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Presently the whole world has been experiencing a pandemic threat of coronavirus diesease 2019 (COVID-19) and at the same time facing unprecedented changes in everything including education. E-learning has evolved as the only alternative of knowledge transmission even in third world nations, and e-assessment has been playing an increasingly important role in this digital transformation of education. But how far and of what depth it has made its place among students' minds need to be studied to leverage its full potential to transform students' learning needs. This study reports an investigation made in this direction.

An online survey consisting of 40 questions in Google Forms was conducted to collect primary data on students' perception of e-assessment among 200 Indian students pursuing higher education from several geographical locations. The quantitative methodological approach was followed. The data were analyzed descriptively and inferentially.

The results were analyzed based on the model of acceptance and usage of e-assessment (MAUE), and findings revealed that students' overall perception toward e-assessment was of moderate level and this perception varies depending on their gender, academic level, nature of the stream of study and their economic condition. Of the eight domains investigated, students showed better perception in the perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, compatibility, subjective norms and self-efficacy domains, while they cut a sorry figure in domains like awareness, resource facilitation and information technology (IT) support. It became evident from their responses that COVID was instrumental in enhancing their interest in e-assessment.

The implication of this study lies in strengthening e-assessment by attending to the factors as noted in the MAUE in India and alike developing nations having huge space left for e-learning to reach a boom.

This is an empirical investigation conducted in India on the state of students' perception of the e-assessment in the backdrop of the COVID-19 outbreak. To do this work, the authors conducted online surveys, and the write-up of the findings focus on the survey data only.

Limited facilities operating and modernization budgets require organizations to carefully identify, prioritize and authorize projects to ensure allocated resources align with strategic objectives. Traditional facility prioritization methods using risk matrices can be improved to increase granularity in categorization and avoid mathematical error or human cognitive biases. These limitations restrict the utility of prioritizations and if erroneously used to select projects for funding, they can lead to wasted resources. This paper aims to propose a novel facility prioritization methodology that corrects these assessment design and implementation issues.

A Mamdani fuzzy logic inference system is coupled with a traditional, categorical risk assessment framework to understand a facilities’ consequence of failure and its effect on an organization’s strategic objectives. Model performance is evaluated using the US Air Force’s facility portfolio, which has been previously assessed, treating facility replicability and interruptability as minimization objectives. The fuzzy logic inference system is built to account for these objectives, but as proof of ease-of-adaptation, facility dependency is added as an additional risk assessment criterion.

Results of the fuzzy logic-based approach show a high degree of consistency with the traditional approach, though the value of the information provided by the framework developed here is considerably higher, as it creates a continuous set of facility prioritizations that are unbiased. The fuzzy logic framework is likely suitable for implementation by diverse, spatially distributed organizations in which decision-makers seek to balance risk assessment complexity with an output value.

This paper fills the identified need for portfolio management strategies that focus on prioritizing projects by risk to organizational operations or objectives.

This research aims to explore leadership approaches that foster deeper learning and facilitate the transition from traditional schooling to a model aligned with the demands of the post-industrial digital knowledge society.

Employing a mixed-methods approach, the authors conducted surveys among school principals within a network of schools embracing deeper learning based on ten distinct but interlocking criteria that define this particular model of deeper learning. Through in-depth follow-up interviews with school leaders, the authors investigated the factors and obstacles that support sustainable implementation and scalability of deeper learning, with a specific focus on the role of transformational leadership.

During the implementation of transformative practices like deeper learning, school leaders demonstrate diverse perspectives on the necessary changes for their successful integration. Leaders inclined toward a “transactional” leadership style concentrate on changes within individual classrooms. Conversely, leaders exemplifying “transformational leadership” possess a broader vision and address systemic factors such as teacher collaboration, assessment regulations and the effective utilization of time and space within schools. To achieve widespread adoption of deeper learning across schools and the education system, it is essential to recruit more transformational leaders for formal leadership positions and reorient leadership training toward transformational approaches.

