What is the difference between direct and indirect assessment?
Direct and indirect assessments are often called direct and indirect measures. (ABET uses ‘measures’ and ‘methods’.) Direct measures of a learning outcome “reveal what students know and can do [while] indirect measures … suggest why performance was above or below expectations and what might be done to improve the processes of education” (Banta, 2004, p. 5). Using a combination of direct and indirect measures is advisable, because they offer complementary information. However, assessment plans must include direct measures in order to supply credible information for decision-making (Palomba & Banta, 1999). Direct measures A direct measure of a learning outcome allows faculty to directly observe a student’s demonstration of the knowledge, skills, abilities, and values that are relevant to the learning outcome (Palomba & Banta, 1999). Examples of direct measures are projects, papers, open-ended exam questions, presentations, performances, and portfolios. Note that most of these examples ar
