Authentic Assessment for Improving Cognitive Skill, Critical-Creative Thinking and Meta-Cognitive Awareness

Abstract

Authentic Assessment, also known as alternative assessment, is an assessment used to holistically and continuously record students’ achievement, including both product and learning process, and is inseparable from teaching and learning process. Authentic assessment is considered more applicative and meaningful as it improves motivation, leads to effective learning, and demonstrates students’ knowledge, skill, and competence. The types of authentic assessment include paper and pencil test, portfolio, study journal, performance assessment, presentation discussion, and the like. Authentic assessment, directly and indirectly, improve students’ achievement. Authentic assessment is continuous, thus enables students to monitor their progress. Monitoring skill is a part of meta-cognitive awareness, as meta-cognitive awareness includes thinking how to think (in this case the ability to control the mind). Authentic assessment improves meta-cognitive awareness and thinking skill. Thinking falls within two categories. Lower-ordered thinking includes knowledge, comprehension, and application; while higher-ordered thinking, known as thinking skill, includes critical and creative thinking. The two of which are inseparable like a two-sided coin. They contribute one another in sharpening critical and creative thinking skills.

Keywords: authentic assessment, critical-creative thinking, meta-cognitive awareness