Learning-Oriented Assessment: A Technology-Based Case Study

This paper focuses on reconfiguring assessment processes so that they support a learning function, in addition to the more traditional measurement function. In the first half of the paper we discuss a framework for "learning-oriented assessment" derived from a project carried out in Hong Kong. We conceptualize learning-oriented assessment as containing three key components: assessment tasks as learning tasks; student involvement in assessment; and explicitly forward-looking feedback. The second half of the paper presents an action research case in which the first author implemented some of the principles of learning-oriented assessment within a module in a teacher education context. The module, focusing on multimedia and web authoring, was taught through blended learning with an emphasis on peer learning and project-based learning. A particular feature was the interplay between students' learning experiences and the module assessments. (Contains 3 tables, 1 figure and 1 note.)