CTL Number 9
M arch 1991
Evaluating Student Projects
Last semester, in the spirit of pedagogical experimenta¬
tion, Professor Edison decided to allow students an
alternative to the traditional term paper. Students were
encouraged to suggest innovative projects in which
they could apply the concepts they had learned in the
course. Edison felt that students had never delved very
deeply into the course material in the term paper and
was hoping that this innovation would foster more
intellectual involvement on their part. Many students
accepted the challenge, and Edison received proposals
for three videotapes, two slide shows, a computer
simulation, and two group presentations, all of which
looked interesting and worthwhile. But at the end of
the semester, sitting at a desk piled with videotapes,
slides, computer disks, and term papers, Edison began
to have second thoughts How can one grade such a
variety of work? Should some students automatically
receive more credit for accepting the challenge and
showing some creativity? Are the special projects in
any way truly equivalent to the term paper? Is innova¬
tion really worth the trouble? Let's examine how Profes¬
sor Edison got into trouble.
Edison was on the right track in thinking that some
types of course material may be learned more effectively
through field work, and may be more convincingly
presented in a slide show or videotape than in a written
paper. For example, a student in an Anthropology
course on religious practices in the South might wish to
compare the degree of congregational participation in
services of different denominations The student could
gain invaluable insights into the subject by visiting
churches, recording a variety of services on videotape,
and then selecting sections of each to compare and
contrast. In addition, role plays, class presentations, and
interviews can be used to demonstrate the application
of communication skills required in a broad range of
courses Such assignments call on students to present
ideas actively, making clear how well they have been
able to integrate material from readings lecture and
discussion. Moreover, this kind of exercise increases
student involvement and motivation. As a result, they
tend to learn more and remember it longer.
One other major advantage of non-traditional assign¬
ments is the opportunity they afford to evaluate stu¬
dents on more than one cognitive level. When students
are required to exercise judgment and create something
new, they must operate on the highest cognitive levels
(which, incidentally, are the same levels at which we
operate in our professional lives). Often, term papers
and similar exercises only approximate some of the
important intellectual skills that we expect our students
to demonstrate. Of course, paper assignments and tests
are usually easier to design, evaluate, and administer
than special projects and performance exercises The
assignment of non-traditional projects also requires
clearly-defined criteria for evaluation, otherwise grading
becomes unacceptably subjective.
Planning Student Projects
Once you have opted to assign a non-traditional
project, decide whether you are interested in assessing a
product (something tangible like a video), the process
by which that product is created, or some aspects of
both. In general, it is easier to concentrate on the
product itself; however, processes can be successfully
evaluated using journals in which students document
the steps they took in creating their products Assessing
this process often provides the best opportunity to
evaluate students' higher level cognitive skills In the
example of the student researching church services, you
could restrict the evaluation criteria to the product, the
mini-documentary itself. But you would have a more
accurate idea of the student's ability to integrate ideas if
you looked at earlier versions to see how the final
material was selected. Does the process of editing
footage of the services and interviews with church
members show important insights into the attitudes
that underlie the observed behavior? (A journal that
describes the decision process would be helpful here).
Center for Teaching and Learning •University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill