Designing Meaningful Assessments 

Assessment, or measuring and monitoring learning, is a fundamental aspect of the learning process and can serve many beneficial functions for instructors and students. This resource outlines why instructors should assess, types of assessments, considerations for equitable and inclusive assessment, and authentic assessment ideas. 

Why assess?  

Assessments provide feedback on the learning process. Assessments assist instructors in tracking student progress towards course learning outcomes and help students recognize and measure their own progress in achieving those outcomes. Assessments are a tool to be used both to measure student achievement of learning (summative assessments), as well as monitor and guide the learning process (formative assessments). Assessments can even enhance the learning process! Research has shown (Greving & Richter, 2018) that students learn more effectively when they are regularly quizzed or tested on the concepts and skills they are learning or when they engage in repeated practice paired with feedback. This is the Testing Effect, a phenomenon that underscores the importance of assessments.

Types of Assessments 

Formative: Assessments that measure learning as it happens. These tend to be low-stakes (e.g., ungraded or low points), frequent, and provide essential feedback to both students and instructors on how learning is progressing in the course.  

 Examples of Formative Assessments 

  • One-minute papers
  • Exit tickets (i.e., short activities or prompts that students answer at the end of class)
  • Quizzes 
  • Active learning techniques  

Summative: Assessments that measure learning after it occurs. These tend to be higher-stakes (e.g., final assessments), overarching, and evaluate how well learning occurred, particularly at the end of a module, segment, or overall course.  

 Examples of Summative Assessments 

  • Portfolios
  • Final exams 
  • Term papers 
  • Authentic Assessments 

Effective Assessment Principles

Align assessments with learning outcomes

Assessments are most effective when they directly measure the learning outcomes that have been developed for your course. Each assessment should align with and assess one or more learning outcomes. Read more about alignment and assessment here. 

Scaffold assessments

Scaffolding assessments is the process by which assessments build upon one another to gradually develop students’ skills. They should increase in complexity and challenge for students over time, and perhaps build up to a summative assessment that incorporates all components that were scaffolded. Scaffolding can also include incorporating drafts and feedback opportunities (peer or instructor feedback), so students receive support and guidance on how they are progressing through the course. Finally, instructors who scaffold should gradually remove support over time, providing significant guidance and support as students are developing their skills and reducing it over time as students become more proficient.  

Incorporate Universal Design for Learning principles

Create assessments that allow students to demonstrate their learning in various ways and engage with course content in a way that is meaningful to them. For example, students could be allowed to choose the topic of an assessment or the format of an assessment. For more information about how to incorporate Universal Design for Learning principles in your assessment, review our Accessible Course Design: Universal Design for Learning resource.  

Utilize transparent assignment design

Transparent assignment design helps clarify expectations and ensures students understand how and why they are learning course content in particular ways. We suggest utilizing the research-backed Transparency in Learning & Teaching (TILT) framework, which has been shown to increase achievement, particularly for minoritized students (Winkelmes et al., 2016). The TILT framework includes sharing with students three main components about an assignment: purpose, task, and criteria. Review more details about these principles by clicking the accordion below.

Purpose

  • Clearly articulate the learning outcomes, relevance of the assignment to students, and benefits to students from completing the assignment. Consider including the learning outcomes the assessment addresses as a part of the assignment sheet.  
  • Answers the question: How does this assignment support student learning and how is it connected to the learning outcomes? 

Task

  • Provide clear instructions on what students are supposed to do for the assignment, including steps to take and due dates. 
  • Answers the question: What do students need to do for this assignment, and by when? 

Criteria

  • Share criteria for success or evaluation with students, such as through rubrics or checklists (link rubrics resource) 
  • Answers the question: How will you and students know whether they have been successful with this assignment?

Authentic Assessments

Authentic Assessments, also known as alternative or relevant assessments, provide students with the opportunity to apply their newly acquired knowledge to “real-world” situations and the development of professional skills. These assessments measure achievement of student learning outcomes by using tasks or situations that students might encounter in their professional careers. They typically emphasize feedback and iteration and will help improve students’ future performance.  

 The following section categorizes various authentic assessments based on how long the assessment may take, from one-off assessments to those than span the entire semester. However, many of these assessments may be adapted to be shorter or longer based on your course learning outcomes and goals.   

Short Term (single class session) 

  • Case Study Analysis: Students analyze a case study related to the course material, identifying key elements, and explaining how theoretical concepts apply.
  • Classroom Teaching Session: Students prepare and teach a short lesson to their peers, requiring a deep understanding of the material and the ability to convey it effectively. 
  • Concept/Mind Map: Students create a concept map to visually organize information, showing relationships between concepts and ideas within a topic. 
  • Debate: Students participate in a structured debate on a course-related topic, requiring them to understand and articulate different viewpoints.
  • Interactive Timeline: Students create a timeline of significant events related to the course content, providing detailed descriptions and the significance of each event. 
  • Reflective Journal: Students keep a journal where they reflect on what they’ve learned, how it connects to prior knowledge, and its real-world applications.  

Medium Term (multiple class sessions or asynchronous) 

  • Community Interviews: Students interview community members or experts in the field and relate the findings to the course material.
  • Digital Storytelling: Students create a digital story (using video, audio, or multimedia) that explains a key concept or tells the history of a significant development in the field.
  • Field Observation Report: Students conduct observations in a relevant setting (e.g., museum, laboratory, business) and write a report connecting their observations to course content.
  • Models: Students design and build physical models representing course concepts, such as architectural structures, scientific models, or historical artifacts.
  • Podcast Episode: Students produce a podcast episode where they discuss key topics, interview experts, or explain concepts in their own words.
  • Policy Memo/Brief: Students create a memo that synthesizes information, analyzes it, and proposes actionable recommendations. 

 Long Term (several weeks to a full semester or asynchronous) 

  • Case Study Development: Students write their own case study based on course content, including analysis and proposed solutions to the problems presented.
  • Community-Based Research Project: Students conduct research in partnership with community organizations, producing reports and presentations that address local issues. 
  • Consulting Report: Students act as consultants to a hypothetical client, providing a detailed report that applies course concepts to address the client’s needs. 
  • Data Analysis Project: Students work with a dataset to analyze and interpret the data, applying statistical or qualitative methods learned in the course and discussing their findings in relation to course theories. 
  • Design a Research Study: Students design a research study, including formulating a research question, developing a methodology, and outlining potential analyses. 
  • Policy Analysis Paper: Students analyze a policy relevant to the course content, evaluating its effectiveness and suggesting improvements based on theoretical frameworks. 
  • Prototype Development: Students design and create a prototype of a product, service, or solution to a problem discussed in the course. 
  • Write a Grant Proposal: Students create a grant proposal for funding a project related to the course, including objectives, methods, and expected outcomes. 

 References

  • Angelo, T. A., & Zakrajsek, T. (2024). Classroom assessment techniques: Formative feedback tools for college and University Teachers. Jossey-Bass.  
  • Greving, S., & Richter, T. (2018). Examining the testing effect in university teaching: Retrievability and question format matter. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 2412. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02412 
  • Winkelmes, M.A., Bernacki, M., Butler, J., Zochowski, M., Golanics, J., & Weavil, K. H. (2016). A teaching intervention that increases underserved college students’ success. Peer Review, 18(1/2), 31–36. 

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