The deeper learning model developed for this intervention encompasses a four-stage process: Teachers initially collaborate in small teams to co-design interdisciplinary, deeper learning units. The actual units consist of three sequences: knowledge acquisition, where students gain knowledge through direct instruction supplemented by personalized learning on digital platforms; team-based co-creative and co-constructive tasks facilitated by teachers once students have acquired a solid knowledge base and the completion of authentic tasks, products or performances in sequence III. While small groups of intrinsically motivated teachers have successfully implemented the model, achieving broader scalability and dissemination across schools requires significant “transformational leadership” to challenge traditional norms regarding teacher collaboration, assessment practices and the efficient use of time and space in schools.

This paper presents a structured model of deeper learning based on ten distinct but interlocking quality criteria tested within a network of 26 schools. The model has demonstrated transformative effects on participating schools, albeit primarily observed in smaller substructures of large secondary schools. Teachers who previously worked independently have begun to collaboratively design learning experiences, resulting in “hybrid” classrooms where physical and digital spaces merge and extend to include maker spaces and out-of-school learning environments. Traditional summative assessments have been replaced by various forms of embedded formative assessment. However, these innovations are currently driven by small groups of intrinsically motivated teachers. The research provides insights into the type of school leadership necessary for comprehensive scaling and system-wide dissemination of deeper learning.

The aim of the article is to develop a framework for assessment for contemporary commercial music (CCM) in a music department that is still organised in a traditional way. Assessment of CCM in tertiary institutions and external graded music exams were described and analysed, followed by the presentation of an assessment framework.

This research design is a content analysis. Data was collected through purposive sampling of primary sources of CCM syllabi. These syllabi are used descriptively and analytically for comparison.

The major findings from the content analysis are presented as an assessment framework for CCM. The assessment framework has implications for teaching and learning vocal CCM at both undergraduate and postgraduate in higher education.

The study focused on the development of assessment criteria for CCM, in a music department where no degree specialisation for CCM exists, and CCM is manifested in the principal instrument only. The framework for assessment may be useful to practitioners and academics who are attempting to introduce CCM in classically oriented music departments and where external constraints prohibit the introduction of a degree specialising in CCM.

This article presents an authentic assessment framework for CCM, that considers its style and performance practices.

This paper investigates the performance assessment of liner shipping industry and presents a multi-dimensional evaluation framework to ensure both financial and non-financial monitoring. The traditional performance assessment approach is based on the financial indicators such as ratio analysis, but it is limited to the fiscal perspective. The meaning of performance has dramatically changed and non-financial (and intangible) assets increased their importance in recent years. Under these circumstances, the multi-attribute performance assessment methods play a critical role to combine many aspects of the business. Balanced Scorecard (BSC) is originally developed for the multi-attribute performance assessment and its philosophy on business process evaluation pioneered the importance of key performance indicators and the quality management issues including the internal customer. Service quality and the business performance assessment are some of the hot issues in the liner shipping industry and the long term competitiveness is a critical concern in the recent liner shipping business. The BSC method is utilized to ensure a cumulative analysis of the short/long and tangible/intangible indicators of performance and computes the weight of each criterion by using Fuzzy-AHP method in the liner shipping industry.

The shift from paper portfolios to e-portfolios has arrived in educational institutions worldwide. This study investigates e-portfolio systems as a means of improving performance-centered assessment, enriching students’ learning experiences and documenting the students’ progress and achievements. The current study reveals the experience of implementing a course-level framework for e-portfolios and an approach taken in initiating student electronic portfolios in the Department of Educational Technology (DET) at Ajman University of Science and Technology, UAE. Data was obtained in several ways, including Likert scale responses and interviews with the participants; students’ journals and final reports; notes from the Practicum site supervisor and the DET lab technician; and analysis of the electronic portfolio product. The work and responses of the Practicum students were compared for three consecutive Practicum classes. Analysis of the results showed that developing formative and summative portfolios fluctuated extensively between the three Practicum classes of DET graduates, as did the outcomes. In spite of this fact, the findings suggested that the use of e-portfolios could serve as an influential learning and assessment tool when driven by a clear understanding of the desired outcome and the specific skills to be assessed, and when sufficiently mentored, peer-reviewed, and based on sensible principles.