Technology-Mediated Assessment in Crossover Learning Assessment Design (CLAD): A Case from Sustainable Engineering Design Education

Abstract

Crossover Learning Assessment Designs (CLADs) are unique in their coordination of formal and informal learning through technology-mediated assessment of curricular concepts. This chapter captures the research-based design of one CLAD that employed technology-mediated assessments driven by an augmented reality learning (ARL) platform to provide high school students an exposure to sustainable engineering design concepts. These assessments were embedded in the learning content that drew on the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and spread across the real-world setting of a solar house. Learners interacted with the overlaid augmented content and assessments on their mobile devices as they physically navigated the GPS-marked locations across the solar house. Analytics on the learners’ performance on these assessments were secured on the ARL platform for further analyses. Data collected through iterative usability cycles helped improve the design of technology-mediated assessments that are essentially: (1) place-based, (2) curriculum-focused, and (3) technology-driven. Most importantly, the design of these assessments is deeply rooted in the conceptual distinction of informal and formal learning based on the emphasis on experiential and explanatory knowledge respectively. This chapter proposes CLAD as a pedagogical solution that coordinates explanatory (formal) and experiential (informal) learning through technology-mediated assessments. The chapter also presents the design framework of technology-mediated assessments within a particular CLAD with the hope that educational researchers and practitioners will draw upon this framework in their efforts to bridge formal and informal learning experiences.