Today’s article is written by Lilia Cheniti Belcadhi

Dr Lilia Cheniti Belcadhi, Senior Lecturer in Computer Science at the University of Sousse, Tunisia, researcher in Educational Technologies and AI. She is an OER ambassador to the International Council for Open and Distance Education (ICDE), a member of the International Scientific Council of the AUF (Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie) and Vice-President of the International Network for Educational Innovation and Training of Trainers, responsible for higher education.

Open education is based on accessibility, transparency and collaboration to promote more inclusive and participatory learning. It aims to improve teaching and learning through pedagogical practices based on sharing, collaboration, open access and reuse.

Open assessment is considered to be an educational practice that aims to improve learner participation as a key participant in the learning process (peer learning), encouraging commitment to learning and increasing the validity and reliability of assessment activities through the implementation of actions and continuous formative feedback. There are three main forms of assessment: diagnostic assessment at the beginning of a learning process, summative assessment at the end of learning and formative assessment to identify the progress made by the learner. All these forms of assessment are essential to understanding what students learn during a learning activity.

By adopting open assessment practices for the different forms of assessment, it is possible to ensure a process based on transparency and fairness, through the sharing of assessment grids, indicating the adopted assessment criteria. Learners also have access to feedback and corrections of their work, which ensures fairness in the assessment of their performance. In addition, the feedback provided on learners’ work can provide them with a variety of information to help them progress in their learning process.

Designing and implementing an open assessment process also helps develop a culture of continuous improvement among learners thanks to the constructive feedback they receive, thus giving them the opportunity to modify and improve their work based on the comments shared with the learning community. Open assessment also promotes the establishment of a collaborative learning framework, in particular through peer assessment activities, which enable learners to engage in an active learning process and emphasise reflective practices and the improvement of results. Learners thus develop skills such as critical thinking and the ability to give and receive constructive feedback on shared work.

The use of technologies for open assessment facilitates the creation of assessment resources, their reuse and their sharing by learning communities. These technologies thus facilitate the creation of open, interactive and participatory assessment environments, integrating spaces for online discussion and the sharing of comments and feedback, which increases the motivation and engagement of learners. The figure below highlights open assessment in a framework of open pedagogical practices. It emphasises teacher-OER interaction through formative assessment and the creation of renewable tasks, i.e. tasks in which learners openly produce and publish their work so that it can be reused and shared by the learning community.

Adapted from: A Case Study of Applying Open Educational Practices in Higher Education during COVID-19: Impacts on Learning Motivation and Perceptions by Zhang, et. al, (CC BY 4.0).

Furthermore, it is important to note that effective assessment cannot be a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach in which the same assessment strategy is applied to all learners. Learners are different and it is important to direct the learner to the content most appropriate to their needs through personalised assessment. This requires a flexible and open evaluation process in which adapted and personalised evaluation strategies can be applied. Artificial intelligence technologies provide new possibilities for learners and enable continuous monitoring, facilitation of open and collaborative evaluation and automatic analysis of discussions and comments received.

In conclusion, it is important to note that open assessment contributes to enriching learning by promoting a transparent and collaborative process, based on a participatory approach, allowing learners to be engaged and motivated.