Any e-learning course doesn’t quite feel complete without a final account of student comprehension. However, even the most well-designed post-test can’t capture the full picture of your course’s impact. Some students are simply lousy test-takers, and some courses are more about practical application than multiple-choice questions. Using a little creativity, you can discover unconventional ways to assess how well your message truly resonated with the class.
Begin with a Clear Purpose
Setting clear learning objectives at the beginning of the course will help you and your students stay on track with a joint mission. It’s essential to define what you’re going to teach and what you’d like your students to accomplish by completing the course. Set clear intentions that outline how deeply you will dive into specific content areas and at what level your students should apply the information in the future. Will they need to pass a multiple-choice test, explain it to others, demonstrate it in their work, or all of the above? By offering your students a heads up on what to expect, they will be more inclined to tune into crucial concepts. This is especially true if they know they’ll have to apply those concepts in the future. Nodding their heads and listening is fine, but it won’t cut it if they want to excel in the course or get the most out of their learning experience. Don’t leave surprises about what you expect. Give your class an outline from the beginning about what is required for them to succeed.
Take Your Curriculum into the Real World
Learning by the book doesn’t compare to demonstrating skills in the real world. What good is it to test someone’s ability to cook a new recipe or navigate the subway system without actually challenging them to do it? Words mean nothing if you aren’t able to perform the task when it matters most. That’s why it’s crucial to place your students in a real-world environment to utilize their new skills actively. Depending on your course’s subject matter, this environment could be simulated with role-playing, scavenger hunts, or practical experience in the field. Say, for instance, you are teaching a lesson on teamwork and skill-building. Although you could just ask your students to answer questions on the topic, wouldn’t it be more useful to send them to an Escape Room or give them a scripted mystery to try and solve with their peers? The more practical applications you can offer your students, the better you will drive home the messages you’re trying to teach. By observing how they behave, you can see first-hand if they’re getting something out of the course.
Assign Creative Projects That Demonstrate Learning
Similar to the suggestion above, asking your students to show you what they know, rather than tell you, provides a more comprehensive view of their progress during your e-learning course. Suppose you can’t necessarily drop your students into real-life scenarios (especially in the case of remote teaching with students from various time zones). In that case, you can still ask them to show you their ability. For instance, if you’re teaching a class on marketing or social media, it only makes sense to have your participants put together an online account using the platforms you’ve taught them. Whether they’re doing so for their personal business brand or promoting a hypothetical company designed just for this purpose, let them practice showcasing their skills and putting your curriculum into practice.
Circle Back to the First Day of Class
Give your students an assignment on the first day that forces them to reflect upon or explain a concept or question. Maybe you can give them a scenario and see how they interpret various aspects of it. Without bringing it up again throughout, revisit the same assignment at the end of the course. See how or if their responses changed. Does their reaction suggest a greater depth of understanding, higher empathy, or a more profound perspective? The whole point of teaching is to expand the way your students see the world. The best measure of learning isn’t how your students compare to each other, but rather how they compare to their former selves. This strategy helps address questions like:
How did your course impact their overall thinking process and knowledge base?
What’s changed for them during the life of your course?
How do they see things differently today than in the past (and why)?
Allowing students to reflect on their personal growth during the course will help them see the value in your lessons and fully appreciate the content.
Challenge Your Participants to Teach You
Regurgitating recently learned information isn’t the same thing as being able to teach it to others. It’s a proven fact that you’re more likely to remember concepts yourself after explaining them to others. Teaching exercises our brain and forces us to internalize information on a deeper level. Not only will a teaching assignment challenge your students to demonstrate their learning, but it will also serve the purpose of cementing skills and ideas for the long term. Instead of having a temporary impact on your students, you can impart the wisdom they will carry with them for the rest of their lives. Just ask them to teach it to someone else. How about giving your students a chance to do their own mini-research project or investigative news story that relates to your class? There’s no hard and fast rule that the instructor has to be the sole source of information and education. Ask your students to expand on the curriculum you have planned by bringing new insights and perspectives into the mix. Giving your students some ownership over your class’s direction and content makes for a more interactive and exciting learning experience– for the rest of the participants and for you. It’s never too late to learn something, and that goes for students and teachers alike. Get a new spin on an old concept and invite students to enrich your lesson with their unique background, interests, and opinions.
Keep Assessments in Perspective
As important as it is to determine whether your students absorbed the necessary information from your course, there’s a limit to what evaluations will show you. Quality instruction strikes a balance between teaching clear objectives and incorporating valuable lessons that aren’t always easy to quantify. If your class ends up veering in a new direction from time to time, it’s not necessarily the worst thing in the world. Instructors should understand the difference between a valuable tangent or supplemental discussion and one that’s just a distraction. Sometimes, timely topics come up unplanned, such as current events in the news or your group’s personal stories. Rather than shying away from teachable moments, capitalize on opportunities to keep your class relevant and engaging. Assessments are a tool meant to supplement your teaching, not dictate it. Perhaps the best indicator of whether or not your course was successful isn’t the grades on a test, but rather the future impact your students go on to create in the real world.
