High-Stakes Assignments

High-stakes assessment of student learning often involves the evaluation of a student's final "product," whether it is a term paper, final exam, or other type of project. Students will be better prepared for high-stakes assessment by providing them with frequent and timely low-stakes assignments.

Characteristics

• Encourages synthesis across an entire course or discipline
• Requires creation of discipline-specific products (research papers, presentations)
• Is often summative, requiring demonstration of the degree to which students have learned key course concepts and skills
• Usually represents a larger percentage of the course grade

Examples

Beginning with sample course learning goals, the following chart can help you identify an effective high-stakes classroom assessment or appropriate types of questions.

If you want to assess students'...	Then assign or give
Ability to define key course terminology and recall facts	Writing assignments that require appropriate use of disciplinary or course terminology Exams with Fill-in-the-blank questions Matching questions Multiple choice questions Short answer questions
Synthesis of key course concepts	Case studies Debates Essay exams Final projects Multiple choice questions Presentations Portfolios Research projects Simulations
Application of discrete research, technical, performance, or meta-cognitive skills	Writing projects Case studies Debates Performances Presentations Simulations
Ability to transfer knowledge or skills and apply them to new situations	Writing projects Case studies Debates Simulations
Creation of new knowledge	Portfolios Video essays Artwork Websites Presentations Research projects Thesis or dissertation

​