7 Ways to Assess Your Learners Effectively

The most effective way to identify whether your learners have acquired and retained the necessary skills and knowledge from your eLearning course is using assessments wisely.  It is one of the most important tools in assessing your learners’ performance objectively.

Let’s assume the learners have completed their assigned learning module and they all score an average of 80 percent or higher at the end of the training. Their evaluation was conducted using the traditional strategies like drag and drop, multiple choice questions and multiple response questions etc. However, can you actually evaluate the learners beyond multiple-choice quizzes? Is there an alternative to evaluating the effectiveness of your learning program? Yes, you can do so effectively using the following methods.

1. Conducting pre-tests and post-tests will help you to measure the impact of learning better than close-ended questions. You could ask questions which could help you assess the learner’s attitude and beliefs.
2. If your eLearning course directly links to learner’s job post training, on-the-job evaluation techniques would help evaluate the learner’s knowledge.  Also, self-evaluation techniques would help you measure the understanding of the learner. You could simply judge your learner based on his increased confidence in his ability to perform a task after the training.
3. Performing your evaluation after an interval of few days or weeks will help you effectively gauge whether the eLearning was engaging or if the learners believe it was worthwhile.
4. In Instructor-led-training, the most effective way to assess your learners is by encouraging them to share information on intra-office learning networks or through social media networks. These methods will help you understand whether learners have assimilated the knowledge and are correctly applying the information.
5. Subjective assessments asses if the learner is able to comprehend what is learnt through the learning module. This helps the learners to express their thought or opinion about that particular learning process.
6. Using various assessment methods like presentations, interviews, field research tend to examine the learners capabilities beyond the subject about which they’re being tested.
7. Sharing your learning space with peers where you could post and share assessments will help the learners and creators of courses give and receive feedback.  Answering evaluations and giving assessments will both help the learners assimilate knowledge.

Simply using the checkbox is not enough to gauge the learner’s level of knowledge. It is very important to define the learning goals and its outcomes. These are the essential precursors to creating effective learning programs and assessing learner’s progress.

Can you think of ways to make learner assessment more effective?