PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENTS
Using Technology to Support Project-Based Learning

By Kavita Rao

For every lesson, the teacher has an intended learning outcome. The standards movement has firmly established these outcomes as the backbone of what is taught. To link standards and outcomes to student learning, teachers can engage students in why they are learning a certain lesson and in how they will be assessed.

Performance assessments are one way of involving the learner in the evaluation process. While traditional assessments, such as standardized tests, provide an important measure of student achievement, performance assessments can flesh out the picture, adding breadth and depth to traditional numerical or gradebased measures. Performance assessments provide information about what students have learned, the learning process, and the end product.

In this article, we’ll explore two ways technology plays into performance assessment. The first is to look at technology as a tool for project-based learning, a process that can be assessed through the use of rubrics. The second is to consider technology as a medium to capture and archive student learning over time, using electronic portfolios.

Project-Based Learning
Project-based learning engages students in real-world tasks and activities. Students are asked to synthesize and apply their learning to solve problems and complete tasks. Project-based learning is often interdisciplinary, integrating hands-on activities, data-based research, and multimedia presentations of student work. Students synthesize prior knowledge, seek new information, and draw on a variety of skills that can be aligned to standards in each content area.

Computers and other technology provide tools that facilitate project-based learning activities. Through technology, students can conduct research, communicate with peers and experts, record and analyze information, and present their results in multimedia formats (using audio, video, and presentation software).

The multifaceted nature of projectbased learning makes it a natural candidate for performance assessment, using tools such as rubrics to measure content knowledge and skills. Rubrics set criteria for evaluation, measuring each skill that students exhibit in completing their projects. A well-developed rubric can be helpful to both the teacher and the student, setting forth clear measures by which student work will be assessed and eliminating ambiguity about what is expected.

Creating the rubric can be part of the learning process. Rubric categories are set up as a grid (using measures such as “exceeds expectations,” “meets expectations,” and “below expectations”) or on a numeric scale (for example, 1-5). Getting students involved in setting the criteria for each measure may increase their motivation because they themselves have defined what makes up an exemplary project.

Rubrics can be used to assess projects in individual as well as interdisciplinary subject areas. RubiStar is an online interactive tool that helps teachers select and adapt rubrics for project-based learning in all disciplines. Developed by the High Plains Regional Technology in Education Consortium, RubiStar guides teachers through the process of creating, printing, and saving rubrics online.

RubiStar is available at rubistar.4teachers.org. Click on “Make a New Rubric” to begin building rubrics for your projects. The greatest advantage of RubiStar is that it assists you in creating a skeletal rubric that you can then customize with students.

Electronic Portfolios
Electronic portfolios are an effective way to store, manage, and showcase student work. Like project-based learning, portfolios add a qualitative dimension to assessment.

One example of an electronic portfolio is a multimedia archive. Like an artist’s portfolio, a multimedia archive can be developed over time to show student progress. It can include documents and graphics, digital photographs, and other technology-based projects. Portfolios can document teacher feedback as well.

Creating the portfolio gives students the opportunity to think about their learning. As they choose the work they wish to showcase, students can reflect on their efforts and achievements. This process allows for self-evaluation and self-expression. Students also learn organizational, presentation, and technology skills.

Where portfolios are used as an academic evaluation tool, careful planning is needed to determine how the portfolio demonstrates alignment with standardsbased learning. With consistent, measurable projects and evaluation criteria, portfolios can play an important role in the formative evaluations of student performance.