Play-based assessment through a simulation-based widget: Reflection to practice

ABSTRACT

As the application of authentic assessment (AA) in early childhood education (ECE) programs is emerging, the demand for professionals who understand the fundamental elements of AA and can incorporate them into their practices is increasing. However, teaching professional competencies and providing opportunities to put theory into practice, specifically in online courses, is challenging. While technology-based learning is becoming increasingly common in education, the utilization of simulation-based technology in higher education is still emerging. This reflection on practice describes the development and implementation of a specially designed, simulation-based learning widget called the Play-Based Assessment Widget (PBAW). The PBAW was used to assist undergraduate students in practicing professionalism, including communication and collaboration skills, as they simulate interaction with a family in a web-based instructional tool called widget. Instructors’ findings indicate that the PBAW is a proper tool for imitating real-life scenarios, connecting theory with practice, and evaluating students’ content knowledge.

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Stivens Remarais and Lori Benkowski for their work on the survey. We would also like to thank our students for their feedback. In addition, thanks to Corey Peterson, Programmer in LS&T, who helped get us through some rough spots!

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/10901027.2024.2302624