Shattering the Convention Through Alternative Assessment

One common ground that transcends the past and the modern between the
education systems then and now is the traditional summative assessment that
educators give to the learners. Often, these evaluations would come in the form of
written objective-type questions that test the level of knowledge a learner has on a
subject or field. However, a more holistic approach that could break the conventional
assessment format is slowly becoming more common. This trend in the educational field
is known as alternative assessment.
Alternative assessment is a form of learner evaluation method that focuses on
innovation. In alternative assessment, the student is free to demonstrate his or her
learnings in a subject through explorative and unique tasks. It aims to gauge the
learner’s proficiency in a subject rather than their knowledge about the subject which is
what’s emphasized traditional assessment methods.
In alternative assessment, learners are considered to be authentic makers of
knowledge capable of crafting authentic learning outputs. It puts heavy emphasis on the
learner’s freedom and ability to manifest newly-learned knowledge by performing tasks
that encompasses the learning objectives. Some great examples of alternative
assessment or performance tests include creating portfolios, performing collaborative
tests, or creating a cumulative project.
As we know, the current educational model prefers to assess the knowledge
retention of students through written tests and examinations. Even in the online learning
setting of education which became the norm of knowledge delivery amidst the
pandemic, the majority of educators use online forms of written examinations to assess
the learning of each individual. However, it is not necessarily the best assessment tool
since most written exams would only be able to test the application of knowledge to
some lesser degree compared to other performance-based evaluations.
It is not to say, however, that performance tests are better measurement tools of
the students’ learnings. Both objective knowledge-based assessments and freedom-
based alternative assessments could coexist to form a meaningful evaluation system
that could cater to different learning expressions of each individual student. This
concept is more evident in the current grading and evaluation system in both primary
and secondary education in the country. Although a huge portion of the student’s grade
will be marked according to their summative examinations—which, more often than not,
would be in the form of objective written examination—a huge share of the student’s
grade will be based on performance tasks. These performance tasks, ideally, would
challenge the student’s learning competence through tasks that require the application
of their knowledge in a given subject or topic.
Hence, by combining a bit of both conventional and alternative assessment
methods, the students will be able to tap in all areas of learning, be it applicative or
knowledge-retention-wise. It is important for educators to immerse students in such
 assessment systems in order to promote meaningful and effective learning. After all,
assessments are not designed only for the evaluation of learning quality but also to
strengthen said learnings and catalyze the absorption of knowledge of the students.

References:
Janisch, C., Liu, X., & Akrofi, A. (2007). Implementing Alternative Assessment: Opportunities and Obstacles. The
Educational Forum, 71(3), 221–230. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131720709335007
Kelly, R. (2014). Alternative Assessment Methods for the Online Classroom. Faculty Focus | Higher Ed Teaching
& Learning. https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/online-assessment-grading-and-
feedback/alternative-assessment-methods-online-classroom/
Maclellan *, E. (2004). How convincing is alternative assessment for use in higher education? Assessment &
Evaluation in Higher Education, 29(3), 311–321. https://doi.org/10.1080/0260293042000188267