Achieving meaningful online learning through effective formative assessment

Abstract

An online course was studied to investigate how integration of formative assessment enhanced the course design to facilitate learner engagement with meaningful learning experiences within the context of ICT-related professional development for teachers. The study employed case study methodology. Participants included postgraduate students enrolled in an ICT-related online course and the course teacher within a New Zealand university. Based on the findings, integrating ongoing authentic assessment activities within teaching and learning processes engaged the students actively, and provided opportunities for ongoing monitoring and assessment. These in turn, elicited appropriate formative feedback to support and scaffold learning. These formative processes also fostered development of an effective online learning community. The interplay between formative processes and an interactive learning community sustainably fostered learners' engagement with critical learning experiences including active, interactive, contextual, collaborative, reflective, multidimensional perspectives, and self-regulated aspects of meaningful learning, which ultimately supported development of robust and transferable knowledge.