Alternative assessments: The journey from venue-based examinations to take-home and online timed assessments

Abstract

Limited venues and the astronomic costs of securing venues all over the world to assess students at the University of South Africa (Unisa), South Africa’s biggest open distance learning institution, forced the university to embark on a journey exploring different possibilities to move away from the traditional venue-based examinations. Alternative assessment types were identified and thus the focus was placed on available technology-enhanced options. One of these options included take-home assessments (including timed assessments and multiple-choice questions that could be completed on personal computers as well as mobile devices). The Unisa systems did not make provision for alternative assessments and had to be reconfigured by way of action research to accommodate different forms of technology-enhanced assessments. The process proved to be quite complex, as various parties had to be consulted. Various other issues, such as exploring the system requirements for the new business processes; the needs of the academics, including quality assurance of these assessments; and the requirements of the Examinations department had to be addressed. Feedback was also provided by the module lecturers and students who participated in the pilot. The need to document the progress of the project since inception thus arose to provide a clear understanding of the lessons learned by a mega-university.