12 Alternative Types of Assessments in Education

Learning assessment refers to the process of gathering, analyzing and interpreting evidence of students’ knowledge, skills and understanding to evaluate their progress and achievement in a particular subject or area of study. Traditional K–12 assessments — such as tests, quizzes, projects and presentations — provide teachers with enough data to understand how students are progressing academically.

But are these assessments as effective as they could be? Do they truly provide an authentic understanding of student performance?

In this blog post, you’ll find in-depth explanations and examples of traditional assessments, as well as propositions for alternative assessments that may give a more holistic view of student learning.

Why Is Assessment Important?

K–12 classroom assessment involves a variety of methods and tools to measure student learning outcomes and determine the effectiveness of a teacher’s instruction. Any of these methods can be used to fulfill one of three purposes:

Assessment of learning focuses on evaluating students’ mastery of knowledge, skills and competencies after instruction has taken place. It is often associated with summative assessments that measure what students have learned over a period of time. The primary goal is to determine the level of achievement or attainment of learning outcomes. End-of-term exams, standardized tests, final projects and other assessments used for grading purposes fall under this category.
Assessment for learning is designed to support and enhance the learning process itself. It occurs during instruction and provides ongoing feedback to both teachers and students. The main goal is to help teachers identify areas where students need additional support, adjust instructional strategies accordingly and help students progress toward mastery. Formative assessments such as quizzes, classroom discussions, peer evaluations and constructive feedback given during the learning process are all forms of assessment for learning.
Assessment as learning emphasizes the role of assessment in promoting student self-regulation and metacognition. Students actively engage in the assessment process to monitor their own learning, set goals and reflect on their progress. Through this process, students develop a deeper understanding of their strengths and areas for improvement, leading to increased autonomy and ownership of their learning. Self-assessment, goal setting, reflection journals and portfolio assessments are examples of assessment as learning, since students take an active role in reviewing their own progress and learning journey.

Whatever the purpose, learning assessment is crucial in the K–12 classroom for a number of reasons:

It provides teachers valuable information about students’ strengths, weaknesses and learning needs.
It helps inform instructional decisions, enabling teachers to tailor their instruction to effectively meet the diverse needs of their students.
It helps teachers monitor their students’ progress over time and identify areas of growth and areas where further improvement is needed.
It helps identify trends in learning outcomes.
It holds both students and teachers accountable for learning and instruction.
It provides evidence of student achievement and helps stakeholders (such as parents, administrators and policymakers) gauge the effectiveness of teaching and learning practices.
It helps students understand their progress and set goals for future learning.

Types of Traditional Learning Assessment in Schools

Different types of assessments are used at different points in the learning process to measure prior knowledge, progress or outcomes. Some assessments, such as standardized testing, leave very little room for variation in learning styles, while others allow for more of a sliding scale to accommodate students with different abilities.

Diagnostic assessments: These assessments are used to identify students’ strengths, weaknesses, knowledge and skills before instruction begins. A diagnostic pre-test given at the beginning of a unit helps educators understand what students already know and what they need to learn.

Formative assessments: Ongoing, formative assessments used during instruction — such as classroom discussions, quizzes, exit tickets or peer evaluations — provide feedback to both teachers and students, helping to monitor student progress and guiding instructional decisions.
Summative assessments: Summative assessments (which include standardized tests) typically measure mastery of content and are used to assign grades or determine if learning objectives have been met. Instructors can administer final exams, end-of-unit projects or term papers to evaluate student learning at the end of an instructional period.
Norm-referenced assessments: These assessments compare an individual student’s performance to the performance of a larger group (the norm group). Norm-referenced assessments include standardized tests (such as the SAT or GRE), which determine how well a student performs relative to other test-takers.
Ipsative assessments: These assessments focus on individual growth over time, comparing a student’s current performance to their previous performance, rather than to other students’. For example, students can use self-assessment with a rubric to evaluate their progress from the beginning to the end of a project or semester. This type of assessment is particularly useful for assessing students with different learning styles or abilities.
Criterion-referenced assessments: The purpose of criterion-referenced assessments is to measure a student’s performance against a set standard or criteria to see if the student has achieved specific learning objectives. Rubrics provide a set of criteria to assess whether students have met specific learning outcomes or proficiency levels in a subject area.
Standardized assessments: Standardized assessments are designed to measure student performance in a uniform and reliable manner across different test-takers. They have consistent administration, scoring and interpretation procedures. Examples include state-mandated achievement tests such as the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) or the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

12 Alternative Assessments to Consider

Some K–12 teachers find that traditional types of assessment do not provide an accurate view of students’ progress, nor are they well-suited to how certain students demonstrate their learning. These teachers may develop alternative assessments that more accurately reflect students’ progress.

Alternative classroom assessment refers to a variety of non-traditional methods and approaches used to evaluate students’ knowledge, skills and understanding beyond traditional tests and exams. This type of assessment emphasizes authentic, performance-based tasks that closely align with real-world situations and promote deeper learning.

The primary goal of alternative classroom assessment is to provide a more comprehensive and holistic understanding of students’ abilities and achievements, allowing for more meaningful feedback and opportunities for student growth and reflection.

