Assessment

This artifact includes the assessment design for the Mastering Storytelling Fundamentals module. The assessments are scaffolded, aligned with learning outcomes, and structured to guide learners from foundational analysis to original creative production. Early activities—such as story analysis and reflective worksheets—serve as diagnostic and formative assessments, helping learners engage with core concepts in low-stakes, supported ways. These build toward a summative project in which learners design an original narrative that integrates plot structure and character development. The assessment approach was developed using backward design and refined through iteration. Initial plans for a single final task evolved into a more scaffolded sequence, influenced by insights from learner personas and a recognition that adult learners in this course value hands-on, transferable outcomes.

Core Competencies

  • Applying Learning Theories and Design Frameworks

    I designed the assessments using a backward design approach. I ensured that each task aligned with a specific learning objective and cognitive level—from identifying and analyzing, to sketching and designing. I relied on Bloom’s Taxonomy to guide this progression and deliberately included diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments to scaffold learner development. My goal was to use assessment as part of the learning process itself—helping students build confidence and competence over time.

  • Using Research and Evaluation Skills

    As I refined the assessment structure, I relied on evaluation practices grounded in learner data and my own design reflections. The learner persona informed my decision to prioritize hands-on, practical tasks over abstract analysis. Using generative AI tools helped me quickly prototype and revise assessment materials like sketch sheets and reflection prompts which allowed for improvement. This process strengthened my ability to make evidence-informed decisions that improve the quality and clarity of learning assessments.

  • Using Knowledge of Technology Affordances and Constraints

     I used ChatGPT to prototype assessment prompts, reflection questions, and worksheet instructions. It helped me test multiple phrasings quickly, which was valuable for fine-tuning clarity and learner accessibility. However, I needed to carefully review and revise each output to ensure the activities aligned with the learning objectives and supported a logical scaffold. This process strengthened my ability to use emerging technologies as a design assistant—while staying critical of their constraints, particularly when precision, pacing, and learner agency are at stake.

Designing the assessments for this module helped me shift from thinking of assessment as a final checkpoint to understanding it as a core part of the learning process. I learned how to scaffold assessment tasks across a learning arc—starting with diagnostic and formative activities that build confidence and understanding, and culminating in a summative project that invites creative application. I also became more intentional about aligning assessments with both the learning objectives and the learner persona. Working with AI tools to draft prompts and scaffold worksheets was a useful way to iterate quickly, but it also made me more aware of how important precision and pedagogical judgment are. This artifact strengthened my ability to design assessments that are aligned, scaffolded, and responsive to real learners.