How does Kirkwood define assessment, evaluation, and grading in the context of CBE?

“Assessment” is used as a noun referring to the method or the tool used to evaluate, measure, and document academic readiness, learner progress, skills acquisition, or the educational needs of a student.  In a competency-based program,
assessment is the vehicle through which students demonstrate proficiency on the competencies.

Assessments can either be objective or performance-based. 

An objective assessment is an assessment that utilizes question types with predetermined right and wrong answer options. Question types might include multiple-choice, yes/no, true/false, fill-in-the-blank, and so on. Responses to questions on an objective assessment are evaluated using an answer key that is applied uniformly to all submissions. Paper-and-pencil tests are the most common type of objective assessments. In a competency-based approach, objective assessments are not used as frequently. 

A performance-based assessment is an assessment that requires students to create a unique product and/or perform a skill in order to demonstrate proficiency. Artifacts or performances are evaluated using a rubric that is applied individually to each submission or performance. In a competency-based approach, performance-based assessments are used relatively frequently.  Examples of performance-based assessments might include (but are not limited to):

·       + Writing an essay

·       + Giving a speech

·       + Developing a presentation

·       + Performing a skill

·       + Completing a project

·       + Creating a physical artifact or model

A best practice in competency-based education when developing assessments is to design them so that they are as authentic as possible.  “Authentic assessments” approximate, as closely as possible, the way in which that competency will be demonstrated in the learner’s professional, personal, and/or civic life. An assessment is authentic if it appropriately aligns with the “action verb” used to articulate a competency.  For instance, if a competency emphasizes the mastery of using a particular tool, an assessment asking the student to describe how to use the tool would not be well aligned or very authentic; rather, the assessment should have the student actually use the tool to in a given scenario.

“Evaluation” is used as a verb referring to the process of evaluating a learner’s artifact or their performance.  Although the words evaluation and assessment are often used synonymously, think of the assessment as a tool and the evaluation as a
process. For example, suppose that a student is asked to write a paper. The paper is the assessment, and the process of reviewing the paper to determine proficiency is the evaluation.

A best practice in competency-based education is to utilize rubrics.  Rubrics provide objective and clear explanations of performance expectations that are referenced when evaluating student work.  Rubrics provide tiered descriptions that outline how performance levels vary, and these can be referenced by both faculty and learners.

“Grade” is used as a noun referring to the indicator of a student’s overall performance at the end of a course.  In a competency-based course, a grade–either an A, B, or F— is assigned at the end of a course.  Note that in a typical competency-based course, letter grades are not used on individual assessments or assignments.  The grade reflects the overall quality of the work demonstrated through the assessments.  In general, an “A” corresponds to an “Exceeds” rating, a “B” corresponds to a “Proficient” rating, and an “F” corresponding to a “No Evidence” rating.  

As established by the Kirkwood CBE grading scale, a learner is defined as “proficient” when they achieve 80% or higher in meeting a competency, and learners must earn that score on all competencies in order to pass a CBE class.