The Role of Technology in Supporting and Improving Accessibility and Engagement in Assessment

Jurisdictions/testing organizations have transitioned from paper-based to digital assessments for many reasons. In my 2023 article, I provide highlevel descriptions of several benefits of digital assessments, related to authenticity, engagement, equity and inclusion, item and test development, test administration, scoring, feedback/reporting, data analytics, security, scalability, flexibility, environment/sustainability, and cost effectiveness. This article delves more deeply into two important benefits of digital assessments and their online interactive tools: accessibility and engagement.

In recent years, the majority of Canadian provincial and territorial large-scale student assessment programs, as well as the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada’s (CMEC) Pan-Canadian Assessment Program (PCAP), have transitioned/are transitioning from paper-based systems (or legacy systems) to modern, computer-based assessments.

The purpose of this article is to describe how technology can support/improve accessibility for and engagement of students in large-scale student assessment. In addition, anecdotal evidence from the jurisdictions’ experience with the digital solution (obtained through an online survey) provides an indication of the extent to which the assessment platform supports/improves student accessibility and engagement.

To learn more about how technology is transforming the future of digital assessment and creating fairer, more accessible learning experiences, read the full article here.

About the author: Dr. Richard Jones is the founder and principal consultant at RMJ Assessment and a strategic assessment partner of Vretta.