Predicting Students' Examination Performance with Discovery-embedded Assessment using a Prototype Diagnostic Tool

Early detection and provision of feedback on learners’ performance are essential mechanisms to allow learners to take prompt action to improve their approach to learning. Although students may learn how they perform in mid-term quizzes, the results cannot reflect how they might perform in the final examination. However, quiz results with set answers cannot illustrate the comprehensive skills and knowledge that are expected in university study. This paper reports on the use of a diagnostic tool to analyse the process of students working on a discovery-embedded assessment task in the collaborative learning environment of a microbiology course. The diagnostic tool identified that those learners who performed less well in the assessment tasks also performed less well in the final examination. This tool can provide early detection of those facing learning challenges in comprehensive assessment tasks, so that educators can provide appropriate support.