Computer-Assisted Performance Assessment in Advanced Technological Education

Concord Consortium, Concord MA

Investigators

Abstract

This educational materials development project is designed to develop computer-assisted performance assessments for electronics technicians. The team is creating, field testing in several locations including high schools and two and four-year colleges, validating, and disseminating automated student performance tests on introductory electronics tasks. The new software requires the use of several commercially available products. This project is an extension of existing work that has been done by the Concord Consortium and uses software developed by them, Pedagogica, as well as National Instruments' LabVIEW, to create the assessments of model circuits. The process of using the software for developing assessments can be replicated by others with the open source software that is being used, allowing anyone to develop assessments on additional topics. The project includes a plan for the Center for Occupation Research and Development (CORD) to develop and conduct teacher in-service about using the performance assessment system.