Educator's Wishlist: Must-Haves in Assessment Technology

K-12 schools are no strangers to technology. Educators have been finding ways to use technology to streamline and personalize learning for years. One place where it has proven to be transformative is assessment. 

But what exactly is assessment technology, and how can it be harnessed to improve the learning experience for students? Also, how can it support educators as they seek to build assessment cultures that are both effective and positive?

In this article, we'll dive into these questions and explore the most sought-after features in assessment technology, as revealed by teachers and administrators in this year’s State of Assessment in K-12 Education report.

What is Assessment Technology?

Let’s start with the basics. Assessment technology broadly refers to the digital tools that assess and evaluate students' learning outcomes, progress, growth, and performance. It can encompass many tools, including online quizzes, tests, and assessment management systems (AMS). Technology also broadens access to assessment content educators can trust, from expertly designed item banks to formative and predictive assessments that keep students on track year-round. 

All in all, educators can leverage assessment technology to understand where every student is in their learning journey.

How Technology Supports Assessment

The assessment cycle remains an essential part of the learning process–however, assessment can be time-consuming for teachers. Assessment technology exists to make educators' lives easier and ensure that every assessment is one they can trust. It offers many advantages, both for educators and students:

Efficiency: Technology streamlines the assessment process, saving educators’ valuable time. When implemented mindfully, it can help expedite grading, provide meaningful feedback quickly, and reduce administrative burdens.

Personalization: Assessment technology allows for personalized learning experiences. Teachers can use powerful tools to adapt assessments to individual student needs and provide feedback for specific students. 

Data-Driven Insights: By collecting and analyzing data, technology provides educators with deep insights into students' progress and areas of improvement. This data-driven approach informs instructional strategies so that every lesson, activity, and project helps students grow.

Assessment Technology Features Administrators and Teachers Want 

It’s one thing to talk about all the benefits assessment technology offers. Equally important is the educator's voice. How do they perceive technology in the assessment cycle? What do they look for in assessment technology? Because they are a primary user, their wants and needs should be front of mind. 

That’s why at Instruture, we’re committed to building assessment technology designed with educators in mind.

According to our State of Assessment survey this year, the following features topped educators’ wish list:

• Tracking Student Mastery of Learning Standards (46%): The ability to track students' mastery of specific learning standards is crucial. It helps educators identify areas where students may be struggling and tailor instruction accordingly. Teachers want to see their students succeed, and being able to track where students are at any time allows them to do just that.
• Aligning Content to Learning Standards (46%): Ensuring the curriculum and assessments align with educational standards is paramount. Just like knowing where they are is vital to building their learning journey, educators want to know that the content they’re creating puts students on the right track. 
• Real-Time Data Delivery to Teachers (42%): Timely access to student data is invaluable. It enables educators to make quick interventions when needed and ensures that instruction remains responsive to students' evolving needs.

In addition to these three features, educators and administrators highlighted other factors that influence their adoption of assessment technology:

• Valuable Data (51%): It's not enough to collect data quickly; that data must be meaningful and actionable. Technology should provide insights that guide instructional decisions and help improve student outcomes. 
• Leadership Endorsement (47%): When school and district leadership embraces assessment technology, it creates a culture of innovation and encourages adoption. Tip: Building strong rapport between teachers and administrators also helps buy-in. Discover more ways to build a firm administrator and teacher partnership around assessment.
• Time Savings for Teachers (47%): Assessment technology can and should ease the workload of educators, allowing them to focus more on teaching and less on time-consuming tasks. 

Administrators also expressed the value of data dashboards that give them a bird's eye view of student performance by class, grade, and district level. These dashboards allow them to stay informed of student progress and continue building an informed vision of how to set every classroom up for success.

Building a Student-Centered, Data-Driven Future

Assessment technology rapidly transforms education, offering efficiency, personalization, and data-driven insights. Educators and administrators have spoken, and their most-wanted features in assessment technology revolve around tracking student progress, aligning content with standards, and delivering real-time data. Finally, the value of data quality, leadership support, and time-saving features cannot be overstated.

“The role of assessment moving forward will be built on innovative technology advances that help to assess student's performance in the classroom better.” - Survey Respondent, Teacher in the State of Assessment in 2023

Download our State of Assessment in K-12 Education report to dive deeper into how the right assessment technology provides everyone with the right data at the right time.