E-learning is providing organisations and individuals with the tools to use technology to support learning and training. There is now a serious and substantial market place out there dedicated to providing the systems and the content to enable individuals to learn at their own pace, in their own environments and to meet their own learning objectives. 

e-Assessment takes this movement a stage further by providing systems to measure both the performance of the learners (in classrooms, in the work place and at home) and the delivery of that learning. It also provides invaluable systems to measure the skills, attitudes, competencies of students, employees and those seeking employment.

   With all this increasing activity and some very promising developments in India, Europe and the US, It is timely then to review what we mean by e-Assessment and what it offers and how it will boost development.

India is facing a skills crisis, the product of its own success in the worldwide market. Only 30 per cent of information technology graduates meet the demands and expectations of India’s information technology industry and less than 20 per cent of other graduates are suitable for BPO and ITeS. How will India bridge this skills gap? And the   underlying question is how to identify, measure and recognise workforce skills effectively and efficiently? The answer is to use the technology itself to assess learners, employees and those seeking employment.

Tools
e-Assessment provides a unique set of tools and techniques to measure skills, competency and knowledge, identify weaknesses, encourage strengths and is rapidly establishing itself worldwide. 

The impact on employers, employees and those seeking employment, on the learners, on those who deliver learning and on those who set policy and strategy will be profound. It is the impact of these radical changes and how we deal with them that is the work of Assessment Tomorrow.

What is e-Assessment? e-Assessment is the use of computers to set, deliver and often mark tests of a student’s skills, understanding and knowledge of a subject. Its importance and impact on learning is growing rapidly.
Use of e-Assessment Firstly Formative (or Continuing) Assessments are presented within the context of a continuing programme of study (in the class-room or in the workplace) and allows the trainer,  tutor or teacher to regularly determine how well elements of a course have been understood, or to motivate learners and maintain commitment.

A second use is self-assessment or diagnostic testing. It provides a low risk, non-threatening method by which a learner (with or without the tutor) can measure their own achievements or can identify gaps in knowledge, at their own pace.

The final category is Summative, where the assessment is presented as the culmination of a programme of study, typically in the award of a qualification.

Why use e-Assessment? The simple answer is flexibility. The systems allow assessments to be delivered frequently and often at any ‘proctored’ or secure location, maybe even on demand. A significant volume of marks and outcomes can be collected and automatically stored on management information systems. Just as importantly they can be rapidly fed back to the learner or student. The range of assessment methods and the range of knowledge, skills and understanding assessed can be greatly increased. With more versatility than the printed page, we are able to use the power of IT to include multimedia within the questions. The systems can collect and store large volumes of data about how each item is answered. This data can then be analysed and presented in many formats and reports to refine the questions.

Whilst most current examples of successful e-Assessment are as stand-alone events, it is when e-Assessment can be incorporated within a recognised learning programme that its greatest benefits of flexibility, motivation and analysis will be best realised.

The delivery systems        The most common delivery system is the pure web based system using a standard web-browser. Easy to set up, it is also prone to the problems of using the web, in terms of security, delay and lost lines.

A more robust, and controllable method is to use the web to deliver a secure copy of the test, which is then presented to the candidate via local software, isolated from the vagaries of the web. However, by putting more processing down at the ‘client’ end, the greater the cost in installation and management.

The responses will need to be collected at the end of the test and either analysed there and then, or returned via the web. The web can be taken out of the equation even more by publishing the test on to a disk that is then activated locally. There are also various options that involve using paper, either to print the test locally or to collect responses from paper by using OMR or more advanced technologies.

Next step
Computers are good at running tests; for all sorts of reasons. They are consistent and able to repeat the same task endlessly and impartially, and perform multi-tasking. They generally provide a rewarding experience for the candidate, far removed from the normal reaction to a ‘written’ test.

They offer versatility and flexibility, providing new and varied ways of presenting information. They are adept at analysing and reviewing data, and they can hold great volumes of tests, responses and data. However, selecting a package to develop and deliver e-Assessment is far from simple. Indeed the range of options and the choice in the marketplace can be daunting. 

The writer is a Director in Assessment Tomorrow (UK). Website: www.assessment-tomorrow.com