EJEL
Volume 8 Issue 1
January 2010

Emerging Patterns in Transferring Assessment Practices from F2f to Online Environments

Ronald Beebe¹, and Selma Vonderwell² and Marius Boboc ^2
1University of Houston-Downtown, USA
²Cleveland State University, USA

The appropriate integration of assessment processes into the educational environment, whether face to face or online, improves both teaching and learning. While current assessment practices have developed in face to face settings, “the principles of assessment do not change in an online environment” (Benson, 2003, p. 71). Nevertheless, there are significant differences between the face to face classroom and online interface which may present challenges to the effective implementation of both traditional and alternative forms of assessment. The authors propose that an understanding of both assessment for learning and of learning is needed to support effective faculty practices and enhanced student learning in online courses. Consequently, it is important to study the impact of assessment strategies and techniques faculty employ to better understand various instructional practices that effectively center on enhanced student learning. This study investigated the perceptions of seven higher education faculty regarding the transfer of assessment practices from face to face to online environments in two higher education institutions: a four-year college and a two-year community college. Findings indicate several factors that influence the transfer of assessment practices from f2f to online environments. Data analysis points to several areas of interest related to the design of online assessment: time management, complexity of content, structure of online medium, student responsibility and initiative, and informal assessment. The authors suggest the incorporation of tradition classroom assessment techniques in the online learning environment should be considered in light of the factors listed above. As technologies continue to evolve, a pedagogical framework that considers the learning environment differences between traditional and face to face classes becomes increasingly imperative, both in terms of understanding the delivery and mediation of instruction. Such a framework will need to address both aspects of process and product in assessment.

Keywords: online learning, online assessment, assessment for learning, assessment of learning, transfer of assessment practices, online faculty

Download FULL PAPER

Back to Contents