E-assessment of student-teachers’ competence as new teachers
In the education sector, evaluation and assessment are relevant. The article is about how various e-assessment of student-teachers’ competence can be designed effectively and efficiently. Text-based self-evaluations and observations of the teacher-student performance are mainly used for assessment; however, they do not give valid evidence of teacher competence. There are differences in competences on written portfolios and actual classroom observations and, therefore, the need for multiple assessments. Technology can support the various forms of evaluation.
Many countries developed a standard for teachers, which include methodological, reflective, relational, interpersonal, organizational, and pedagogical competencies that are described according to rubrics. They are based on attitude skills and the knowledge of teachers at various levels and are used to guide curriculum design and assessment. These competencies are related to the professional role of teachers while working with the students, colleagues, and the teaching environment.
Video recording allows the inclusion of teaching evidence that is direct in a portfolio. It would provide a wide variety and more specific information on teacher competencies providing highly valid information used for analytic and varied reflection. The use of video enables student-teachers to reflect more on their teaching, identify areas of improvement, compare situations, and learn from good teaching models. Certification and licensing of teachers are performance-based and are supplemented with information from the portfolio. The portfolio shows the understanding of the student-teacher between the theory and actual practice. Multiple assessments are required in teacher education due to the complex combination of teacher competencies.
Technology has been incorporated in education, although its use in assessment has been under-researched. E-assessments could help in the flexibility of updating information, accessibility of practices, effective and efficient assessment of student teacher’s competence. There is the need to know how e-assessments could be designed to operate in an effective way, how they affect evaluation by teacher educators and student teachers. A multiple case study research design was done with four forms of e-assessments incorporating teacher educators and student teachers to know the extent to which the different assessments were used and valued. Digital pretest and posttest questionnaires were administered to teacher evaluators and similar tests on paper to students. The educational material, observations, and the various forms of assessment were collected and analyzed. The questionnaires had questions relating to the methods of assessment used, the frequency and self-evaluations,
Teacher educators showed positive outcomes on the use of e-assessment procedures and tools though the effects were not significant. Participants based more on previously used assessments. The differences were also not significant for student-teachers in the use of e-assessments. Digital tests appeared to be advantageous for more prominent institutes though there was a lack of enough technological facilities. From the study, much attention should be given to technological and organizational aspects to aid in e-assessments and self-assessments, which should be appropriately framed.
Limitations of the study included a bias in the e-assessment program used. Self-selection made the distribution of participants highly skewed, affecting the analysis hence the lack of significant differences. Teacher educators under and overestimated the use of e-assessments. The procedures used in the study are to be redesigned before being used again in the future. The interventions of e-assessments were not evaluated positively due to teething problems. E-learning technology is available in institutions, but it is not commonly used. Teacher education should support the use of technology. In conclusion, e-assessment would improve the assessment process by making it more efficient if well designed.