A New Linkage for the Assessment of Prior Learning

Technology can help to develop new approaches for today’s assessment practice. This contribution presents a project that concentrates on the use of electronic portfolios and Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA) to assess prior learning experiences of learners. After an introduction the assessment triangle is presented as a reference framework. The role of the electronic portfolio for prior learning assessment is identified. Latent Semantic Analysis is introduced as an innovative assessment technology. A report about a recently conducted cased study at the Open University of the Netherlands follows. A problem discussion and research outlook rounds up the article.