A Comprehensive Alternative Assessment Method for Physics Practical

An alternative, more comprehensive, practical assessment method is proposed in this paper. The
first part of the assessment is conducted during the weekly lab work. In this new method, the
evaluation of students’ experimental skills while they are conducting the experiment and an oral
presentation to demonstrate their understanding of the experiment is made compulsory besides the
usual written report. This involves the evaluation of the students’ experimental skills and an
assessment of their understanding via a short oral presentation, conducted at the beginning of the
experiment. The students are expected to be able to explain the objectives of the experiments, how
the data would be collected, and what outcomes of the experiments are expected. The second part
of the assessment involves a lab test, which is conducted at the end of the semester. The test
includes the evaluation of both the students’ practical and analytical skills. The feasibility of this
method was investigated when it was carried out during January and July 2007 semesters. Results
obtained and feedbacks from students support the effectiveness of the assessment.