As a teacher I am concerned that the participants in my classes understand the materials I teach. As I look at the facial expressions of the students in a class I am gauging if they are understanding the presentation but to know if they are understanding the materials assessment is required. For some years a change has been taking place in education from traditional pen and paper examination tools; multiple choice, short answer, and essay formats, to computer based assessments. Generally, I see the state of most computer assessment as the paper model presented on a computer. There are several other models of computer assessment that can be utilized.
Computer Adaptive Assessment can be utilized in Computer Based Training (CBT) where materials are presented in a computer tutorial format and then quizzes are presented at the end of a module. If a student correctly answers all questions they proceed to the next module. If the student gets a question or two wrong, they are pre-presented the materials is a modified form and then quizzed again with different questions. The computer program is the teacher and the evaluator and is directed to mastery learning for the student (http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/mar14/vol71/num06/The-Potential-of-Adaptive-Assessment.aspx).
I personally think there are useful advantages to this type of learning. That the course materials could be delivered via distance education and allow students to communicate through email or a web conference with an instructor would support learning in a time efficient manner. A blend of CBT and instructor led teaching would motivate students and be convenient for the time commitments of both the students and the instructor. My concern is the amount of time required to develop the training materials. Adobe Authorware software was not easy to use and new alternative software programs requires a time commitment for teachers (https://www.elearninglearning.com/alternatives/authorware/). The impact of this technology would support web-based learning and online assessment.
Another very interesting way to conduct online assessment is utilizing online games. People of all ages like games and games can be constructed to create simulations, representations of real-world situations, to facilitate learning. When instruction is fun and feedback is occurring immediately, learning is more likely to occur. Formative assessment occurs as the student is playing the game and summative assessment is defined by completing the game. Myers, 2016, considers game playing relative to the three main learning styles; visual, auditory, and kinesthetic in adult education. Beaudin and Sivak, 2017, suggests that new teachers should become knowledgeable in the use of digital video games in the K-12 classroom.
Myers, 2016. https://elearningindustry.com/game-based-learning-and-adult-learning-styles
Beaudin, L. & Sivak, T. (2017). Digital Games and Student Learning. In P. Resta & S. Smith (Eds.), Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference (pp. 1443-1447).