Best Research Award

e-Assessment is a mature technology. It works. Formative assessment is shown to have significant beneficial impact on learning but is difficult to scale. The OPAs are an innovative formative assessment solution, a national e-assessment system rolled out to all learners from years 2 – 9 based on adaptive assessment approaches. This is a serious attempt to deploy best practice in a national live educational environment. It has been informed by research from start to finish. This application is not about a single research study, but about the ongoing deployment of research to support a national government’s educational objectives

This research programme investigates how we can improve the accessibility of digital assessments to ensure they are as fair, valid and fit-for-purpose as possible. In emphasising and focusing on student voice, the impact on and experiences of SEND learners in relation to digital learning and assessment, our research contributes original thought and new insights into how we can better design and develop digital assessments – a currently under-researched and misunderstood topic. We believe this can add to, and enrich, existing bodies of research within the assessment community and is already contributing to tangible improvements to assessment experiences for SEND learners.

The MAPT is a multistage-adaptive assessment of mathematics and reading that leverages adaptive testing technology to meet accountability and educational demands. We have done extensive research on designing, developing, and validating the assessments. This research is documented in a 280-page technical manual, about 50 pages of which describes validation research and results. It is an outstanding example of building and validating a 21st-century assessment, and includes research on standard setting, and five sources of validity evidence.