The recent backlash against standardized testing is renewing interest in alternative ways to evaluate students’ learning progress. Proponents of these alternative approaches bet that “capstone” projects, portfolios, and performance-based tests can deepen students’ learning and teach them valuable skills for college or the workplace.
But the practices also raise questions: Is an essay a performance assessment? How should students be evaluated in group projects? Will students make it into colleges without traditional grades and test scores? Can digital games tell teachers what students know—or still need to learn? Find out in this special report.
Griffin Walsh plays Kindville at Newnan Crossing Elementary School in Newnan, Ga. Some schools in the state, including Newnan Crossing, are piloting Kindville, a new formative education assessment program which looks, and plays, just like a video game, but will eventually spit out qualitative math and reading scores.
Fremont High School teacher, Maya Brodkey, left, talks with senior Cristy Gonzalez-Hernandez about her senior capstone project during class at the Oakland, Calif., school. The district has had a policy since 2005 requiring students to complete a “serious research project or exhibition” in order to graduate.
Chynna Krouser attends a geology class at Hunter College in New York City, where she is a junior with a 3.0 grade point average. Krouser came to Hunter through a pilot project that expanded the admissions criteria for students graduating from performance-based high schools like hers. Krouser submitted an advanced algebra project she completed in her sophomore year at Eastside Community High School in New York City.
Second grader Jace Willoughby plays the online game Keenville at Newnan Crossing Elementary School. The Newnan school is among dozens in Georgia using the game-based testing system with 1st and 2nd graders. The state plans to develop 31 such games by next fall for teachers to use as formative assessments.
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