ISSUES FOR THE ASSESSMENT AND MEASUREMENT OF STATISTICAL UNDERSTANDING IN A TECHNOLOGY-RICH ENVIRONMENT

As diverse technology use increases in education a number of issues are raised for assessment. This is true in all subjects, but may be particularly pertinent to statistics because students can now use large data sets and deal with multiple variables as part of their learning experiences. The issues are of two kinds. In classrooms, how do teachers assess work that has been produced through the use of technology? Using criteria that were developed for pencil-and-paper assessment may not be sufficient to capture the nature of students’ thinking when the burden of computational data analysis and data display are removed. Outside assessment processes are also challenged with the advent of tools such as Computer Adaptive Testing, and complex interactive data displays. The implications of using technology as part of assessment processes, both inside and outside the classroom, are explored.