Benchmark: Work-Based Assessment

Directions:

Write an essay (1,750-2,000 words) in which you examine a work-based assessment. In your essay, address the following:

1. A research-based evaluation of the theoretical approach that best describes predictive and criterion work-based assessment. (Benchmarks C4.4: Evaluate theories and methods for selecting, training, appraising, organizing, and supervising both employees and managers.)

2.Proposed strategies to improve work-based assessment. (Benchmarks C4.5: Evaluate methods for the selection, administration, and interpretation of workplace tests and assessments.)

3.Identification of the industrial organizational psychologist’s role in work-based assessment. (Benchmarks C4.1: Identify the role of industrial organizational psychologists in an organization.)

ANSWER

Theoretical Approach to Work-Based Assessments

Work-based assessment is employee evaluation as they work on their jobs in their work-life or at the workplace. It is a group of assessment models that evaluate employee’s and trainees’ abilities as they perform or do their work. The assessment may often include testing employees’ knowledge, job roles, logs, duties, and testing different files as long as they relate to the work in question. All individuals are expected to demonstrate competency before commencing practice in their specific discipline. However, demonstrating these competencies even during practice has become essential. Work-based assessments are conducted to determine the performance of professionals in the workplace and to judge the habitual use of communication, knowledge, and technical skills in daily practice. Work-based assessments can help an organization to maintain performance standards. It may also help organizations recognize various areas they need to improve so that their performances can be better. Given the high competition for top talent, having a competent workforce with requisite skills has become essential to an organization’s survival. Therefore, it is possible to conclude that work-based assessment is a basic need for any organization that needs to be at the top of the market in what they do.

Attracting and maintaining requisite skills starts at the employee recruitment stage. Various employee selection methods can be used to attract top talent to the organization. Organizational leaders can use task-oriented or job-oriented analyses to select employees. Job-oriented assessments include job knowledge tests, personality tests, cognitive ability tests (verbal, numerical, reasoning, and reading ability), structured interviews, etc. Task-based assessments include situational judgment tests, work sample tests, and assessment centers.

Professional development (learning) is a term used to indicate career development and training. Alhaboosi (2018) defined it as a set of practices designed to enrich employee skills, attitudes, knowledge, and competencies to meet organizational objectives. Within the deterministic models, three major assumptions of work-based assessments are made. First, learning is a deterministic and linear process, while task performance is an abstract element that is context-independent (Govaerts & van der Vleuten, 2013). Second, competence is a fixed and decontextualized attribute and, thirdly, performance can be objectified, i.e., can be observed and rated. The deterministic model postulates that true performance can only be inferred from a correct score derived from sound measurements.

On the other hand, socio-cultural theories postulate that workplace learning is derived from community activity participation and interaction with complex systems in work settings (Govaerts & van der Vleuten, 2013). For example, Kolb’s theory postulated that an individual’s behaviors, attitudes, skills, and competencies could be honed through formal or informal learning processes (Mourão, 2018). According to Kolb’s learning theory, knowledge can be acquired through experience, abstract conceptualization, reflective observation, and experimentation (Mourão, 2018). Thus, from a deterministic perspective, workplace learning can be derived through formal learning methods such as training processes, mentorship programs, and action monitoring. One approach of work-based assessment involves integrating practical and formative assessment strategies within the professional practice context to enable data collection to determine improvement areas. From a social-cultural perspective, learning can be derived through participation in community practice and peer collaboration. Employee behaviors and performance can also be evaluated through a standard appraisal system. Leaders can use performance appraisals to plan an employee’s career development or reward systems (Alhaboosi, 2018). To sum up, socio-cultural theories assert that knowledge is produced through social interaction, while deterministic models theorize that learning can be achieved through abstract conceptualization and reflective observation.

Supervision techniques can be directive, collaborative, non-directive, creative, and alternative. In the directive approach, the supervisor informs or directs the learner, models learning behaviors, and evaluates the learner’s mastery of the modeled behaviors. Alternative supervisory approaches involve allowing learners to develop new skills by providing alternative methods to learning. The collaborative approach involves a partnership between learner and supervisor to address problems. The learner and supervisor can pose a hypothesis and brainstorm ideas on how to approach and resolve it. Instead of being the key decision-maker, the supervisor supports the learner in making independent decisions. In non-directive methods, the supervisor allows the learner to resolve their problems without interfering in the problem-solving process. The creative supervisory approach involves using the aforementioned supervisory methods and allowing freedom and creativity during the learning process.

Proposed strategies to improve work-based assessment

The widespread use of work-based assessments provides an opportunity for feedback and interaction between trainers and employees. However, there are many challenges in using these assessments. Zielinski (2018) reports the use of work-based assessments is evolving. According to Zielinski (2018), organizations are no longer assessing an individual’s skills and intellectual capability. They are also assessing personality traits, cultural fit, and motivation. In the wake of technology, there has been a growing interest in assessing soft skills over technical skills. Regardless of the approach and interest, work-based assessments need to be versatile enough to address candidates’ individual needs.

To that end, various strategies have been devised to improve the assessments. A study conducted by Schaaf et al. (2017) showed that work-based assessments could be enhanced by an E-portfolio enhanced with learning analytics. E-portfolios provide the means through which work-based assessments are administered. Typically, E-portfolios are structured to cover a specific area, e.g., performance management or performance type. A statistical model implanted in the E-portfolio is responsible for translating learner scores into performance progress. Unfortunately, E-portfolios are often ineffective and have limited impact on learning. Also, a considerable amount of data needs to be collected over an extended period to reflect an individual’s performance truly.

