E-Assessment in Higher Education: What is the student’s point of view?

E-Assessment in Higher Education: What is the student’s point of view?

Assessment is an essential component of teaching and learning processes, not just to measure and certify results but also as an important stage in consolidating the knowledge and skills achieved. The concept of E-assessment has emerged, supported by technologies such as computer-based testing, online submissions, quizzes, computer multiple-choice questions, wikis, blogs, online forums, and web-based online examinations, among others.

One of the E-assessment advantages is that students receive instantaneous feedback, allowing them to take action to improve their performance. In addition, other positive aspects are pointed out: the reduction of paper, greater interactivity and flexibility, lower costs, less time in assessment moment, greater randomness of questions avoiding the risk of students copying, and being a student-centered process. But, do students recognize the E-assessment´s added value? Or, on the other hand, do students emphasize the barriers and difficulties arising from E-assessment?

To answer these questions, we will present the main results of a study at East West University in Bangladesh (Huda, Kabir, & Siddiq, 2020). The study’s main aim was to analyze the effectiveness of e-assessment in higher education from the student’s perspective. To this end, the authors surveyed students’ perceptions in the following E-assessment dimensions: Affective Factors, Validity, Practicality, Reliability, Security, and Teaching and Learning.

The results demonstrated that students positively perceive e-assessment, understand its importance, and are prepared to use it. It was also shown that students considered E-assessments as more reliable and objective as evaluated by an automated system, thus minimizing human error. However, some concerns were also highlighted by the students, such as increased stress in assessment processes carried out on computers. They also feel some discomfort due to a lack of mastery of the assessment method, which could impact their concentration levels. They also mentioned the need to develop their IT skills to avoid negatively influence in the assessment process.

Despite the results obtained, in general, the students believe in the added value of e-assessment in the teaching-learning process.

Source: Huda, S. S. M., Kabir, M. D., & Siddiq, T. (2020). E-Assessment in Higher Education: Students’ Perspective. International Journal of Education and Development using Information and Communication Technology, 16(2), 250-258.

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