COMPETENCE BASED ASSESSMENT AND ITS BENEFITS

COMPETENCE BASED ASSESSMENT AND ITS BENEFITS

What is Assessment?

Assessment is a systematic, continuous process of monitoring the various pieces of learning to evaluate student achievement and instructional effectiveness.

It also refers to those activities that are designed to measure learner achievement brought about as a result of an instructional programme.

The National Examinations Council of Tanzania (NECTA) administers two types of assessment which are the formative and summative assessment for various levels of education in Tanzania.

TYPES OF ASSESSMENTS

1. FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT

Formative assessment refers to a range of formal assessment conducted during the learning process in order to modify teaching and learning activities to improve student’s attainment.

The purpose is to find out whether students are able to do what they were previously unable to do after learning experience.

Formative assessments administered by NECTA include Standard Two National Assessment (3Rs) on a sample basis, Standard Four National assessment (SFNA) and Form Two National Assessment (FTNA).

2. SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT

Summative assessment refers to formal assessment conducted at the end of the learning process in order to provide feedback that sums up the teaching and learning process at a particular level.

It is judgmental in nature. Student performances in summative assessment determine to a large extent their job career or prospects of further education.

Summative assessment administered by NECTA include:

1. Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE),

2. Certificate of Secondary School Education Examination (CSEE),

3. Advanced Certificate of Secondary Education Examination (ACSEE),

4. Diploma in Secondary Education Examination (DSEE),

5. Diploma in Secondary Education Special Needs (DSEE-SNE),

6. Grade A Teachers Certificate Examination (GATCE) and

7. Grade A Teacher’s Special Course Certificate Examinations (GATSCCE)

The rationale for Assessment

The teaching and learning process cannot be complete without an assessment. That being the case, assessment of students’ progress is carried out for the following purposes:

™To provide an objective basis for determining the promotion of students from one class to another as well as the award of certificates.

™To identify students’ growth or lack of growth in acquiring desirable knowledge, skills, attitude and societal values.

™To determine the general trend in the development of teaching- learning process.

™To make reliable decisions about educational planning.

™To provide educational administrators with adequate information about teachers’ effectiveness and school need.

™To identify problems that might hinder or prevent the achievement of set goals.

™To help teachers determine the effectiveness of their teaching techniques and learning materials.

™To motivate students to learn more as they discover their progress or challenges in a given task.

™To provide a basis for determining to what level of education the possessor of a certificate should enter a career.

™To encourage students to develop a sense of discipline and systematic study habits.

Competence Based Assessment

Competency based assessment addresses what the learners are expected to do rather than what they are expected to learn about, in other words, competence based assessment is a productive type of assessment which focuses on what an individual does with the education he/she claims to possess. The primary focus of competence based assessment is not possession of education but what one does with the possessed education in real life.

The National Examinations Council decision to shift from knowledge based assessment in education to competence based assessment was influenced by the Educational policy of 2014 which directs the country to achieve middle level economy and industrial development by 2025.

Competence based assessment shifts the orientation of the examination content away from memorization of factual knowledge to competence based assessment by focusing more on the understanding of concepts and the acquisition of skills and competencies.

In other words, the emphasis of the competence based assessment is the higher order thinking skills. The focus is to produce people who will be good human resource in various sectors, i.e they can think critically, innovatively and analytically

Competency-based assessment is a rigorous, ongoing process, which aims in testing and building the knowledge, skills, and abilities of the learner.

The need for Competency-based assessment is gearing up in today’s dynamic world, where the stress is on sharpening current capabilities and developing new ones in order to stay ahead.

Competency-based evaluation in education is not just about developing new skills, rather defining the competency levels at different stages of expertise. This helps the learners gradually progress from novice to expert.

The very concept of competency-based assessment can form a super foundation for a succession planning process.

How does competency-based assessment work?

In most cases, the competency-based assessment starts with a self-assessment, followed by an assessor review. It is from here the learner’s development needs are identified, with which a development plan is created.

The next step is on and off-the-job training with a proven demonstration of skills attained. In many cases, there is room for re-assessment to better the learning.

The benefits of competency Based assessment

The advantages of competency-based assessment could be numerous. Here is an in-depth look at competency-based assessment in higher education:

1. Student work on their own pace

The strength of competency-based training is that it gives students ownership of their learning and allows them to meet a certain level of big-picture understanding.

Students simply do not continue with a significant gap in their understanding. Instead, they work at their own pace until they demonstrate mastery.

They are assessed precisely when they are confident in demonstrating their competencies, precisely in a way that fits them, and precisely in a way that captures who they truly are.