Learning analytics can be integrated with the E-portfolios to improve work-based assessments and feedback to address these issues. Learning analytics is a technological approach that optimizes data measurements and data collection, analysis, and reporting processes to improve learning outcomes. Given that the validity and reliability of work-based assessments are questionable, learning analytics can resolve these issues. According to Schaaf et al. (2017), integrating learning analytics with E-portfolios can improve work-based assessments’ effectiveness. It can ensure that workplace assessments and feedback are personalized according to learners’ needs, further improving their effectiveness (Schaaf et al., 2017). When integrated with learning analytics, the validity, credibility, and reliability of the learner’s strengths and weaknesses will be improved.

Another key component of using learning analytics is that it can improve the predictive performance of the tests. According to Zielinski (2018), organizations are already using artificial intelligence (AI) to score assessments. AI minimizes human errors hence improving interpretation and reporting procedures. Given that the validity of workplace tests depends on evidence generated by assessment results, learning analytics can improve WBA accuracy. Organizational managers can use these values to identify employees’ improvement areas and effectively improve performance and meet individual needs. Learning analytics is an effective method for administering and interpreting work-based assessments.

The second approach is shifting the emphasis of the work-based assessment (WBA) from learning to assessment for learning. According to Govaerts (2015), ‘assessment of learning’ is deeply ingrained in traditional WBA, which affects the assessments’ efficacy. The ‘assessments of learning’ approaches measure learning outcomes by quantifying a learner’s performance. However, evidence indicates that assigning grades and scores to learners is harmful to competence development (Govaerts, 2015). Grades can be demotivating to individuals who perform poorly in the assessments. Apart from encouraging learners to focus on the product (grades) rather than the process (learning), numerical scores are also limited when it comes to interpreting learner performance (Govaerts, 2015). For example, it is difficult to interpret what a score of “6” in communication means.

Therefore, scholars have proposed omitting grading systems from the work-based assessments to improve their effectiveness. Instead of using numbers or scores, trainers should use words or narrative evaluations to provide learners feedback. Using an ungraded assessment to provide performance feedback is known as ‘assessment for learning‘ or formative assessments. Formative work-based assessments are more effective than summative assessments (Govaerts, 2015). They encourage dialogue and engagement, without which feedback would be perceived as meaningless (Govaerts, 2015). This approach can improve assessment literacy, accountability, learner-supervisor relationship, and overall performance (Govaerts, 2015; Robbins et al., 2018). Through dialogues, learners can actively set their own goals, discuss performance with recruiters, and establish means through which shared goals can be achieved.

Psychologist’s role in the work-based assessment

Industrial psychologist’s primary role is to improve workplace productivity and the physical and mental wellbeing of employees. They perform a wide range of tasks, including evaluating employee’s behaviors and attitudes and conducting organizational training. At the organizational level, an industrial psychologist’s role can be categorized into six main areas: employee selection, ergonomics, performance management, organizational development, work conditions/culture, and training and development (Cherry & Morrin, 2019). In the ergonomics area, the industrial psychologist will create and design procedures meant to improve performance. In employee selection, they are responsible for developing appropriate assessments such as screening tests to determine whether an applicant is fit for a particular position. They conduct job analyses and establish the job description of each position. They also create and conduct personality tests that match an individual’s personality to the job requirements. According to Cherry and Morrin (2019), industrial psychologists who work in organizational development are charged with designing products and improving organizational structure and design to improve its performance.

Work-based assessments fall in the performance management category. The psychologists will develop the assessments’ objectives and determine how the assessments will be used (e.g., assessment outcomes will be used for career development or training purposes). He/she will also design the assessments and ensure that they meet curriculum objectives. They will also match the assessment level with employees’ level at the organizational hierarchy. Putting these considerations into perspective will improve the assessments’ validity and reliability (Cherry & Morrin, 2019). They will also determine how the assessment will be weighted and analyzed and train evaluators on the same. The psychologist evaluates employee behaviors and attitudes in the training and development area and determines the appropriate training program. Industrial psychologists are also responsible for ensuring that the work environment nurtures workers’ mental and physical wellbeing.

References

Alhaboosi (2018, September). Human resource development. Research Gate. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/327546162

Cherry, K., & Morrin, A. (2019, November 26). How industrial-organizational psychology helps improve workplaces. Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-industrial-organizational-psychology-2795302#:~:text=Industrial%2Dorganizational%20psychologists%20perform%20a

Govaerts, M. (2015). Workplace-based assessment and assessment for learning: threats to validity. Journal of Graduate Medical Education, 7(2), 265–267. https://doi.org/10.4300/jgme-d-15-00101.1

Govaerts, M., & van der Vleuten, C. P. (2013). Validity in work‐based assessment: expanding our horizons. Medical education, 47(12), 1164-1174.

Mourão, L. (2018). The role of leadership in the professional development of subordinates. Leadership, 123-138

Robbins, J., Firth, A., & Evans, M. (2018). Improving work based assessment: addressing grade inflation numerically or pedagogically?. Practitioner Research in Higher Education, 11(1), 80-86

Van der Schaaf, M., Donkers, J., Slof, B., Moonen-van Loon, J., van Tartwijk, J., Driessen, E., Badii, A., Serban, O., & Ten Cate, O. (2017). Improving workplace-based assessment and feedback by an E-portfolio enhanced with learning analytics. Educational Technology Research and Development, 65(2), 359–380. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-016-9496-8

Zielinski, D. (2018, January 22). Predictive Assessments Give Companies Insight into Candidates’ Potential. SHRM; SHRM. https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/talent-acquisition/pages/predictive-assessments-insight-candidates-potential.aspx

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