Alternative Assessments in an Exam-Free Class

The transition to online learning during the pandemic has provided an opportunity to examine our assessment practices. We discuss the reasons we choose to not use exams, including potential inequities and the problem of accurately measuring student learning. We follow with some examples of alternative assessment strategies that focus on measuring conceptual understanding rather than procedural memorization. Finally, we explore the potential benefits to students and educators of adopting alternative assessment models. Courses to be addressed include statistics, precalculus and calculus.