Authentic assessments can include any of the following:

Essays: Written compositions in which students articulate their thoughts, ideas, arguments and analyses on a particular topic or prompt

Exhibitions and demonstrations: Presentations, displays, projects or performances that showcase students’ learning achievements to an audience
Experiments: Structured activities in which students investigate scientific concepts, theories or hypotheses by manipulating variables, collecting data and drawing conclusions based on evidence
Interviews: Conversations between a teacher or evaluator and a student to gather information about the student’s knowledge, experiences, perspectives and understanding
Journals: Personal written reflections or responses to prompts that encourage students to record their thoughts, experiences, observations and reactions related to their learning
Observation: The process of systematically watching and recording students’ behavior, interactions and performance to gather information about their learning progress and understanding
Open-ended questions: Questions that allow for multiple possible answers and require students to think critically, analyze information and express their ideas in their own words
Performance tasks: Activities that require students to demonstrate their skills, knowledge and abilities in authentic contexts, often through practical application or creative expression

Portfolios: Collections of students’ work samples compiled over time to document and demonstrate their progress and achievements in a particular subject or area
Projects: Extended, hands-on tasks that require students to apply knowledge and skills to solve real-world problems, create products or explore topics in depth
Teacher-created tests: Assessments developed by teachers to measure students’ understanding of specific content, concepts or skills through a variety of question formats
Self- and peer-evaluation: Processes in which students assess their work or provide feedback to their peers based on established criteria, promoting self-reflection, accountability and collaboration

Using Assessment Data to Improve Teaching

While all academic assessments serve the general purpose of reflecting students’ progress and content mastery, different types of assessments can yield different data.

For example, a standardized test — in which all students must answer the same questions in the same format — may not reflect an individual student’s mastery of algebraic formulas in the way that a project-based assessment might. Also, students do not respond in the same ways to every type of assessment; those who experience test anxiety may not demonstrate the same level of content mastery as they might in a self-directed, performance-based project.

Nonetheless, this is important data for teachers to gather, since it provides information about which types of assessments will give the most accurate view of students’ progress.

There are four basic steps for turning assessment data into action:

Step 1: Gather data.
Collect data from various assessments, including tests, quizzes, projects, observations and student work samples.

Step 2: Turn the data into information.
Analyze the assessment results to identify patterns, trends and areas of concern or strength.

Step 3: Convert information into relevant insights.
Interpret the data to understand students’ learning progress, needs and challenges. Consider how different assessments provide different perspectives on student learning.

Step 4: Act on those insights.
Use the insights gained from assessment data to inform instructional decisions and strategies.

Teachers can then use these insights to inform an array of instructional decisions and initiatives:

Track individual student progress over time to identify areas of growth and areas where additional support may be needed.
Determine students’ strengths and weaknesses in specific content areas or skills to target instruction effectively.
Compare students’ performance to class averages, standards or benchmarks to gauge overall progress and identify outliers.

Use assessment data to assess whether students have mastered learning objectives or are prepared for advanced coursework.
Identify areas where teachers may need additional support or training to enhance their instructional practices based on student performance data.
Ensure that instruction and assessments align with curriculum standards and learning objectives to promote consistency and coherence in teaching and learning.
Adjust instructional approaches, methods and materials to better meet students’ needs and promote engagement.
Identify students who may require additional support or interventions, such as remediation or enrichment.
Use assessment data to make informed predictions about students’ future performance and academic outcomes, which can guide instructional planning and intervention strategies.

Challenges and Considerations in Student Assessment

Changing perceptions of testing and ongoing neurological research means that the conversation around learning assessments is never-ending. Researchers are constantly coming to new conclusions about the best ways to deliver information so that it engages students and “sticks” with them.

No matter how research-based any one method is, there are several perpetual challenges inherent in K–12 student assessment.

Limited view of progress: Assessments are often the primary tool for communicating a student’s progress. However, conveying progress solely through test scores may not provide a comprehensive understanding of a student’s abilities. Also, quantifying a student’s performance with a numerical or letter grade may oversimplify their abilities and overlook other important aspects of their learning.
Anxiety: Testing can contribute to or exacerbate anxiety for many students, affecting their performance and overall learning experience.

Lack of scalability: Standardized assessments (even those created by teachers) can be difficult and time-consuming to grade on a sliding scale, especially considering students’ diverse abilities and needs.
Changing learning goals: As academic standards change, so do learning objectives, making it difficult to align instructional methods with assessments and vice versa. The same goes for students in Individualized Education Programs (IEPs): As students’ individual goals change, it can be difficult to adjust assessments accordingly.

Best Practices for Designing Assessments

To address these challenges and deliver the most effective assessments, educators can consider implementing some or all of the following practices:

Make sure assessments are timely, informative and relevant to what you are teaching. They should align with instructional goals and provide meaningful feedback to students.
Create a new rubric for every assessment to clarify expectations and provide consistent evaluation criteria.
Mix up assessment formats. Incorporate essays, projects, presentations, quizzes and more to cater to different learning styles and gain a more comprehensive understanding of student learning.
Ensure you (and your students) know why you are giving a particular assessment and how it aligns with learning objectives.
Regularly reflect on course content to evaluate the effectiveness of your teaching methods. Ask yourself questions such as “Am I teaching what I think I’m teaching?” and “Are the students learning what they are supposed to be learning?” Make adjustments as needed based on your answers.

Do you experiment with assessment in your classroom? Do you wish to better understand the various ways in which students can demonstrate their learning? You’re not alone. The new and experienced educators enrolled in the online Master of Education program at the University of San Diego are passionate, curious and driven to improve their practice through earning a practical advanced degree. Start on the path to improving your teaching practice by exploring the online MEd program today.