Integrative Performance Assessments In Technology

Introduction

This report describes the development of a set of prototype technology-supported performance assessments designed to test students’ use of technology integrated within problem-based reasoning and communication tasks. The prototypes were developed as part of a grant from the U.S. Department of Education to support planning for a major program of rigorous, systematic educational technology research. The Integrative Performance Assessments of Technology (IPAT) prototypes were designed to demonstrate the kinds of assessment approaches that could be used to document the impacts of technology programs on student learning. The goals for the development of the student performance assessment prototypes were:

• to provide common, credible, technically sound measures of standards related to technology use, reasoning with information, and communication outcomes addressed in a wide range of technology programs and classrooms

• to apply and extend an assessment design framework with modular components that could provide “templates” or task models for new or modified assessments addressing similar outcome areas

• to provide preliminary evidence about the technical quality of the general design approach and function of the prototype assessments