New Methods in Online Assessment of Collaborative Problem Solving and Global Competency International Association for Educational Assessment (IAEA) 2014 Conference Singapore

Today, proficiency in collaborative problem solving and global competency is requisite for success in college and workplace. Collaborative problem solving and global competency are the two major areas that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) nominated in 2015 and 2018 for major development in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), in addition to scientific literacy, math, and reading literacy. In PISA 2015, the competency is assessed by evaluating how well the individual collaborates with agents during the problem-solving process. At the same time, structuring computer-based of collaborative problem solving and global competency assessment, specifically for large-scale programs, is challenging. In a standardized assessment situation, a student should be matched with various types of group members that will represent different skills, cultures, and contexts. In addition, the discourse between the group members should be manageable and predictable. This paper addresses these challenges by introducing new methodologies for scalable human and computer-agent based online assessment of collaborative problem solving and global competency, and discussing findings from an empirical pilot study conducted in the United States, Singapore, and Israel. Directions for future research are discussed in terms of their implications for large-scale computer-based assessment programs, teaching, and learning.