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Electronic assessment, or eAssessment, is the use of information technology devices, primarily computers, to assess student ability and learning. It is also known as a computer-based assessment or computer-assisted assessment and may include both the administration of the assessment test and its scoring. Electronic assessment is a useful tool for several reasons, including ease of use, flexibility, and faster results than traditional paper-and-pencil methods. Electronic assessment can be used in a variety of settings, such as elementary school, distance learning, and professional certification exams, and its use is increasing with many types of standardized tests.
An electronic rating system generally consists of two parts: the rating engine and the item bank. The assessment engine is the computer hardware and software used to develop and administer the assessment. While the hardware is fairly standard, different software packages can allow customization of the testing experience for both instructor and student. The item bank is the set of questions based on the material being assessed. Depending on the scope of the assessment, the item bank can be developed by a single instructor or by a group.
Once the item bank has been developed, many electronic assessment systems are quite easy and flexible to use. The instructor can usually select the questions to include or indicate how many of each type and allow the system to randomize the questions. This can also allow an instructor to easily create several slightly different tests on the same material to reduce the risk of cheating, as students will not be taking the same test. The system can also usually grade tests after students have taken them and even perform statistical analysis of the results. This reduces the time and effort the instructor has to spend on these tasks compared to paper-and-pencil tests.
Many students also find eAssessment easier to use than paper-and-pencil testing, as it is a format that is used more and more in the learning process. With the increasing use of computer-assisted or online learning, it makes sense that assessment be done using the same tools that were used for the learning process. Assessments can also be designed to monitor student progress as they respond and vary the difficulty level of questions accordingly, allowing for more detailed information about student progress than other methods provide.
Many instructors and students also appreciate the quick results provided compared to the time-consuming paper-and-pencil evaluation process. The quick results associated with eAssessment can also be extremely helpful in informing the learning process. Having quick access to student results helps both the instructor and student identify areas that still need to be worked on, as well as what material has been mastered. This allows the instructor to effectively design instruction to meet identified learning needs.