The study highlights a growing gap between curriculum expectations and classroom realities. While teachers are encouraged to assess communication, collaboration, and creativity, many still struggle to design clear and practical assessment instruments that align with project-based learning.
Why Authentic Assessment Matters in English Education
English education has shifted toward developing 21st-century competencies, including critical thinking, collaboration, and real-world communication. Traditional written tests are no longer sufficient to capture these skills, especially in project-based learning environments where students must present ideas, work in teams, and produce meaningful outputs.
Authentic assessment addresses this need by evaluating students through real-life tasks such as presentations, portfolios, and performance-based projects. These approaches are widely promoted in global education policy and Indonesia’s national curriculum. However, implementation varies widely across regions, particularly outside major urban centers.
Gultom’s research is significant because it focuses on Eastern Indonesia, a region often underrepresented in education research, and provides a grounded picture of how authentic assessment is practiced in everyday classrooms.
How the Study Was Conducted
The research used a descriptive qualitative approach to capture authentic classroom experiences without manipulating teaching conditions.
Key elements of the methodology included:
- Participants:
Two English teachers, eight secondary school students, and two curriculum staff members from a school in Jayapura. - Data collection:
Classroom observations, in-depth interviews, and document analysis of lesson plans, assessment rubrics, student projects, and school policies. - Analysis:
Thematic analysis was applied to identify recurring patterns related to assessment strategies, student experiences, and institutional support.
This multi-perspective approach allowed the researcher to compare teacher intentions, student perceptions, and policy-level expectations in one coherent analysis.
Common Forms of Authentic Assessment in Practice
The study found that teachers have adopted several forms of authentic assessment aligned with project-based learning, including:
- Performance-based rubrics to assess presentations and group work
- Project portfolios to document student progress
- Final project presentations to evaluate communication skills
These assessment forms reflect global best practices in English language teaching and are designed to evaluate both learning processes and final products.
Teachers reported that rubrics help make grading more objective, while portfolios allow them to track student development over time. Students also recognized that presentations gave them opportunities to explain their work in English, even though many felt anxious about speaking.
Persistent Challenges in Rubric Clarity
Despite using authentic assessment tools, the study uncovered a major weakness: unclear assessment indicators.
Teachers acknowledged difficulty in translating learning competencies into specific, measurable rubric criteria. As a result, students often did not fully understand what aspects of their work were being assessed.
Students reported that they focused on completing projects without clear guidance on how performance levels were defined. Curriculum staff also noted that teachers needed additional support and training to design transparent and student-friendly rubrics.
According to an ethical paraphrase of Gultom’s findings from Universitas Cenderawasih, the main problem is not the absence of assessment rubrics, but the lack of clarity and consistency in how assessment criteria are formulated and communicated.
Time Constraints and Student Readiness
The research also identified limited instructional time as a major barrier. Project-based learning requires extended periods for planning, collaboration, feedback, and reflection. However, English classes are often scheduled only a few times per week, leaving little room for deep assessment.
Teachers reported difficulty providing detailed feedback, while students felt unprepared for independent research and sustained collaboration in English. Many students needed more structured guidance to begin projects and manage group work effectively.
These findings suggest that authentic assessment cannot succeed in isolation. It requires alignment between curriculum demands, realistic scheduling, and gradual development of student learning skills.
The Role of School Policy and Support
School-level support emerged as a critical factor. Although the school encouraged authentic assessment through internal policies, the support was not yet systematic. Training on rubric design and assessment literacy was limited, and monitoring of assessment quality was minimal.
The study emphasizes that authentic assessment works best when teachers, students, and curriculum staff operate within a shared framework supported by clear policies and professional development.
Implications for Education Practice
The findings carry important implications:
- Teachers need targeted training in designing clear, measurable, and transparent rubrics.
- Schools should provide realistic schedules and institutional support for project-based learning.
- Curriculum developers can use the findings to refine assessment guidelines, especially for schools in non-urban areas.
- Policymakers gain evidence that assessment reform must consider regional context and resource availability.
The research reinforces the idea that authentic assessment strengthens language learning, but only when supported by coherent design and implementation.
Author Profile
Monika Gultom
Lecturer and researcher in English education
Universitas Cenderawasih, Indonesia
Expertise: English language assessment, project-based learning, and secondary
education pedagogy
Source
Article title: Analysis of Authentic Assessment Practices in
Project-Based English Learning at the Secondary School Level
Journal: Asian Journal of Applied Education
Year: 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.55927/ajae.v5i1.15932
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