Direct assessments are tangible and visible evidence of student learning measurable and tend to be more compelling evidence of what students know and can do. With direct assessment, the instructor can directly look at students’ work or performances to determine what they’ve learned.
Indirect assessments tend to be proxy signs of what students are probably learning, such as a survey of students’ perceptions of what they believe they have learned. It is not uncommon in students’ self-reports to either inflate or undervalue what they have actually learned.
Direct Assessment
Measures of learning based on student performance or demonstration of learning.
- Capstone Experiences
- Written Work, Performances, and Presentations, rated using a rubric
- Portfolios of student work
- Scores and pass rates on appropriate licensure/certification exams or other published tests that assess key learning goals
- Scores on locally designed multiple-choice and/or essay tests accompanied by test blueprints describing what the tests assess
- Score gains between entry and exit on published or local tests or samples of student work
- Assessments of student skills observed by their field experience supervisors
- Observations of student behavior (such as presentations, group discussions, lab performance)
- Summaries and assessment of electronic discussion threads
- Classroom response systems (such as clickers)
- Case Studies
Indirect Assessment
Assessments that use perception or secondary evidence for making inferences about student learning.
- Student ratings on their knowledge and skills
- Focus Groups
- Interviews
- Reflections
- Surveys
- Course grades
- Retention and graduation rates
- Admission rates into graduate programs
- Scores on tests required for future study (GRE)
- Placement rates of graduates into appropriate career positions and starting salaries
- Alumni perceptions of their career responsibilities and satisfaction
- Questions of end-of course student evaluation forms that ask about the course
- Student/alumni/employer satisfaction of learning, collected through surveys, exit interviews, or focus groups
- Student participation rates in faculty research, publications, and conference presentations
- Honors, awards, and scholarships earned by students and alumni
Resources
- Suskie L. Assessing Student Learning: A Common Sense Guide, 2nd Edition (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2009)
- Leibold N. & Schwarz LM. Direct and Indirect Assessment Measures of Student Learning in Higher Education. Faculty Focus. 2025.