project-based learning needs to be supported by knowledge of various assessment models that can influence students' speaking and writing skills in elementary schools. This research aims to investigate the influence of Assessment for Learning, Assessment as Learning, and Assessment of Learning on speaking and writing skills in project-based learning in elementary schools. This research used a quasi-experimental design with a research sample of 90 students. Data was collected through tests and statistically analyzed by multivariate analysis of variance. The results show that there is a significant influence of the assessment model on students' speaking and writing skills in elementary schools. The research conclusion is that the assessment model has a significantly different influence on speaking and writing skills. Assessment for Learning obtained the highest results compared to other assessment models. This research provides an overview of selecting and implementing the most effective assessment model for elementary school students' language skills through project-based learning.

Asynchronous Literature Research Module for Undergraduate Engineering Research Program

This case study presents the development of an asynchronous online module for an engineering undergraduate research program. It includes an overview of the development of the literature research module in Qualtrics and its transition to the campus LMS, Canvas. Assessment of student learning is described. The benefits to librarians of this mode of instruction are also discussed. While aligning with the growing body of literature on asynchronous library instruction, this study demonstrates application of that modality through innovative instruction for a STEM extra-curricular program. It provides insights for instruction librarians looking to transition to asynchronous teaching.

Self-Regulated Learning Assessment in Young Soccer Players: Beyond Competitive Levels.

Trecroci, A, Cavaggioni, L, Rossi, A, Bongiovanni, T, Invernizzi, PL, Formenti, D, and Longo, S. Self-regulated learning assessment in young soccer players: beyond competitive levels. J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000-000, 2024-This study explores self-regulated learning (SRL) among young soccer players, transcending the traditional focus on competitive levels. One hundred twenty-four soccer players of regional and provincial levels from under 14 to under 17 age groups voluntarily participated in the study and were combined into a single group. A median-split method based on total time performance was used to separate players into low performers (LPs) and high performers (HPs) from a 90° change of direction dribbling test. The self-regulation of learning-self-report scale for sport practice (SRL-SRS-SP) with a 5-factor solution (planning, reflection, effort, self-efficacy, and self-supervision) and 31 items was used. The score was based on a 1-5 Likert scale. The level of significance was set at p -value < 0.05. The SRL-SRS-SP total score by HP players differed significantly from that of LP players ( p = 0.015). Regarding each subscale, HP players showed significantly higher scores than LP players ( p = 0.011) for planning, whereas no differences were observed for the remaining factors ( p ≥ 0.05). The main observation of this study revealed that HP soccer players had a greater level of engagement in the learning process with a remarkable ability to plan for specific improvement than LP peers. This suggests that the competitive level might not be the sole determinant of differences in SRL. Therefore, strength and conditioning coaches should emphasize metacognitive and motivational components because of their crucial role in enhancing technical and physical performance.

"Students’ Views on the Use of Formative Assessment and Feedback for Learning at Higher Education in Singapore During the Covid-19 Pandemic"

"Students’ Views on the Use of Formative Assessment and Feedback for Learning at Higher Education in Singapore During the Covid-19 Pandemic"

Evaluation of Environmental Education Learning in the Era of the Merdeka Belajar Curriculum

This article investigates the evaluation of Environmental Education learning in the era of the Independent Learning curriculum. The Independent Learning Curriculum, issued by the Ministry of Education and Culture of Indonesia, aims to provide freedom and autonomy to educational institutions in managing the learning process. With this policy, it is hoped that students can develop their competencies and character more optimally. This study analyzes how Environmental Education learning has been applied within the framework of Freedom of Learning, as well as evaluates the effectiveness and challenges faced. The findings of this study show that although Merdeka Belajar has had a positive impact, such as increasing student engagement and reducing the administrative burden on teachers, there are still some challenges in its implementation, especially related to the adjustment of learning methods and assessments.

Reflection on Challenges Faced by Chinese Students in Australian Curriculum Assessment System based on AfL

The growing population of international students in Australian higher education institutions presents a unique set of challenges for educators responsible for implementing the Assessment for Learning (AfL) principle. This article explores the specific obstacles faced by Chinese students as they strive to adapt to the Australian higher education curriculum evaluation system from their own perspectives. Additionally, the authors of this article offer in-depth and targeted strategies aimed at enriching the learning experiences of Chinese international students by applying AfL principles. These proposed methods are intended to provide assistance to international students who share a similar educational background in China, helping them overcome the diverse learning challenges encountered in a new and unfamiliar educational setting.