One concern that teachers have when assessing is the problem of detecting whether learners have done original work. This, with the need to recognise diverse learning styles and intelligences, has led to a wide range of assessment methods being used so that no group is advantaged or disadvantaged. The following list is by no means meant to be exhaustive, but provides some initial ideas, all of which should be used only when it is approporiate to do so.

Open book test: The advantage of open book test is that they measure how well learners are able to use information, rather than just recall information. The teacher will have to pose questions that do not require straightforward "lookup" answers.

Set questions: Assessing learners' ability to ask questions that stimulate thinking about a topic will expose the depth of understanding of a topic, but if the learner's do not receive some coaching on open-ended questions it may only assess their ability to ask open-ended questions.

Prepare learning materials: The best way of learning is to teach. By asking groups of learners to prepare units of work is a novel way of assessing the depth of their knowledge and understanding. This could lend itelf to their working with various multimedia and/or ICT production tools.

Simulations: Being involved in role-playing real-life scenarios provides the learners with the opportunity to ask questions and solve problems while applying their knowledge as well as their collaborative and information skills.

Planning writing and annotating bibliographies: Instead of asking learners to write essays you could, as an alternative, test their understanding by looking at the evidence of their planning and research. Providing a structured essay plan can provide evidence of how much the learner knows about the topic, what questions they will be engaging with and what background reading they have done. It also serves as a useful exercise in planning for future essay writing. Similarly, providing an annotated bibliography in which each reference is annotated with an evaluation of how it answers the question or adds to the argument, provides evidence of the depth of understanding that learners have for the topic.

Interviews: Interviews could be done formally or informally. Informal discussions provide the essential continuous feedback and mentoring that helps learners to express their thinking, their understanding and to provide feedback to ensure that their understanding is correct. More formally, interviews could provide an oral form of assessment. This could be done on a group basis by conducting focus group interviews.

Products: The output of learning activities could have a wide variety of formats. Some could be straight written documents, but the same outcomes could be tested through creative expression such as artwork, music or drama, especially if the presentation is accompanied by discussion or questions and answers sessions. Other forms of presentation include slide show presentations (using a slide projector or an application such as MS PowerPoint), newspapers, itineraries, posters etc.

Portfolios: It is probably not reasonable to expect learners to manage and accumulate major portfolios on their own, but with the correct support they could provide a range of documentation and other evidence that will enable the teacher to assess the process of learning and whether the identified outcomes have been reached. Portfolios are a means of developing and assessing organisational skills.

Observation: If you have an assessment tool that identifies the criteria it is possible to assess as you observe learners in action, either as you observe or after the lesson. Many skills can only be assessed by observation because their may not be effective ways of gathering evidence in any other way. For instance, oral communication skills, social skills and certain practical skills (such as piano playing) are best assessed while being observed.