Assessment of Students’ Learning Outcome and Competency through a Blend of Knowledge and Practical Ability

Abstract

This study used Schneider's innovative design methodology and practices related to education to examine the impact of creative pedagogy toward students’ learning process improvement and outcomes through a blend of knowledge and practical skills. The research question is centered on whether a blend of knowledge and practical- ability serve as a fundamental resource for improving students’ learning outcomes, and a strong catalyst for educational innovation? The study was grounded on the theoretical framework of learning-oriented assessment (LOA), a type of students’ learning outcomes (SLO) model. It used assessment data collected from undergraduates registered at Tecnologico de Monterrey Global Business School for the investigation. To this end, we applied the Independentsamples Mann-Whitney U test to determine the mean differences between the students’ average grade and evidence 1 (Knowledge) and 2 (Practical- ability) by considering two groups of students (virtual vs in-person). Also, Multiple linear regression (OLS) and Multiple analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) were used to test whether Knowledge- and Practical- ability factors have an impact or are associated with final grades of the students, and whether the impact differs by the two groups. The results show that students require a blend of both knowledge and practicality to obtain quality learning/outcome.