As much as possible, learning activities should focus on getting learners to master the knowledge and skills that help them solve real life problems. What learners learn should have a bearing on their real life experiences for it to be meaningful. Ideally, the same applies to assessment. Learning or assessment is authentic if it relates to real life experiences. Authentic assessment is a form of assessment in which learners are asked to perform real-world tasks that demonstrate meaningful application of essential knowledge and skills.

Study Table 2 which gives examples of how authentic assessment differs from traditional assessment.

Table 2: Comparison between traditional and authentic assessment

Learning activity 3

Discuss the following questions. Post your responses on the discussion forum on QA4ODFL2 Discourse site.

1. Think of one assessment you have designed for your learners in your subject area.
2. Use the comparison in Table 2 to decide if your assessment task is traditional or authentic.
3. Share your thoughts in the discussion forum.

Click here to post your thoughts