Educational Technologies and Assessment Practices: Evolution and Emerging Research Gaps

Introduction

The rapid adoption of technology in education has brought with it a transformative effect on assessment practices. As technology-enabled learning continues to evolve, it becomes crucial to understand how these developments are influencing assessment redesigns and implementation (Ertmer and Ottenbreit-Leftwich, 2013; Mishra, 2020; Robertson and Barber, 2017). However, while there exists a plethora of studies on technology's broader impact on education, a distinct gap is observed in the literature when it comes to the nuanced influence of specific technological trends on assessment practices.

The intricate dynamics between technological advancements and their ramifications on the design, delivery, and evaluation of assessments presents a pressing research problem: As educational technology paradigms shift, how are assessments adapting to these changes, and what does the future hold? In this chapter, we embark on a journey to bridge this gap and address the posited problem. We explore the evolution and impact of critical educational technology groups on assessment practices, leveraging the predictions made in the Horizon Report (HR), coupling them with bibliometric and network analyses. We delve into the predictions of HR, analyzing their intersections with assessment practices.

Numerous bibliographic and reference sources offer insights into the potential trajectories of technology in education. Among these is HR. Published by Educause since 2004, HR stands out for its consistent longitudinal predictions on emerging global educational technologies, allowing the tracing of trends and patterns covering diverse educational aspects such as teaching, learning, and assessments. The report's credibility stems from its rigorous selection process for identifying emerging technologies, involving a panel of experts and educators. Given its long-standing reputation and comprehensive coverage, HR serves as an invaluable resource for this chapter. Building upon the works of Martin et al. (2011) and Dubé and Wen (2022), we delved into recent literature to explore the nexus between technological trends and their implications on assessment practices. Unlike previous works that predominantly focused on the broad impact of technological trends on education, this chapter hones in on the specific domain of assessment, aiming to shed light on its evolving landscape.

Through analyses of HR's predictions, we have distilled three dominant educational technology groups that stand at the forefront of reshaping assessment practices, forming the core of this chapter:

• 1.

  Ubiquitous Technology: Encompassing technologies such as mobile devices, Internet of Things (IoT) and robotics that facilitate pervasive learning experiences, transcending temporal and spatial boundaries.

• 2.

  Adaptive Technology: Centered around the paradigm of personalizing learning experiences, leveraging the power of data-driven insights and artificial intelligence (AI).

• 3.

  Immersive Technology: Encompassing the realm of games and gamification, and mixed reality (MR) (alongside its derivative technologies virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR)) that craft rich, immersive, and interactive learning environments.

These groups have been identified as the flywheel of assessment innovations, offering glimpses into the future trajectories of assessments in educational settings. Through network analyses, we have unearthed key research themes inherent to these technology groups, providing insights on existing research areas and emerging research gaps for researchers and educators alike. This chapter, in essence, aims to chart the course for the future, highlighting the intersections of educational technology and assessment, and the myriad possibilities they herald.