Learning outcome assessment practice at polytechnic colleges in Addis Ababa

Abstract

Educational and training principles confirm that assessment practice improves quality training. This study investigated the practice of learning outcome assessment at polytechnic colleges in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A quantitative research design was employed to collect data and analysis the results of the study. Questionnaire was used for data collection from 202 trainers and 358 trainees, whereas structured interview was used with three deans, three department heads, six trainers, and six trainees. Data analysis was made by using descriptive statistics, including frequency, percent, mean, and standard deviation. Then, inferential statistics, such as T-test and ANOVA, were employed. The result of the study revealed that assessment practice faced challenges due to trainers‘ lack of skills in developing assessment tools, low commitment to assessment activities, inability to use table of specifications, and minimal skills in assessment tools analayis. Moreover, a variety of assessment tools were not utilized in the assessment process. Besides, there were weak alignments among training components, including learning objectives and assessment approaches. Furthermore, both trainers and trainees exhibited low perception towards learning outcome assessment practice at polytechnic colleges. The T-test result depicted that there was a significant difference in mean scores between trainers and trainees in relation to the factors that hinder learning outcome assessment. One-way ANOVA demonstrated that there was a statistically significant mean difference among polytechnic college trainees‘ perception based on their training levels. An independent sample T-test proved that there was a significant mean difference between trainers and trainees in relation to factors impacting assessment, utilization a range of assessment tools, alignment, and perception of assessment practices. Besides, there were significant mean differences in terms of trainers‘ experiences and learning outcome assessment practice. Overall, the study revealed that the effectiveness of learning outcome assessment at polytechnic college was suboptimal. Therefore, a continuous professional development program should be offered to polytechnic college trainers to improve the assessment practice. To obtain a comprehensive understanding about learning outcome assessment practice in polytechnic colleges, it is suggested for researchers and scholars to conduct further comparative study on the area of summative assessment, formative assessment, and self-assessment between vocational and technical institutes and other higher education institutes.