How Would You Like to Be Assessed? A Quantitative Analysis of Students' Preferences of Assessment Methods in Bahrain

Abstract

Students hold strong views, attitudes, and preferences for different assessment methods in their education. An understanding of students‟ preferences for assessment methods is fundamental to better design teaching styles and assessment practices which ultimately may help promote students‟ academic achievement. The current quantitative study was designed to gain more insight into students‟ actual preferences for assessment methods, particularly assessment types and item formats for the three core subjects that all students must take in the Kingdom of Bahrain: Arabic, Science, and Social Studies. The influence of gender and year level on students‟ preferences was examined, as well as the relationship between students‟ preferences and their selfefficacy towards different assessment types and item formats. Data were obtained from 1236 intermediate and secondary school participants, using an adapted questionnaire (Assessment Preferences Inventory) to measure their preferences. The results indicated that the participants were capable of identifying their preferred assessment types and item formats for each of the three subjects. The participants showed identical preferences for both Science and Social Studies, while their preferences for Arabic were slightly different. Within assessment types, group assignments and projects were the most preferred type for Arabic, while written tests where all supporting material is allowed, were the most preferred type for both Science and Social Studies. In regards to item formats, the most preferred was the multiple-choice format for the three subjects. Moreover, the findings of this study revealed that gender had a significant influence on the participants‟ preferences for assessment types for Arabic and Social Studies but not for Science. Gender significantly influenced the participants‟ preferences for item formats only for Science. Year level on the other hand only affected the participants‟ preference for assessment types for Arabic and Social Studies. Furthermore, the participants‟ preferences for assessment types and item formats for the three subjects were significantly related to their self-efficacy towards these types and formats. The study concludes by discussing the implications of the findings, as well as limitations and directions for future studies on the same topic.