2. Flexibility

CBE is a boon to students who have dropped out but still want to move forward without a gap! Students do not have to waste time in the classroom on things they have already mastered with competency-based education. CBE allows them to continue demonstrating their level of mastery.

Its structure is determined by the individual learner, and there are no semesters or rigid classes. Rather students control and steer their learning through hands-on projects and assessments. CBE’s flexibility is such that its students can enter a program at any level, with credit given for prior experience.

It really doesn’t matter when or where they learned it; all that matters is that they know it.

3. A ticket to gain real-world experience

Higher education’s goal is to prepare students to be effective leaders in their chosen field. Beyond grades, acquiring real-world skills is increasingly in demand.

This applies to students from all faculties, including Nursing, Dental, Medical, and Healthcare. Students gain tangible experience that is not available in traditional learning settings!

4. Personalized way of teaching

Competency-based schools actively challenge age-old practices and implement alternative systems to promote success for all in schools that have failed to address students’ critical learning gaps, knowledge, and skills.

CBE depicts student learning in a transparent, authentic manner while still allowing for personalized training. Teachers in CBE create meaningful, engaging projects for students and collaborate to provide feedback and revise their work in order to achieve standard mastery. One-on-one personalized care and support is provided based on students’ individual learning needs.

The competency-based learning approach accommodates students who require more time to learn concepts and skills. It bridges the gap between them and advancement by providing more instructional support and time. In short, CBE prioritizes personalized pathways over linear progressions.

5. Timely support

In contrast to traditional schools, where students had to fail in order to receive remedial support, students in a competency-based assessment model receive additional support even while they are building knowledge and skills.

CBE’s strong points are formative assessments and effective feedback. The faculty at CBE encourages students to learn, progress, and advance at their own pace.

6. Purpose-driven

A true competency-based program, unlike a fad, has a clear purpose and a vibrant culture. It has perfectly blended together values, opinions, relationships, and routines that form its very foundation.

According to its design principles, any CBE program should be purpose-driven, spell equity, foster a culture of learning and development, and finally, empower distributed leadership.

7. A novelty in assessment and grading

CBE believes that standard grading policies kill students’ lifelong learning skills. As a result, it emphasizes mastery-based grading by providing effective feedback and guidance until students demonstrate proficiency. Traditional teaching methods relied on periodic report cards with grade-level marking based on assignments, tests, and performance.

Teachers graded students in their own way, with little room for revision (an absolute essential of the authentic learning process). The traditional system reflected knowledge but not learning. Competency-based learning, on the other hand, employs a different strategy for communicating progress that is deeply rooted in the learning sciences. Its learning process includes both failures and mistakes.

The use of rubrics in competency-based assessments is yet another novel idea for documenting each step of the learner’s progress. Students were free to practice and revise at their own pace thanks to the embedded assessments. Students are empowered, engaged, and communicated about their progress based on multiple sources of evidence at every stage of CBE grading.

8. A different strategy for communicating progress

CBE believes that standard grading policies kill students’ lifelong learning skills. As a result, it emphasizes mastery-based grading by providing effective feedback and guidance until students demonstrate proficiency. Traditional teaching methods relied on periodic report cards with grade-level marking based on assignments, tests, and performance.

Teachers graded students in their own way, with little room for revision (an absolute essential of the authentic learning process). The traditional system reflected knowledge but not learning. Competency-based learning, on the other hand, employs a different strategy for communicating progress that is deeply rooted in the learning sciences. Its learning process includes both failures and mistakes.

9. A skill-based training program ensures quality

CBE encapsulates both quality reciprocity and equality. Its guiding principle is to promote quality learning for all students. CBE programs are designed in accordance with the Degree Qualification Profile, a national quality assurance framework.

CBE’s faculty and SMEs first define the rigorous competencies, which are then defined and validated by third-party partners. Furthermore, the competency-based education network has been a major driving force in developing quality standards for institutions to develop high-quality programs.

All of this is accompanied by a relentless focus on achieving outcomes, which is nothing other than student success.

10. Affordability

Because students are the primary CBE respondents, institutions are designing competency-based education programs with affordability in mind. On a larger scale, however, the cost of CBE programs varies by institution, program, and student pace.

The faster a learner can demonstrate his abilities, the lower his program fee. However, in most cases, CBE programs are online offerings with low operating costs that do not require high tuition fees. Furthermore, the student’s financial aid is a lifeline.

CONCLUSION

Competence Based Assessment is an approach in assessment which is different from the traditional content-based assessment. Many Countries are transforming their education delivery systems. The new approach brings hope of improving the quality of education and therefore produce good skilled labour