Direct vs. Indirect Assessment Methods

Direct assessment involves looking at actual samples of student work produced in our programs.

Indirect assessment is gathering information through means other than looking at actual samples of student work, such as surveys, exit interviews, and focus groups.

Each serves a particular purpose. Indirect measures can give us information quickly, but may not provide real evidence of student learning. Students may think that they learned well or say that they did, but that does not mean that their perceptions are correct.

For example, when I first go to a doctor, I am handed a form to fill out with my name, address, insurance provider, and answers to various questions, such as: Has anyone in my family ever had cancer? Am I taking various medications, such as? Am I allergic to anything? Have I ever had a major operation, and if so, for what purpose?

That’s a survey, an indirect assessment.

It may also ask me why I am seeing the doctor and what my symptoms are? That, too, is a survey, and my answers are my perceptions of my condition. I may or may not be correct. It is an indirect assessment of my health.

Then, I go in to the doctor, and he says to me, “How are you feeling?” I always answer, “Fine.” I always answer “fine” regardless of how I’m feeling: I don’t want to reveal anything too personal. My wife tells me I’m stupid. The doctor has just conducted an interview: an indirect assessment.

He still doesn’t know whether I’m healthy or not.

So then he listens to my heart, he thumps my knee (nothing), and he looks in my ears and eyes. Then he has me leave a urine sample. He has a nurse take some blood samples. He orders up a colonoscopy. Those are all direct assessments.

In short, his indirect assessments gave him some indications, but no evidcnce. He had to actually look at or listen to physical evidence to have a direct assessment.

So it is with our assessment of the curriculum. Students may have certain perceptions about what they’ve learned or not, but, until we look at the evidence –actual samples of their work—we really can’t be sure.