authentic assessment

[vickynurse]

My colleagues and I discussing the concept ofauthentic assessment and how it may or may not apply to nursing education. Is anyone using authentic assessment in the education process?

[cholli]

are you refering to systematic assessment of the body?

[vickynurse]

No, I'm thinking of 'authentic assessment' in terms of assessing / evaluating student performance in the clinical and theory settings. The Higher Learning Commission is encouraging that we get away from multiple choice types of evaluating student learning. I am finding very little in the nursing literature, but there is a lot to be found in the education arena.

[cholli]

ahhh yes I get it - a common topic at our college.

Authentic assessment is always at the bedside watching skill application. I look forward to hearing what others have to say about authentic assessment in the classroom. I don't know how to get around the multiple choice thing- it is very efficient. The last year or so I have been assigning a few small writing assignments so I can see how they write and communicate, and what they are really thinking about.

[vickynurse]

That's how I see it as well. Thanks for the reply.

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

McKeachie (2002, p. 91) touches briefly on authentic assessment (performance assessment):

"Faculty members construct learning situations in which they can observe student performance and judge the performance on the basis of specified criteria. The faculty has defined developmental levels in each of several abilities that students are expected to achieve. Since no one situation is sufficient for assessing a complex ability, the assessment plan stresses multiple modes of assessment related to real-life contexts."

This sounds good in theory, but too complicated to be of much practical use with the typical large class sizes and lack of faculty in most schools of nursing. Also, since the majority of the NCLEX is still in multiple-choice form, I don't see us abandoning the multiple choice test item in the forseeable future. Still, this is a valuable topic to pursue, as our practice environments (and methods of teaching) are rapidly changing. Many of our graduates face the daunting task of taking the PBDS at the beginning of their nursing careers, as an assessment tool in some facilities. The PBDS, though very controversial, is modeled somewhat after authentic assessment.

These excellent resources may be of assistance to you:

http://books.google.com/books?id=BWKe0dlY7dcC&pg=PA10&dq=authentic+assessment&sig=UgckRIslvmEY2spDlIZrgkM_U7M#PPA10,M1

http://books.google.com/books?id=OsTBj9rYylkC&printsec=frontcover&dq=subject:%22Medical+/+Nursing+/+Test+Preparation+%26+Review%22&sig=QelhHxwaNM3ZclitQpIU9tLhgcc#PPP1,M1

http://books.google.com/books?id=aTJAd-30hVUC&pg=PA90&dq=authentic+assessment&sig=e8iioRLnyQxJilROwnQHW9DPiwQ

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

if you choose to model your methods of assessment after the pbds, this article may be of assistance to you:

del bueno defined four components for interpersonal skills: conflict resolution, customer relations, team building, and issue versus content. you will be asked to write your responses to such problems such as: (1) a patient says to you, “i don’t want that nurse to take care of me” (customer relations); and (2) the physician tells you, “add 40meq of potassium chloride to present iv bag” (conflict resolution).

tong, v., & henry, d. (2005). performance-based development system for nursing students. journal of nursing education, 44 (2), 95-96.

http://www.journalofnursingeducation.com/showabst.asp?thing=9820

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

another excellent resource:

performance learning and assessment: the wave of the future

excellent powerpoint for educators: learner-centered education, authentic learning, performance-based learning & tools.

performance learning and assessment: the wave of the future