Insights from Using Process Indicators for Formative Assessments within Learning Management Systems
Abstract
Psychometric assessments can serve multiple purposes, including assessments that provide informative feedback to allow test-takers to identify strengths and weaknesses in a particular domain. When embedded within digital learning environments, assessment for learning may increase interest and perceived usefulness of learning opportunities. If process indicators reflect relevant differences in strategic approaches for task completion or performance, the feedback of psychometric assessments might include information derived from process indicators. In the presentation, we showcase this use of process indicators using an assessment of multiple document comprehension (MDC; Schoor et al., 2020) embedded in a learning management system via the Learning Tools Interoperability (LTI) interface. University students were presented with multiple documents in a computer-based environment that collected various log data while students read, annotated, and highlighted the texts and answered questions constructed to measure MDC. Beyond the scores, process indicators, such as the students’ sourcing behavior (Hahnel et al., 2020), are used to generate instant feedback on the performance and applied behaviors. After receiving feedback, students are provided with the opportunity to use support materials to improve their MDC skills. Future conceptual developments and technical alternatives to LTI interface for embedding psychometric assessments in digitalized learning environments are presented, and an outlook on learning analytics will be given.