Traditional Assessment
For a long period of time, assessments for a training program were carried out in a traditional manner. They’re still being carried out under certain specific situations. This traditional form of assessment has negligible interference of technology. It majorly relies on human efforts, uses tools and techniques such as pen and paper-based tests, questionnaires, interviews etc. The contemporary world has witnessed the arrival of technology in the realm of learning and development. The traditional process has now incorporated the elements of technology. We live in the electronic era, where every other process is being preceded by the ‘E’ word. Why should assessment stay behind?
E-Assessment- The Present and the Future of Assessment
E-Assessment is an assessment backed by the modern elements of technology. The usage of E-Assessment is increasing at a rapid pace. It is being increasingly used as a very suitable and convenient alternative to the traditional forms of assessment. There are a variety of reasons and benefits that make E-Assessment a feasible choice as against the limitations of the traditional methods, thereby making it the present and the future of assessment!
E-Assessment over Traditional Assessment
Here are some of the benefits and features of E-Assessment that makes it the most sought-after assessment tool in the modern world.
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Cost and Convenience
Under E-Assessment, the need for maintaining a physical infrastructure is reduced to a great extent. Similarly, administrative tasks are also minimized. As a consequence, a lot of cost involved is saved for the organization. This isn’t the case with traditional assessment. Besides cost, the formulation of traditional forms of assessment involves a great deal of human effort. The same gets digitized under E-Assessment enhancing the degree of ease. The high-quality online assessments are also devoid of any human bias.
With respect to the user convenience under E-Assessment, there is an abundance of flexibility for the user with respect to time, location and accessibility. They can perform their assessments using multiple devices, whenever they want and irrespective of wherever they are. This level of convenience isn’t even a remote possibility under the traditional forms of assessment.
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Advanced Analytics
Analytics are ruling the world of business. They’re also being increasingly used in the Learning and Development domain, especially under E-Assessments, analytics serves as an important recipe for success. The extent of insights generated by advanced analytics takes assessment to a different level. These insights are used to create user-wise reports based on multiple metrics such as completion rates, performance, time-spent, marks obtained, improvements over a period of time etc. Such deep insights can’t be generated under a traditional setting. The availability of this feature in modern E-Assessment platforms is a very important dimension that enhances the credibility of the platform.
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Multiple Tools
E-Assessments can incorporate the different tools of assessment and that too under a single platform. Whether you need to conduct a basic test, interview or survey, you can use E-Assessment as an effective medium for hosting these distinct tools in an online format. On the other hand, if you want advanced tools of assessment such as gamification, you can do that too in a very effective manner. Other tools of assessment such as role-plays and simulations can be also hosted on the platform using video conferencing, though they’re better suited under the traditional format. Nevertheless, the complete range of tools supported by E-Assessment under its single umbrella makes it exciting to a great extent.
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Dashboard
E-Assessment platforms follow an organized path. They are well structured with the availability of a user-friendly dashboard that serves as a guide to the users. The dashboard displays the journey of the user. It provides the access to the various assessments, displaying the status while updating the users about their progress. It is a distinctive feature of E-Assessment that facilitates the progress of the users, amplifying the journey into a great user experience.
The platform also contains several other provisions that are handy for the users such as navigation tools, screen readers, voice and facial recognition etc.
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Multilingual Capability and Immediate Feedback
An important feature of E-Assessment is the availability of assessments in multiple languages under a single setting. The multilingual capability turns out to be of great use when the users are scattered across linguistic geographies. This feature maintains consistency within assessments in multiple languages. It’s certainly more difficult to organize distinct assessments for different languages under traditional forms of assessment.
Another very significant feature of E-Assessment platform is the presence of immediate feedback. The online process delivers instant results with a provision to deliver feedback at the same time. This is highly important from a user point of view. Usually, under a traditional setting, the generation of results takes time and as a result, the feedback gets delayed. The essence of assessment is improvement and with delayed feedback, the improvement process is hampered. -
Digital Adoption
Even after around two years of its outbreak, the COVID19 virus is still a threat in many countries across the globe. It has led to a paradigm shift with the rising adoption of digital technologies due to the restrictions imposed on physical proximity. The culture has changed with people getting accustomed to the digital ways in their personal and professional life. As a result, the organizations have already adjusted their functioning in a way that supports this cultural shift.
E-Assessment is the answer in this dynamic world that’s marked by forces of disruption be it the COVID19 pandemic or anything else that can impede physical proximity. The traditional forms of assessment rely on physical presence and are rendered useless under such a situation. As a result, it’s imperative to prepare alternatives that ensure a smooth flow of functions even during extraordinary circumstances.
Conclusion
E-Assessment not only serves as an effective alternative to traditional assessment under restrictive times of disruption but also during regular days, the multi-purpose usability of E-Assessment stands apart. The value offered by the technology used by E-Assessment platforms outshines the traditional forms by miles.
For any organization, the success of their training programs is paramount and accurate assessment is the key to success of the training program. Therefore, leveraging the technological advancements in the field of assessment through E-Assessment is a must for accurate results and consequent reflection in the organizational functioning.
